Frank Gore ran for a pair of second-half touchdowns and the 49ers rebounded from a 17-0 deficit to beat the Atlanta Falcons 28-24 in the NFC championship game Sunday, sending San Francisco to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1995. The top-seeded Falcons (14-4) tried to pull out another season-saving drive at the end, but Matt Ryan's fourth-down pass for Roddy White with 1:13 remaining was knocked down by San Francisco linebacker NaVorro Bowman. Read More

The 49ers proved last season was not a fluke in the 2012 season opener by beating the Green Bay Packers 30-22. If they want redemption after the shortcomings in last year’s playoff run under coach Jim Harbaugh, they will need to duplicate that season-opening effort Saturday. San Francisco has changed dramatically since the Sept. 9 opener, most dramatically at quarterback, where Colin Kaepernick took over following an injury to Alex Smith on Nov. 11. Read More

Alex Smith had just engineered the most offense in 49ers history and the best balanced approach the NFL had ever witnessed when the attention started to shift to this week’s NFC championship game rematch against the New York Giants. “There’s a lot of baggage, a lot of history there,” Smith said. “A little unfinished business, I guess.” Read More

SANTA CLARA — With training camp winding down, the 49ers are still sifting through some position battles after bringing in a slew of new faces on offense through free agency and the draft. Alex Boone appears close to nailing down the starting right guard job, while the backup quarterback job remains tight and a deep group of wide receivers vie for playing time. Read More