Vernon Davis tied the NFL record for touchdown receptions by a tight end with his 13th of the season, sparking the 49ers’ late surge in a 28-6 victory on Sunday.

"Well, my number was called and coach told me if there was a DB out there, do what you do best and just run by him," Davis said. "That’s what I did, I just ran as fast as I could."

Frank Gore added 107 yards rushing on 23 carries and two TDs for the 49ers (8-8), who pulled away after a desultory first half in which they mustered only 52 yards and trailed 3-0.

"This is not the style of game we wanted to have," coach Mike Singletary said. "This is not the way we wanted it to go. I’m thankful we were able to come out of this game, get the heck out here, get the heck out of St. Louis with a win."

San Francisco ended a string of six consecutive losing seasons, halted a six-game road losing streak and finished 5-1 against the NFC West. The Rams (1-15) wrapped up their first winless home schedule since going 0-6 in 1959 and only the third in franchise history.

The Rams needed a loss in the finale to secure the No. 1 pick for the first time since 1997, when they traded up to get seven-time Pro Bowl tackle Orlando Pace. Their puny offense filled the bill with 109 yards total offense, fifth-worst in franchise history and lowest since they had 105 yards on Sept. 8, 1996, at San Francisco.

Steven Jackson had 63 yards rushing on 20 carries for the Rams, whose biggest play was a 56-yard punt return by Danny Amendola to the San Francisco 19 that led to a field goal that cut the 49ers’ lead to 7-6 with 9:11 to go.

"We have a lot of things that need to get turned around," Jackson said. "Something has to turn."

It’s the first No. 1 overall pick they earned since taking Oregon State quarterback Terry Baker, the Heisman Trophy winner the previous season in 1963. So there’ll be some excitement as the rebuilding continues in the offseason for the Rams, who picked second overall the previous two seasons and are 6-42 the past three seasons.

"I’m not going to deny that one," coach Steve Spagnuolo said.

The 49ers held an opponent to 10 or fewer points for the seventh time behind a season-high eight sacks including 3 1/2 by Justin Smith, who entered the game with 2 1/2 sacks.

Rams rookie quarterback Keith Null was 7 for 17 for 57 yards and absorbed five of the sacks before sustaining a possible concussion in the third quarter. Spagnuolo said wide receiver Donnie Avery sustained a concussion and said Null "was fuzzy as well," but added, "I don’t know if they used the term concussion."

Davis tied the mark set by Antonio Gates last season with the longest catch of his career, getting behind the defense on a 73-yard reception from Alex Smith that put the 49ers ahead 14-6 midway through the fourth quarter.

Gore had four 100-yard games in the last five games, and five overall.

For much of the game, the punters dominated. The Rams’ Donnie Jones punted a season-high 11 times for a 50.1-yard average while Andy Lee tied his season high with nine punts for a 46.7-yard average.

The Rams were blacked out on local television for the third straight game and attendance at those games are the three lowest since the franchise relocated to the Midwest in 1995.

Paid attendance of 47,965 was the best of the three, likely boosted on "fan appreciation day" that featured multiple giveaways of flat-screen TVs, game-worn jerseys and Super Bowl tickets along with greatly reduced prices for concessions and team store merchandise.

Josh Brown’s 54-yard field goal in the second quarter, a yard off his season best, was the only scoring in the first half. Brown was wide left on a 45-yard attempt to end the half after the Rams declined to use any of their timeouts.

The Rams ran out of offensive guards when rookie Roger Allen III, making his first career start after being undrafted out of Division II Missouri Western, injured his left knee in the second quarter. The flip card listed Mark Setterstrom, out for the season with a left triceps injury that will require surgery, as the backup at two positions, while starting tackle Adam Goldberg was listed as the backup at two positions.

Game notes
The 49ers allowed only eight sacks the last six games, including two in the finale. … Rams DE Chris Long was ejected late in the fourth quarter after a head butt. … 49ers wide receiver Isaac Bruce got a ceremonial start in what likely was his final NFL game in the city where he was a four-time Pro Bowler. Bruce played one snap, jumped and bumped with a teammate and then spent the rest of the game watching from the sideline.

Fittingly, they came against the St. Louis Rams.

In Arizona’s 31-10 victory on Sunday, the 38-year-old quarterback joined Fran Tarkenton as the only players in NFL history to throw 100 TD passes for two teams. He had 102 with St. Louis in his rise from nowhere to league MVP and two Super Bowls.

The Rams (1-14) have fallen on hard times since then.

"His play speaks for itself," Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin said. "From the moment he got here and started at quarterback, he’s done wonderful things."

Warner threw for 313 yards — his 52nd career 300-yard game — with 196 of them and both touchdown passes coming in a magnificent second quarter. Only once, late in last year’s debacle at the New York Jets, has Warner thrown for more yards in a quarter.

Earlier this season, he became the second player, with Tarkenton, to throw for 14,000 yards with two teams.

"I think that has huge significance in my career and what my career has been all about," Warner said. "I was able to have that success in St. Louis and then turn around later in my career and have the same kind of success here, and more importantly help to turn the culture of an organization and the attitude of an organization around."

The Cardinals (10-5) reached 10 regular-season wins for the first time since 1976, 12 years before the franchise moved from St. Louis to Arizona.

The team had clinched its second straight NFC West title the previous week.

"They’re all neat accomplishments at this point in time in the season," Warner said, "but after last year we’ve set our standards a lot higher than just 10 wins in the regular season."

A year ago, Arizona was blown out in the snow of New England 47-7 in its next-to-last regular-season game, but regrouped to beat Seattle, then made a stunning run to the Super Bowl.

"As great as 10 wins is, I think we’ll remember the season by what we do come playoff time," Warner said.

Boldin had seven catches for 100 yards by halftime and finished with eight for 116.

The victory kept alive the Cardinals’ slim chance of being the NFC’s No. 2 seed and assured the team of avoiding consecutive losses in a season for the first time in 34 years.

In Arizona’s three seasons under caoch Ken Whisenhunt, the team has gone from 8-8 to 9-7 to 10-5, with one game remaining at home next Sunday against Green Bay.

The Rams (1-14), ravaged by injuries all season, were without the league’s second-leading rusher Steven Jackson because of a sore lower back.

It was the first game missed this season by Jackson, one of four St. Louis starters out because of injuries.

"The back was giving me a lot of problems. It wasn’t loosening up," Jackson said. "I was getting pain down my legs. It was all clear signs telling me that I wasn’t ready to go today."

Although Kyle Boller was active, the Rams went with rookie Keith Null at quarterback for the third straight game. Null completed 20 of 31 for 171 yards and one touchdown. He was intercepted three times and sacked four.

With his sack of Null with 1:52 to play, Adrian Wilson became the 10th player in NFL history to have 20 sacks and 20 interceptions in a career. He got his 23rd interception earlier in the game.

"Before I even started in the NFL, that was a career goal of mine," Wilson said. "At the time I believe there was only seven guys in it. To be a part of that group is very special."

Warner said this should help Wilson be recognized as the player he is.

"We’ve all known he’s a great player for a long time here," the quarterback said. "The one thing about guys like that is they never get the attention they deserve until they accomplish those kinds of records."

Warner’s second-quarter masterpiece featured three long scoring drives that included touchdown passes of 10 yards to Larry Fitzgerald and 18 to Early Doucet as Arizona took a 17-0 halftime lead. It was the first scoring catch for Doucet, in his second pro season.

St. Louis needed to challenge an official’s call to get the touchdown that cut the lead to 17-7. Brandon Gibson was ruled out of the end zone on a 21-yard reception, but a review showed one foot and a knee had come down inbound.

The touchdown was set up when Warner fumbled on a hard hit by LaJuan Ramsey and Victor Adeyanju recovered at the Arizona 35.

Punter Ben Graham, a former Australian rules football star, forced Danny Amendola’s fumble that Reggie Walker recovered at the Arizona 43. The Cardinals went 57 yards in nine plays with Tim Hightower bowling over from the 2 for the touchdown that made it 24-7 with 4 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter.

Moments earlier, St. Louis rookie Danny Gorrer had dropped an interception for a sure TD that would have cut the lead to 17-14.

Coach Steve Spagnuolo pointed to what might have been.

"Two plays don’t make a game, don’t get me wrong," Spagnuolo said. "… It was kind of a 14-point swing, but that’s the way the game is."

Game notes
The roof at University of Phoenix Stadium was open for the first time this season. … Arizona rookie CB Greg Toler got his first career interception. … Boldin had 100 yards receiving in the first half for the third time in his career. … Rams CB Ron Bartell left the game with an elbow injury.

Chris Johnson ran for 117 yards and two touchdowns and also took a short pass 66 yards for another score and the Tennessee Titans stayed alive by routing the woeful St. Louis Rams 47-7 Sunday. The Titans (6-7) must win out and get plenty of help after their 0-6 start, but they are focusing on what they control.

"Take one game at a time and worry about our next opponent," Johnson said.

The Titans started a three-game homestand by handing the struggling Rams (1-12) a fifth straight loss even with Vince Young sidelined by a strained right hamstring most of the game.

Young started despite an achy right knee and played well until pulling up at the end of a 44-yard run — the longest of his career — midway through the second quarter. He left with a 14-0 lead and watched from the sideline as Kerry Collins finished off the win.

Coach Jeff Fisher called the injury a mild strain. Whether Young plays next against Miami remains to be seen.

"We’ll see," Young said. "I don’t want to speak too fast. Right now I just want to go in, rehab it and get it back strong."

The Titans intercepted five passes they turned into 20 points, ruining the NFL debut of rookie Keith Null as St. Louis’ third quarterback this season.

Rob Bironas kicked four field goals with a long of 50 yards, Vincent Fuller returned an interception 45 yards for a TD and Collins tossed a TD pass. Keith Bulluck and Cortland Finnegan had two interceptions apiece.

"We felt a third-string quarterback shouldn’t come in and beat us if we stop the run and do the right things," Finnegan said.

Johnson, the NFL’s leading rusher, became the fifth player in NFL history to reach 2,000 yards from scrimmage in his team’s first 13 yards, joining Jim Brown, Walter Payton, O.J. Simpson and Priest Holmes.

Johnson also set a couple of franchise records as his 17-yard run at the end of the first half pushed him past Hall of Fame running back Earl Campbell’s mark of 1,981 yards from scrimmage in 1980. Johnson also has the team mark with eight straight 100-yard rushing games, breaking his tie with Campbell at seven.

His 17-yard run at the end of the first half pushed him past Hall of Fame running back Earl Campbell’s mark of 1,981 yards from scrimmage in 1980. Johnson also has the team mark with eight straight 100-yard rushing games, breaking his tie with Campbell at seven.

Johnson has 1,626 yards rushing and remains on pace to finish with 2,001 yards at this rate.

Steven Jackson came in second only to Johnson in rushing. Tennessee held the Rams’ top offensive threat to a season-low 47 yards on 19 carries. Jackson was visibly upset after the game.

"Instead of standing here embarrassing myself, and my family, I’m just going to say I’m tired. I’m just tired. I’m tired. You fill in the blanks. However you want to write the article, however you want to say it, I’m just tired," Jackson said before walking away from his locker.

Kyle Boller had been limited in practice with a sore thigh. No lineup change was announced before Null took the field for the Rams’ first series for his first NFL snaps even though St. Louis coach Steve Spagnuolo said earlier this week he hoped not to use the sixth-round pick this season.

But Boller couldn’t push off the leg in pre-game warmups, so Null started. Spagnuolo wouldn’t commit to which quarterback will start next week. Null started well enough, completing 7 of his first 8 passes for 42 yards. Then it went downhill, and he finished 27 of 43 for 157 yards.

"You put a guy in a tough situation, but Keith’s pretty solid. He’s got some resolve, so I’m going to hope that he will be able to shake it off," Spagnuolo said.

The Rams did score a rare TD when Null found Randy McMichael with an 11-yard pass in the fourth quarter, a score set up when Spagnuolo called a fake punt on fourth-and-7. Kenneth Darby had a big hole as he ran 51 yards to the Tennessee 13.

Right guard Richie Incognito didn’t help the Rams either, picking up personal fouls for head-butting Sen’Derrick Marks in the first quarter and for pushing over Fuller after a play ended. Titans defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch pushed Incognito over with a hand, and a flag flew. The 15-yard penalty went to Incognito. The Rams were flagged 10 times for 82 yards.

The Titans were much sharper including Young, who posted a perfect passer rating in the first quarter at 158.3 as he completed five of his first six passes for 132 yards with a TD. He showed no signs of a balky knee as he moved around and even took off running.

But Young pulled up at the end, grabbing at the back of his right leg. He went into the locker room and watched the second half from the sideline with a ballcap turned backward.

Collins, benched for Young after that winless start, came in and kept the scoring going. The Titans led 33-0 before the Rams avoided the shutout.

Game notes
The Titans matched the most points scored since a 47-10 win at Detroit on Thanksgiving 2008. … Fuller’s interception return was the fourth of his career for a TD. … Collins’ TD went to Alge Crumpler, the tight end’s first touchdown since Oct. 5, 2008, at Baltimore. … The Titans have won eight straight over NFC opponents. … Titans LB David Thornton hurt a shoulder and did not return. … This is the seventh time this season St. Louis has been held to 10 or fewer points.

Even so, they’ll take this.

Cutler faded after a strong start, throwing for 143 yards and a touchdown without an interception, and the Bears beat the Rams 17-9 Sunday after dropping four straight and six of seven.

"It feels like it’s been a long time," he said. "It wasn’t the prettiest game but we pulled it out. Defensively I thought we did a great job."

Cutler was 4-for-7 for 131 yards in the first quarter as the Bears built a 10-0 lead. After that? Chicago went to the run, St. Louis rallied and Bears receiver Devin Hester left the game with a calf injury.

The Bears (5-7) gave up 112 yards rushing to Steven Jackson but kept the Rams (1-11) out of the end zone for the fourth time this season even though Pro Bowl linebacker Lance Briggs missed the game with a sprained left knee. They did just enough after allowing 537 yards the previous week in a 36-10 loss at Minnesota, with a late interception by Hunter Hillenmeyer — the second of his career — helping preserve the win.

No matter how uninspired it was, the Bears needed this.

Mired in one of their worst slumps in years, they’re staring at their third straight postseason miss since the 2006 team’s run to their Super Bowl. Coach Lovie Smith and general manager Jerry Angelo have come under heavy criticism along with Cutler, the man whose arrival sparked a surge of optimism.

There is little of that around Chicago, after everything fell apart following a 3-1 start. Things were particularly tense after last week’s game, when the Vikings rolled up the most yards by a Bears opponent in 27 years, but they had better luck against one of the league’s worst teams.

"I don’t want us to get used to losing; that’s the most important thing right now," Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo said, even though they’ve done little else. "I want us to be disappointed, not discouraged."

On Sunday, Jackson was as effective as usual for the Rams even though it took a "lot of prayer" and "guttiness" to get on the field after leaving last week’s game against Seattle because of back spasms.

"There is no shortcut to it," said Jackson, who missed several days of practice. "I knew coming into this game, leaving last week, I was going to face an eight- and nine-man box and I knew it was going to be a rough one. So just try to gut it out."

The problem was he had little help.

The Rams were 2-of-14 on third-down conversions, and Kyle Boller threw for just 113 yards and got sacked three times.

Cutler, the league leader with 20 interceptions, finished just 8-for-17 but kept the ball out of the opposition’s hands after getting picked off 15 times in the previous seven games. His 3-yard TD strike to Earl Bennett on third down with 1:23 left in the third made it 17-6, but Cutler did most of his damage in the opening quarter, connecting with Hester and Bennett for big gains.

"We haven’t really gotten to some of the deeper stuff as of late either so to see Devin and the others catch and go up the field was nice," said Cutler, who "dinged" his throwing hand but insisted he’s fine.

He hit Hester with a 48-yard pass that set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Matt Forte and connected with Bennett on a season-long 71-yarder that led to a field goal by Robbie Gould, but things got tense for the Bears after that.

A fake field goal at the 10 failed, with holder Brad Maynard shoveling to Greg Olsen for no gain, and Josh Brown responded by booting a 20-yarder with 1:14 left in the half to pull St. Louis within 10-3.

Hester limped off the field following a 4-yard loss on an end-around play early in the third quarter and headed to the locker room a few minutes later after being checked out on the sideline.

Brown booted a 48-yard field goal to pull St. Louis within 10-6 with 8:50 left in the third, but Cutler gave the Bears some room when he hit Bennett with that TD pass late in the period.

Forte ran for 91 yards on 24 carries, and the Bears pulled this one out after an eventful week that saw Smith acknowledge his job scrutiny and Brian Urlacher sound off in a Yahoo! Sports article. The injured linebacker took some shots at Cutler and Forte while questioning the direction of the organization, specifically what he saw as a switch from emphasizing the run and defense to the passing game.

"I think there were a few runs where maybe if I make somebody miss I could have some more yards," said Forte, who lost a fumble on the game’s second play from scrimmage. "I think I played OK today."

Game notes
Bears LT Orlando Pace was inactive after injuring his groin and was not available to play against his former team, so Chris Williams moved from the right side to his more natural position. Kevin Shaffer started at right tackle. … With Briggs out, Jamar Williams started at weakside linebacker. … Rams S Oshiomogho Atogwe hurt his shoulder and will have an MRI.

Offense. Defense. Special teams. Coaching.

Steven Jackson’s 25-yard touchdown run with 1:38 left lifted the Rams to a 17-10 win Sunday over Detroit.

"As a rookie I said, ‘That was an ugly win,’ and I got chewed out," Jackson said. "I understand in the National Football League, there’s no such thing as an ugly win."

The Rams (1-7) avoided matching their worst start in franchise history and ended talk about joining Detroit as the only teams in NFL history to have 0-16 seasons.

Coach Steve Spagnuolo earned his first victory at any level.

"It’s special and I know I’ll remember it for a long time," he said.

Fellow rookie head coach, Jim Schwartz, won’t be able to forget it.

The Lions (1-6) spent their bye week analyzing their season, searching for ways to fix their many problems.

They overlooked one tendency and it haunted them on a trick play when St. Louis lined up to kick a long field goal late in the first half.

Holder Donnie Jones took the snap, flipped it to kicker Josh Brown, who threw a short pass to a wide-open Daniel Fells for a 36-yard TD pass that gave the Rams a 10-2 lead.

Brown wasn’t surprised how bad the Lions bit on it because they had two players on his left set up to push the pile.

"We had watched tape and they came every single time when they were set up that way," Brown said. "It was ours for the taking."

Schwartz said the Lions were too aggressive, but they knew Brown was within his range.

"We expected them to kick," he said. "If we force a miss, we’ve got good field position to do something of our own."

Detroit scored its only points on offense early in the fourth quarter when Matthew Stafford had a 4-yard run and 2-point conversion pass to tie the game. The Lions were credited with a safety when James Butler intercepted a pass in the end zone, returned it past the goal line then went back and was tackled.

"Don’t ask about that dumb play," Butler said. "I knew it wasn’t going to hurt us. I just knew we were going to win because I have faith."

St. Louis hadn’t won since beating Dallas on Oct. 19, 2008.

"I haven’t forgotten how it feels, it’s just been a long time," Jackson said.

Detroit had the league’s first 0-16 season last season and St. Louis won just two games in 2008.

The Lions have won just two of their past 31 games dating to the midway point of 2007. The last team to have two victories in a 31-game stretch was the Houston Oilers during the 1982-84 seasons, according to STATS.

Since 2001, the Lions are 32-103 and their .237 winning percentage is the lowest by an NFL team during a nine-season span since World War II.

After Detroit ended its 19-game skid with a Week 3 win over Washington, center Dominic Raiola blew kisses to the crowd at Ford Field.

During the Lions’ latest loss, Raiola was screaming back at fans taunting Matthew Stafford.

"I understand their frustration, I’ve been here 8 1/2 years, and I know what they’ve been through," Raiola said. "But if you say something to one of my teammates, I’m going to stand up for him. This isn’t all on him."

Stafford played after missing two games with an injured right knee and getting an extra week to rest during Detroit’s bye. The No. 1 pick in the draft didn’t have much to work with, missing standout receiver Calvin Johnson (right knee) and having teammates drop several passes. It took three-plus quarters for a wide receiver to catch a pass and Bryant Johnson’s drought-ending reception set up Stafford’s game-tying run.

Stafford was 14 of 33 for 168 yards with an interception.

As expected, the lowly teams showed how bad they are with an assortment of mental and physical mistakes.

Jackson, though, ran for a season-high 149 yards on 22 carries and his go-ahead TD was St. Louis’ first rushing score of the season.

"It couldn’t happen to a better guy," Fells said. "Steven is the rock of this team. We all look up to him."

Game notes
Marc Bulger was 17 of 35 — getting numerous passes batted down at the line — for 176 yards and an interception into the arms of defensive end Dewayne White. … Detroit’s Kevin Smith, slowed by a shoulder injury, had 45 yards rushing. … Rams TE Randy McMicheal (bruised rib), OG Jacob Bell (head) and WR/KR Danny Amendola (head) were injured during the game. … The crowd of 40,857 was the smallest to a Lions home game in two decades.