Read More: David Akers (K – SFX), Eli Manning (QB – NYG), Mario Manningham (WR – NYG), New York Giants

The San Francisco 49ers hung on to win at home against the New York Giants, 27-20, Sunday afternoon at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. The 49ers are now 8-1 in the NFC West. The Giants fall to 6-3 in the NFC East. 

The first half stayed extremely close with both teams scoring a combined 15 points, all by field goal. It was a defensive outing from both sides with neither quarterback really establishing a rhythm. San Francisco’s kicker David Akers continued to be clutch from range, finding accuracy at 52 yards out. 

The second half is when the game opened up. Eli Manning put the Giants ahead 13-12 with a beautiful 13 yard pass to Mario Manningham with two minutes remaining in the third quarter. It was in the fourth quarter that Alex Smith and the 9ers hit their stride and ran on all cylinders with Smith connecting with Vernon Davis to put San Francisco ahead. They opted to go for the two point conversion which they were successful on when Smith found an open Michael Crabtree in the endzone. They were quick on the turn around going up another touchdown when running back Kendall Hunter rushed to the left side putting them ahead 27-13. 

Eli Manning drove the Giants down the field with 8:37 remaining to connect on a pass down the sideline to Hakeem Nick for 32 yards. New York had one final opportunity to tie the game at the close but were unsuccessful on a 4th and 2 when Eli’s pass was batted down by Justin Smith. 

The New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers are two of the biggest surprises at the halfway point of the season in the National Football League.

The 49ers (7-1), who have a comfortable lead in the NFC West, and the NFC East-leading Giants (6-2) meet Sunday in a mid-season clash.

“We just feel like this is a team, it’s not individual play no more,” said tackle Ricky Jean Francois of San Francisco, who can move closer to clinching a division title before the end of the month by extending their longest winning streak in 14 years.

The Giants have failed to make it to the post-season each of the last two seasons. They are two games ahead of the second-placed Dallas Cowboys and three ahead of the Philadelphia Eagles, who were expected to dominate the division.

But that has not happened and the Giants bolstered their status as viable contenders for a division title by beating the New England Patriots 24-20 last week, as quarterback Eli Manning hit tight end Jake Ballard for a one-yard touchdown pass with 15 seconds left in the game.

While New York’s rise has been unexpected, the 49ers surprisingly have the NFL’s second-best record under first-year coach Jim Harbaugh. San Francisco have finished at or below .500 in each of the past eight years.

“A lot of people doubted us, a lot of people put us out because we didn’t have an offseason, we had a whole new staff, we’re going to be lost and running around with our heads cut off,” Francois said.

“But with the dedication and all the time everybody put aside to build it we weren’t going to have no lacking.”

The 49ers have the league’s top-ranked run defense, yielding 70.8 yards per game and 61.3 over the last three games.

In another key Sunday matchup, the New York Jets meet their rivals the New England Patriots. It has been four weeks since the Jets lost to the Patriots, and subsequently had their postseason hopes called into question.

Jets coach Rex Ryan would love nothing more than to give the Patriots a similar experience.

The now red-hot Jets have a chance at MetLife Stadium to send the struggling Patriots to their first three-game losing skid in nine years. The Jets are 4-0 at home this season.

“Both teams are going to be humming for this one, no question,” Ryan said. “You can sugarcoat it all you want, but they know they need it and we know we need it. Both teams are going to be hungry.”

In the Monday night game, the Green Bay Packers will try to keep their perfect record intact by tightening up on the defensive end when they host the Minnesota Vikings.

“We’re 8-0. We’ve earned it,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “But we have expectations and the level of play that not only the individual expects of himself but what we expect of each position, each unit.”

Despite returning two interceptions for touchdowns last Sunday, the Packers conceded its most points of the season and almost blew a 21-point lead in a 45-38 win over the Chargers in San Diego.

The reigning Super Bowl champion Packers (8-0) are off to their best start since opening with 10 consecutive victories in 1962.

The Vikings do not plan to back down, said receiver Percy Harvin.

“We’ve shown on tape that if we execute, we can play with any team in this league,” he said.

This week’s action kicked off Thursday night as the Oakland Raiders seized first place in the AFC West by beating the San Diego Chargers 24-17.

Carson Palmer threw two touchdown passes and Michael Bush ran 30 times for a season-high 157 yards and one touchdown to lead the Raiders over the Chargers, who suffered their fourth-straight loss.

Other games on Sunday are Rams at Browns, Steelers at Bengals, Saints at Falcons, Bills at Cowboys, Titans at Panthers, Broncos at Chiefs, Jaguars at Colts, Cardinals at Eagles, Texans at Buccaneers, Redskins at Dolphins, Ravens at Seahawks and Lions at Bears.

By Jordan Sams

– Newsdesk contributor

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Nov 12, 2011 – The New York Giants – who have been bitten by the injury bug all season long – added another surprise player to their injury report today, one day prior to their game against the NFC West-leading San Francisco 49ers. 

Wide receiver Mario Manningham is now listed as questionable for Sunday’s game with a knee injury according to Mike Mazzeo and Ohm Youngmisuk from ESPN New York:

Mario Manningham (knee) has been added to the Giants’ injury report and is questionable for Sunday afternoon’s game in San Francisco. Manningham, along with Hakeem Nicks, is considered to be a game-time decision according to a source.

Manningham has been a full participant in practice all week, but his right knee swelled Saturday morning. The fourth-year receiver has 27 receptions for 323 yards and two touchdowns this season. If he sits out Sunday, it will be the second game he has missed with injury this year.

– Visit Big Blue View for complete Giants coverage and our team page for news, statistics, schedules and more.

Read More: Mario Manningham (WR – NYG), Hakeem Nicks (WR – NYG), New York Giants, San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants at San Francisco 49ers, Nov 13, 2011 4:15 PM EST

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The San Francisco 49ers will host the New York Giants in a battle that should determine who the NFC’s second-best team is. The 49ers have won six consecutive games while the Giants have won three consecutive games since getting upset by the Seattle Seahawks.

Both teams have significant injuries to overcome for this game. How will they affect each team? Here are just a few of those injuries and what to expect about their availability.

New York Giants: WR Hakeem Nicks(notes)

Led by Patrick Willis(notes), the 49ers have the NFL’s No. 1 run defense as they surrender just over 70 yards per game. The Giants have the NFL’s 29^th-ranked run offense as they average fewer than 89 yards per game.

The Giants will likely rely on Eli Manning(notes) and his receivers if they’re going to pull off a road upset. There are some concerns about Hakeem Nicks as he wasn’t able to participate in practice on November 9, 2011. Nicks didn’t play against the New England Patriots because of a sore hamstring. Fortunately, Nicks should be ready. Nicks has been able to run on the hamstring with little trouble.

New York Giants: RB Ahmad Bradshaw(notes)

The Giants’ run offense was already floundering before Ahmad Bradshaw suffered a foot fracture in their victory over the Buffalo Bills on October 30. Bradshaw had already missed the game against the Patriots. He still hasn’t returned to the practice field as of November 10. It doesn’t appear like Bradshaw will be available against the 49ers.

San Francisco 49ers: WR Michael Crabtree(notes)

The 49ers had already lost Josh Morgan(notes) to a season-ending injury after he broke his leg . Crabtree has been playing through a foot injury. However, it’s highly unlikely that he wouldn’t play against the Giants.

San Francisco 49ers: RB Frank Gore(notes)

The Giants aren’t the only team with a hobbling running back. Frank Gore was limping after the 49ers’ 19-11 victory over the Washington Redskins on November 6. Gore was diagnosed with an ankle injury and has been limited at practice throughout the week. Gore is critical to the 49ers as he’s the NFL’s third-leading rusher with 782 yards. He’s had five consecutive 100-yard rushing performances.

Jim Harbaugh and Gore don’t appear concerned. Gore insists that he’s alright and that he’ll be ready for the Giants.

Other Notable Injuries: C David Baas(notes), DT Ray McDonald(notes), OL Stacy Andrews(notes), DE Osi Umenyiora(notes), WR Jerrel Jernigan(notes), CB Prince Amukamara(notes)

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	   The most runs scored by a single team in a World Series game, with final
score, game number and year:
	   18 -- New York Yankees 18, New York Giants 4, Game 2, 1936.
	   16 -- St. Louis 16, Texas 7, Game 3, 2011.
	   16 -- San Francisco 16, Anaheim 4, Game 5, 2002.
	   16 -- New York Yankees 16, Pittsburgh 3, Game 2, 1960.
	   15 -- Arizona Diamondbacks 15, New York Yankees 2, Game 6, 2001.
	   15 -- Toronto 15, Philadelphia 14, Game 4, 1993.
	   14 -- Florida 14, Cleveland 11, Game 3, 1997.
	   14 -- Philadelphia 14, Toronto 15, Game 4, 1993.
	   14 -- Atlanta 14, Minnesota 5, Game 5, 1991.
	   13 -- Boston 13, Colorado 1, Game 1, 2007.
	   13 -- Oakland 13, San Francisco 7, Game 3, 1989.
	   13 -- St. Louis 13, Milwaukee 1, Game 6, 1982.
	   13 -- Detroit 13, St. Louis 1, Game 6, 1968.
	   13 -- New York Yankees 13, Cincinnati 5, Game 5, 1961.
	   13 -- Milwaukee 13, New York Yankees 5, Game 2, 1958.
	   13 -- Brooklyn 13, New York Yankees 8, Game 2, 1956.
	   13 -- New York Yankees 13, New York Giants 1, Game 5, 1951.
	   13 -- New York Yankees 13, New York Giants 5, Game 6, 1936.
	   13 -- New York Yankees 13, Chicago Cubs 6, Game 4, 1932.
	   13 -- New York Giants 13, New York Yankees 5, Game 3, 1921.
	   13 -- Philadelphia Athletics 13, New York Giants 2, Game 6, 1911.