49ers vs. Rams: Score and Twitter Reaction from Monday Night Football

Some players are at their best on Saturdays. Others thrive on Sundays. Colin Kaepernick and Anquan Boldin clearly prefer Mondays.

The fourth-year quarterback threw for 343 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions, while Boldin reeled in seven catches for 94 yards and a score, helping the San Francisco 49ers to a 31-17 win over the St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome Monday night.

In four career Monday Night Football games, Kaepernick is now averaging 254.5 passing yards per game with nine touchdowns and no interceptions. The Niners are 4-0 in those contests.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh praised his quarterback's play after the game, via the San Francisco Chronicle's Eric Branch:

Boldin's success under the MNF lights goes back a bit further, as 101Sports.com's Bradford Burns noted:

St. Louis got off to a quick start, but its defense was once again unable to record a sack, allowing Kaepernick to lead the Niners to 432 yards of offense, while a late pick-six from rookie Dontae Johnson sealed the win.

Rotoworld's Evan Silva noted the Rams' historic struggles to take down the QB thus far:

On a night when the Rams paid tribute to the 1999 Super Bowl-winning squad with throwback jerseys, quarterback Austin Davis actually had the offense doing its best "Greatest Show on Turf" impression in the first quarter.

All right, so that's a bit of a stretch, but the Rams were clinically efficient out of the gate, finding the end zone on two of their first three drives to take a 14-0 lead. Benjamin Cunningham's short touchdown run capped off an 11-play, 80-yard drive to start the game. Later in the quarter, Davis fooled Chris Culliver on play action and found a wide-open Lance Kendricks for 22 yards and six more points.

Numbers Never Lie noted Davis' early ability to spread the wealth:

For nearly the rest of the half, the Rams were the better team. They were converting third downs, controlling time of possession and dominating in the trenches on both sides, per Branch:

After playing close to perfect for about 29 minutes and 40 seconds, though, St. Louis lost focus at the worst moment, and it resulted in an 80-yard connection between Kaepernick and Brandon Lloyd to cut the deficit to 14-10 just before halftime.

NFL's Twitter feed provided a look at the crucial play:

It was the first time in nearly a decade the Niners have had a passing play go 80 yards. The receiver on that play, according to Pro Football Reference, is somewhat familiar:

Those who believe in momentum will point to this game as proof, as that play completely turned the contest around.

The Niners followed it up with an 80-yard drive after coming out of the locker room, completed by a fadeaway, back-foot, perfect toss from Kaepernick to Boldin in the back of the end zone.

Former NFL scout John Middlekauff applauded the polarizing QB on his ability to make that kind of magical play:

Michael Crabtree added a 32-yard score after a devastating, ankle-breaking route—possibly one of the best routes you'll see all season—and the defense was able to do the rest. Some questionable play-calling from San Francisco allowed St. Louis to cut the lead to seven with just over two minutes to play.

After a 49ers three-and-out, the Rams got the ball back with a chance to tie the game. The hope for a potential game-tying drive was short-lived, however, as Johnson jumped a throw from Davis and put the game away with a pick-six.

Next Sunday, each of these teams will take on a Super Bowl participant from last year.

The Rams have the unfortunate task of attempting to right the 1-4 ship with a home game against the defending champion Seattle Seahawks. Pete Carroll's defense and offensive line have been ravaged by injuries, but the 'Hawks will be especially focused after a home loss against Dallas this week.

For San Francisco, it's an intriguing Sunday night battle at Mile High against the Denver Broncos.

Slowing down Peyton Manning and that explosive attack won't be easy for the 49ers, especially with Patrick Willis and Jimmie Ward joining the injury report this week, but if Monday night was any indication, the Niners will have one thing working in their favor:

That game will be played in prime time.