SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The defense held an opponents top back under 100 yards rushing for the first time since the opener, Colin Kaepernick and the offense delivered a few big plays and the San Francisco 49ers were competitive until the end.Despite clear signs of progress Sunday, that all added up to an eighth straight loss for the Niners when they lost 23-20 to the Arizona Cardinals on a last-second field goal.I dont think anybody is patting themselves on the back for being close with Arizona, coach Chip Kelly said Monday. Thats not what this deal is all about. Its about winning. At the end of the day we didnt make enough plays. We probably made one less play than they did and they ended up winning the game on the last play of the game. Thats what its all about.But after losing by an average of more than 17 points the previous seven games with the closest defeat being a seven-point loss to Dallas last month, having a chance to win late was a major step forward for the 49ers (1-8).The biggest difference for San Francisco came on the defensive end where David Johnson was held to 55 yards on 19 carries and Arizona finished with just 80 yards for the game on the ground.The Niners had allowed a 100-yard rusher for seven straight games -- the longest streak in NFL history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau -- and was on pace to give up the most yards rushing in a season in 36 years.Johnson had run for 157 yards and two touchdowns in a 33-21 win for the Cardinals last month in Santa Clara but struggled to get going at all against that defense in the rematch.First and foremost, I think we tackled better, Kelly said. That was the least amount of missed tackles that we had on the season in that game.The offense has also shown signs of improvement the more Kaepernick plays. After failing to complete even half his passes in his first two starts in place of Blaine Gabbert, Kaepernick has been much more effective since the bye.He threw for 398 yards and two TDs on Nov. 6 against New Orleans and then went 17 for 30 for 210 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions against the Cardinals. He also ran for 55 yards, including the game-tying touchdown with 1:55 to play.I think our guys have an understanding and a feeling of how were moving forward offensively and starting to kind of understand how things work off of things, Kelly said. Theyre being able to answer some of the questions that are being presented to them. They kind of get a feel for where we are. So, were still a ways away, 20 points a game isnt enough in this league. We still need to score more than that and we need to capitalize.The Niners failed to take full advantage of the four turnovers the defense generated. Twice they started drives in Cardinals territory following turnovers only to punt.The most costly came late in the third quarter when San Francisco got to the Arizona 28 following an interception by Eric Reid. But a dropped pass by Chris Harper and two holding penalties took the Niners out of field position and they punted.The task doesnt get any easier for the Niners this week with Tom Brady and the New England Patriots set to visit fresh off a home loss to Seattle. San Francisco needs a win to avoid tying the longest losing streak in franchise history: a nine-gamer in 1978 that led to the hiring of Bill Walsh as coach the following season.You get a chance to play against Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, Kelly said. If that doesnt get your blood boiling, then youre in the wrong sport.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLCheap Air Jordan 6 Retro Black Friday . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Cheap Air Jordan 15 Retro Black Friday . Jay Feely kicked a 41-yard field goal in overtime, and the Cardinals edged the Tennessee Titans 37-34 in overtime after blowing a 17-point lead late in the fourth quarter. http://www.airjordandealsblackfriday.com/ . -- Peyton Manning will have all of his wide receivers available for the first time in a month when the Denver Broncos begin their playoff run Jan. Cheap Nike Air Jordan Retro . The CFLs leading rusher kept adding to his gaudy numbers this season and scored the winning touchdown with just over two minutes to play. 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Robinson was injured in a spill underneath the Nuggets basket during the first quarter of Wednesday nights loss to the Charlotte Bobcats.Washington Redskins players and coaches couldnt shake the pit-in-the-stomach feeling after playing to a tie with the Cincinnati Bengals.A week after a last-minute loss at the Detroit Lions, they went into their bye week 4-3-1 and not quite sure how to feel.The Redskins sit in last place in the unexpectedly strong NFC East, and uncertainty about situational defense, red zone offense and a four-game suspension to Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams has them feeling uneasy.Were not in a great position, but were not in a bad position right now at 4-3-1, linebacker Ryan Kerrigan said.Were still over .500 and we know were still right in the thick of things with the NFC East and weve still got a bunch of NFC East games left. Were right there, weve just got to find a way to get healthy over the bye week and then come back and win some pretty big games.Coach Jay Gruden called being in last place a little disappointing, a description that just about sums up Washingtons first half -- even after quarterback Kirk Cousins led a four-game winning streak to climb out of an 0-2 hole. The upcoming schedule of games against the Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals makes it a perilous situation.The climb back to the playoffs is more difficult because the Redskins have to face those four opponents without Williams, suspended four games for violating the NFLs substance abuse policy. Its Williams second four-game suspension after serving one in 2011, only this time itll force Ty Nsekhe into important duty for a crucial stretch.Keeping the running game clicking without Williams is a substantial challenge, though the bigger one may be splitting up carries between fumble-prone starter Matt Jones, undrafted rookie Robert Kelley, third-down back Chris Thompson and even preseason favorite Mack Brown. Jones missed the Bengals game with a knee injury and even if healthy may not shoulder the load anymore.If we had a clear-cut, No. 1 guy, it would bbe different, Gruden said.dddddddddddd I think we have four really good backs. Its just a matter of you only have one ball.We have five, six, seven really good receivers and tight ends and we just have to distribute the ball properly and try to keep everybody off-balance with our running game and passing game.Finding balance is all well and good, but the Redskins would really like to find the end zone more. At 40 percent efficiency, theyre second-last in the NFL, despite having difficult-to-cover tight end Jordan Reed and receivers DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon to throw to.We have to get better in the red zone, without a doubt, Gruden said. Were not going to concede to anything. We understand the importance of the red zone and converting drives into touchdowns. Whether its run or pass, weve got to take a long look at it and find our best ways to get the ball to our best weapons down there and convert.On the other side of the ball, Washington is 29th in third-down defense. Gruden said thats part of the situational football the Redskins will try to get better at coming out of the bye.Effort isnt the question. Execution is.Im sure there will be a lot of things we can correct, but I think the more we play together, the better we are, linebacker Will Compton said.Gruden sees coachable fixes to problems, and Kerrigan believes the Redskins still have their best ahead of them. They have to if theyre going to repeat as a playoff team.Nothings going to get easier, defensive end Chris Baker said. Weve got a lot of great opponents coming up, so weve just got to heal our bodies up and get a chance to get away from football this week. Heal up if youve got any injuries and get back and get ready to finish a really tough season.---Freelancer Zac Boyer in London contributed.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '
