Posted on: Monday, December 3, 2001

49ers prepare for Rams with rout of Bills

By Greg Beacham
Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO — There was no looking ahead by the San Francisco 49ers. Instead, they stared straight at the woeful Buffalo Bills — with impressive results.

Garrison Hearst rushed for 124 yards and a touchdown, and Ahmed Plummer had two of San Francisco's four interceptions to lead the 49ers to their first shutout of the season, a 35-0 victory over the Bills last night.

Sunday's showdown with the St. Louis Rams looms so large that 49ers coach Steve Mariucci admitted his team might have been tempted to think past Buffalo. But his young team gave Mariucci another reason to praise its maturity with overwhelming performances on both sides of the ball.

"It was one of the more dominating games we've had around here in a while," said Mariucci, who wore an ice pack on his left shin after a sideline run-in with quarterback Jeff Garcia.

During their implausible run to a tie for the NFL's best record at 9-2, the 49ers specialized in escaping from trouble. They've already matched an NFL record with four overtime games, and they had only one win by more than 10 points.

But against bumbling Buffalo (1-10) on a typically blustery night on Candlestick Point, the young 49ers pounded the Bills.

Despite taking several hard hits, Garcia had another outstanding game. He was 19-of-27 for 189 yards and two TDs, completing his first nine passes before hitting Tai Streets for his first career TD and Terrell Owens for his league-leading 13th score of the season.

"We hit him in the mouth, and he was fogged, but his toughness showed through," Bills coach Gregg Williams said. "That was the only point where we were physical enough to match up with that team. We weren't good enough."

San Francisco's J.J. Stokes had eight catches for 68 yards. Hearst had another steady game, while fullback Fred Beasley scored his first TD of the season.

Moreover, the 49ers' offensive line was simply overwhelming. Even Paul Smith, the 49ers' fourth-string running back, got his first NFL touchdown with 3:08 remaining after the Bills' fourth turnover.