In Brief
[**Super Bowl Journey**'s first installment on
Vernon Davis follows him as he spends his bye weekend in Miami with his brother,
Vontae Davis, who also has the weekend off.
Last meeting:
In the only meeting between these teams, Joe Nedney connected on a 33-yard field goal in overtime to lift the Niners over the Texans, 20-17, in Week 17 of the 2005 season.
Streaks:
See above.
Last week:
Houston went into Cincinnati and handled the soaring Bengals with relative ease in a 28-17 victory. ... San Francisco was on a bye.
Keep your eye on ...
Matt Schaub's hot streak: Since a lackluster Week 1 performance, Schaub has put up stunning statistics. He has 1,644 passing yards, 14 touchdowns and only four interceptions in the past five weeks. He will look to continue his remarkable run against a 49ers defense that was torched for 329 yards passing in its last outing.
Texans QB Matt Schaub has been on a roll over the past few weeks.
(Bill Nichols / Associated Press)
Houston's maddening inconsistency: The 3-3 Texans have alternated wins and losses the entire season. Their reputation under coach Gary Kubiak is to mix outstanding wins with head-scratching losses. Since they won last week in Cincy, they would seem ready to lose at home to the Niners. Will the Texans be able to snap their rollercoaster nature and put together a winning streak?
Michael Crabtree's debut: After a lengthy holdout, San Francisco's rookie wide receiver is expected to see plenty of action against the Texans and may even get the start. With RB Frank Gore expected back for the Niners, they may focus mostly on the ground game, but it will be interesting to see how Crabtree is utilized against the Texans' 19th-ranked pass defense.
Did you know?
Niners RB Frank Gore has the most rushing yards in the NFC since 2006 (4,074). ... San Francisco DE Justin Smith has played against the Texans three times and has won all three games. ... The Texans have won five consecutive games at home against the NFC. ... When Schaub has a 100-plus passer rating, Houston is 9-3.
