San Francisco 35, St. Louis 16: Mike Singletary Gets First Win

Just one week after dropping a head-scratching, last-second loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the 49ers responded on Sunday as they pounded the Rams into submission, 35-16, giving Mike Singletary his first win as an NFL head coach. With the win, the 49ers improve to 3-7, which is good enough for second place in the NFC West. That's just crazy. It also snapped what had been a six-game losing streak.

San Francisco blew the game open with 28 second quarter points, as Shaun Hill completed 15-of-20 passes for 213 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He connected with Vernon Davis and Bryant Johnson for scores in the second quarter onslaught.

Frank Gore led the 49ers with 106 yards on 18 carries, while also scoring on runs of one and five yards. So, what was the difference between this week's game and the meltdown in the final minutes of this past Monday's game? Obviously it was Singletary's five-point plan for success. For the most part, the 49ers were successful in nearly all areas of the plan, so, hip-hip-hurray for progress.

As for the Rams? Ugh. Aside from getting embarrassed in the first half, the loss was their fourth in a row after an initial two-game winning streak under Jim Haslett.

They managed to narrow the gap somewhat in the second half, picking up a couple of Josh Brown field goals, while Dane Looker hauled in a two-yard touchdown catch from Marc Bulger. Way too little, way too late. Bulger finished the game completing 34-of-53 passes for 295 yards. He also threw two interceptions, lost a fumble, and was sacked four times.

During their current four-game losing streak, the Rams have been outscored 139-48, including 116-32 over the previous three games. Naturally, the Rams have the league's worst point differential, as they've given up a league-high 317 points, while only scoring 144. Only the Raiders have scored fewer points through the first ten games.