Cardinals defensive lineman Olsen Pierre corrals 49ers quarterback C.J. Beathard.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Chandler Jones was too often a one-man wrecking crew in the first seven games of the Cardinals' season.
In Sunday's 20-10 win over the 49ers, the star edge-rusher had plenty of company.
The Cardinals racked up five sacks and 16 quarterback hits in the victory, as San Francisco rookie quarterback C.J. Beathard was pressured from all angles.
Jones picked up a sack on the 49ers' final drive, linebacker Karlos Dansby got one on a blitz and defensive linemen Rodney Gunter and Corey Peters were in on the action. Defensive lineman Olsen Pierre and outside linebacker Haason Reddick combined for a half-sack as well.
"It felt good watching our brothers ball," Gunter said.
The 49ers were missing standout left tackle Joe Staley and had to shuffle pieces around as the unit was banged up as a whole. Coach Bruce Arians was hoping to be even greedier.
"I thought we should have had more," Arians said. "That was a beat-up offensive line. God bless Beathard. He's tough as nails and stood in there and threw the ball, because we hit him a bunch."
On the flip-side, the Cardinals' offensive line won their battle at the line of scrimmage, as quarterback Drew Stanton was hit seven times and wasn't sacked.
RUCKER, REDDICK EJECTED IN SKIRMISH
The NFL saw a lot of ejections on Sunday, and the Cardinals were a part of it.
Defensive lineman Frostee Rucker and 49ers running back Carlos Hyde were ejected for a post-play skirmish, and Reddick was disqualified during the same brouhaha for reportedly throwing a punch.
The fight started because safety Antoine Bethea was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for hitting Beathard as he slid feet first on a fourth-quarter scramble.
Arians did not seem concerned about the incident afterward.
"Crap happens," Arians said. "It's not college. You don't get kicked out again next week."
DAWSON MISSES, THEN BOUNCES BACK
Kicker Phil Dawson's struggles continued on the opening drive when he missed a 38-yard field goal attempt. He bounced back to hit a pair in the second half to help ice the victory. Dawson is 12-of-18 on the season, with five misses and a sixth attempt blocked.
Dawson has only missed more than six field goals once in a season, and had combined to miss six the previous two years. San Francisco's Robbie Gould was successful on his only field goal attempt of the game. Cardinals opponents have yet to miss in 15 field goal attempts this year.
BUDDA BAKER SHINES ON SPECIAL TEAMS
Safety Budda Baker continues to make the most of his limited opportunities. He had three tackles in space in kick and punt coverage, keeping the 49ers backed up on their end of the field.
Baker also saw action on defense on third downs.
