The 49ers better be ready to hit the ground running after their bye week since they have to line up against a pretty good Huston Texans team who is fighting to get their way into the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. On top of that with the Cardinals, who are tied with the Niners for the NFC west division lead, playing the Giants this week becomes a good chance to retake sole position of the division once again.

The key to a 49ers victory this week will be containing Andre Johnson, easier said than done no doubt but if the Niners can do to him what they did to Larry Fitzgerald in week one then it would greatly help their chances of winning. The trick, however, is to not pay too much attention to Johnson because with Owen Daniels and Kevin Walter on the field Matt Schaub finally has legitimate secondary targets and Schaub has shown that if he is given time he can find those secondary receivers to dink and dunk his way down the field.  The other factor will be putting pressure on Schaub as successfully as they did on Kurt Warner, to continue the week one comparisons. This offense has done a good job avoiding sacks (Schaub has only been sacked ten times in six games) thanks to improved pass protection for Schaub and a good group of receivers for him to throw to, however, the Niners don’t need sacks as much as they need to disrupt the rhythm of Garry Kubiak’s offense that is largely predicated on timing and rhythm to work its way down the field. This might be tough to make happen though if a defensive linemen other than Justin Smith fails to show up big in this game. Smith has been a beast all season, he has a motor that never quits and loves how Greg Manusky lets him attack the back field but he can’t create the pressure all by himself and it would help for Isaac Sopoaga and Aubrayo Franklin to have big games to ensure that happens and unfortunately those two have been a little hot/cold this season.

Stopping the Texans running game shouldn’t be as much of a problem for the Niners seeing as the Texans have failed to rush for over 100 yards in four of the six games they have played this year and have not yet rushed for more than 120 yards as a team in a single game. Combine that with the fact that the Niners rushing defense has only allowed more than 100 yards rushing against them once so far this season and I don’t see the Texans running game creating many problems. The only case in which I could see that happening is if the Niners become too aggressive in their pass rushing and Kubiak (a very good play caller) takes advantage of that by dialing up screens and draws. But Manusky has done a good job calling plays defensively so far this season and as long as that trend continues (and I see no reason for it not too) then the Niners have a good chance to hold another team to under 100 yards rushing.

On offense the 49ers again look like they match up well. The Texans’ defense has failed to live up to their talent level so far this year and have done particularly poorly against run first teams such as the Jaguars and Titans (both of whom put up 31 points on the Texans) and neither of those teams have a particularly explosive offense. That should also mean that this will be a good first game back for Frank Gore. The coaching staff wont want to rush him back to the bell-cow role just yet but with Glen Coffee and Michael Robinson healthy behind him I doubt that Gore will need to carry the ball more than 15 or so times for the Niners to be successful on the ground.

I am a little worried about how well the Niners offensive line will hold up in this game. The Texans’ front seven isn’t amazing by any stretch of the imagination but they definitely have talent. Mario Williams has proven himself to be a great pass rusher and left tackle Joe Staley should have his hands full with him but I am particularly worried about the middle of the Niner offensive line. With their guard play being below average so far this season I am concerned about how well they will be able to keep the physical presence of Amobi Okoye in check, add to that the possibility of DeMeco Ryans and/or Brian Cushing rushing up the middle and the Niners could have problems. This would be a great game to see Eric Heitmann return to where he was a year or two ago and regain control over the middle of the line of scrimmage, if not look for Moran Norris to stay in to help block often.

Of course the most exciting part of the game for many 49er fans will be to see how well Michael Crabtree does now that he will finally step on the field as a 49er. So far all of the signs and words coming out of the organization have been good, every one has been impressed with how good of shape he is in, how crisp his routes are, and most importantly he has apparently adopted the right attitude and is there to help the team. The official plan for Crabtree is to start him on the left side, replacing Josh Morgan, and have Morgan spell Crabtree the majority of the snaps so although Crabtree will be starting expect to see Morgan on the field more often. This leaves Issac Bruce to continue starting on the right side despite his drop off in production so far this year. From what I understand the staff is keeping Bruce in the starting line up to help out Shaun Hill on 3rd downs since Bruce is the most reliable route runner on the team and for a quarterback there is nothing that can replace knowing that a receiver is going to be where he is supposed to be on 3rd down when you’re feeling the pressure from a strong pass rush.

As usual I am calling for a 49er victory here, 21-17 with Crabtree getting a couple catches for 30 or so yards. If they lose this game however, that will put the Niners in a tough spot. Granted the Cardinals will most likely lose this weekend to the Giants so the Niners wont have to worry about dropping back a game in the division, but for a young team and a young head coach this is a great opportunity to gain some ground, and good teams take advantage of opportunities.