Some observations:
* I thought it was apropos that the 49ers squandered chances at the end of the first half and end of the game when they chose intentional roll outs. Those plays have extremely low success rate in the NFL, as I've posted often recently. You essentially cut off half the field on yourself. Phil Simms summarized well, "The defense rolls with you." Apparently many of the coordinators don't study the situational percentages.
* Kaepernick has a great arm but lacks ideal touch. I was rooting for the Ravens and didn't mind when the 49ers were starting on the 7 yard line on the final drive, as opposed to 15 yard line or inside the 5. That was similar to the predicament the Falcons faced at the end of the game against San Francisco. It's too far to be confident about running it in, yet the passing windows are tightened. Brady and Rodgers can adjust to any evolving requirement of the play but Kaepernick too often can merely wing it on a line. He missed a touchdown early in the game when Ed Reed forced his hand. I thought the 49ers should have tried Kaepernick's feet at least once, like Vince Young scoring the winning touchdown on 4th down against USC in 2005
* Baltimore and Flacco always seem like a lazy team and offense, not particularly bothered when they blow key opportunities. Consequently I never thought they'd pull out the ultimate prize. Even yesterday it showed up, failing to convert touchdowns on their final two drives. They had a stupid hurried play call at the 1 yard line on 3rd down, then Pitta drops the vital 3rd down play on the next drive. Classic Ravens, like the end zone drop against New England last season. Somehow they got away with it this time.
* The 4th down play to end the game was extremely reminiscent of the controversial 4th down overtime play between Miami and Ohio State 10 years ago. I thought of it immediately. Obviously I'm biased but I prefer it this way, decided on the field. Marshall Faulk made the valid point, that the defenders had been allowed to play aggressively in the secondary all game long. You can't change the interpretation on the critical play, as Terry Porter did in the Fiesta Bowl. That game, too, had been free of cheap flags in the secondary. Last night the referees saw an immediate blitzer at Kaepernick's feet, and a quick bail out fade pass than lands out of bounds. No way an offense can be rescued in that situation. The coverage looked normal in real speed. Only in super slow motion without focus on Kaepernick's predicament did it seem questionable.
* Jim Harbaugh really screwed up, calling the second time out. I was shocked. It essentially meant one chance instead of two. As long as you have two time outs you'll still retain 50 seconds after the punt,. With one time out you need a miracle. Besides, 5 yards at that stage wasn't a big deal, and actually might have meant more freedom to run different plays.
