
49ers' Gore kept hope through all the adversity
Ray Rice has known nothing but winning since he came into the NFL. For Frank Gore, it took a while. Two running backs with contrasting styles and ...

Who are these guys at QB in Super Bowl?
No Tom Brady. No Aaron Rodgers. No Ben Roethlisberger. Not a Manning in sight. Super Bowl has a pair of fresh faces at quarterback, bona fide nobodies ...

Ravens' Ed Reed agrees with president's concerns
Unlike several players at the Super Bowl, Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed agrees with President Obama that football needs to be made safer. Reed wants ...

49ers boast one of best linebacking corps around
This week in the Big Easy, NaVorro Bowman plans to finally make good on the steak dinner he owes pal Patrick Willis. Bowman is only a couple of months ...

Team flag waves as 49ers arrive for Super Bowl
Jim Harbaugh stepped to the podium, smirked a bit, and greeted his first news conference as a Super Bowl coach. "We're super happy to be here," he ...

Ravens, 49ers bring big-hitting 'D' to Super Bowl
It was as if linebacker Ray Lewis, safety Bernard Pollard and the rest of the Baltimore Ravens' defense set out to provide a quarter-by-quarter ...

Alex Smith handles role with unselfishness, class
Alex Smith ran off the field at Candlestick Park two weeks ago to a standing ovation and cheers from the sellout crowd, not much different from the ...

Charges won't be filed against 49ers' Crabtree
Criminal charges won't be filed against 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree after an alleged sexual assault in a hotel after the team's playoff ...

Jim, John Harbaugh ready for rematch at Super Bowl
Jim and John Harbaugh have exchanged a handful of text messages, and plan to leave it at that. No phone conversations necessary while the season's ...

Harbaugh brothers take 49ers, Ravens to Super Bowl
This Super Bowl will be filled with firsts — and one significant last. The Harbaughs, San Francisco's Jim and Baltimore's John, will be the first pair ...

49ers rally past Falcons 28-24 in NFC title game
The loss stuck with them for a year, pushing the San Francisco 49ers in everything they did. They didn't want to feel that way again. Not to worry.

After Giants win title, Niners getting their shot
When Jim Harbaugh and Alex Smith drove in the Giants' victory parade last fall, players on San Francisco's championship baseball team hoped they might ...

49ers head to Super Bowl, beating Falcons 28-24
The clutch quarterback. The genius coach. The big-play defense. The San Francisco 49ers are ready to start a new dynasty with a familiar formula.

49ers' Crabtree questioned in sexual assault case
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree has voluntarily met with police in their investigation into an alleged sexual assault in a hotel ...

Ravens, 49ers plan different endings
This time, it will be different. That's the mantra the Ravens and 49ers must carry into Sunday's conference championships. One step from the Super ...

Title games feature Ravens-Pats, 49ers-Falcons
One game is a rematch. The other might feel like one — at least to one of the teams. For the second straight year in the AFC, the New England Patriots ...

'Kaepernicking' is all the craze after 49ers win
Move over, Tim Tebow. Kaepernicking is all the craze now. In the wake of San Francisco's 45-31 victory over the Green Bay Packers in Saturday night's ...

Kaepernick gives 49ers new look in NFC title game
Colin Kaepernick stood in a cramped corner of the 49ers' locker room smiling and chatting with Alex Smith late Saturday night when a stranger ...

Kaepernick delivers, 49ers beat Packers 45-31
The unproven kid thoroughly beat the former Super Bowl champion and reigning MVP. With a strong arm that allowed him to pick the Packers apart from ...

Ravens shock Broncos; 49ers rout Packers
The 49ers and Ravens are getting another shot at making the Super Bowl. Losers in tight conference championship games a year ago, they are returning ...

49ers' Kaepernick sets QB playoff rushing record
Colin Kaepernick has set an NFL record for rushing yards by a quarterback in a playoff game. Kaepernick broke Michael Vick's mark of 119 yards with ...

Adrian Peterson, J.J. Watt unanimous All-Pros
It's unanimous, on both sides of the ball. Vikings 2,000-yard man Adrian Peterson and Texans pass-swatting end J.J. Watt were unanimous choices for ...

Strahan, Sapp, Ogden among Hall of Fame finalists
Single-season sacks leader Michael Strahan and two players who tried to block him are among 15 modern-era finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Pro Picks: Patriots to repeat December romp
Bill Belichick insists the rematch of a December game with the Texans will be different. Not too much different, of course, because he fully expects ...

Here come the big boys
Here come the big boys. The NFL's wild-card weekend is over, with nary an upset. Moving on are division winners Green Bay, Houston and Baltimore, ...