49ers vs. Rams: Frank Gore leads San Francisco over St. Louis

• Week 4 picks: Can the Chiefs, Bears stay perfect? | Picks against the spread

• The Notebook: Trouble with Chip’s system

David Fuccillo at Niners Nation explains that it was the performance of the big guys up front that allowed the San Francisco offense to get back on track.

Turf Show Times puts Bradford’s dismal night in perspective.

Early in the game it looked like more of the same. Kaepernick threw for just 11 yards in the first quarter, being sacked once and unable to find open receivers. His passes were off target, often under or overthrowing against a defense offering big cushions. He failed not only to complete passes, but completely missed seeing receivers, wasting opportunities.

Gore remained the star in the first half, breaking two tackles as the clock ran down to score the second touchdown of the game on a 34-yard run.

McDonald was playing near the line of scrimmage when it appears his leg gave way. He remained on the field for several minutes before being placed in a cast and carted off the field for further evaluation.

The rookie out of USC and son of former safety Tim McDonald was selected in the third round of April’s draft. He has started all four games for the Rams in 2013, recording 15 tackles and two passes defended.

Update: Jake Long has re-entered the game in the third quarter.

With 17 seconds left in the first half, Long was blocking a defensive tackle when Niners linebacker Ahmad Brooke was pushed into Long’s leg, causing it to collapse under the him. Long remained down on the field for some time, before walking off under his own power. His return is listed as probable, according to Brian Feldman.

Patton was tackled on a routine catch at the end of the first quarter before receiving a sideline examination from trainers. A short while later, he headed off to the locker room, and he’s listed as questionable to return.

• Week 4 picks: Can the Chiefs, Bears stay perfect? | Picks against the spread

Quarterbacks, don’t have signature celebrations. You will get sacked, and when it happens, you will get mocked by the guy making the sack.

Robert Quinn got to Colin Kaepernick in the first quarter of Thursday night’s Niners-Rams matchup, and sure enough, he kissed his bicep, Kaepernicking:

CB Nnamdi Asomugha (knee)

LB Patrick Willis (groin)

That said, the 49ers are still favored to win it. They opened as 2.5-point favorites, according to OddsShark. The line did move in their favor throughout the week, though only narrowly. Still, they can be had for as much as 3-point favorites on some books.

Having home-field advantage is usually good enough for a 3- or 4-point swing, meaning the 49ers are still well-respected by oddsmakers despite their recent struggles. The over/under for the game is right around 42 points. That total has gone over in eight of San Francisco’s last 10 games, and in five of St. Louis’ last six games at home.

Let’s take a look at both teams below.

On defense, the Rams are pretty middle of the pack. They’ve allowed only 105.0 rushing yards per game, but the secondary has some serious issues, and that unit has been the biggest reason for St. Louis’ losses thus far this season.