Jake Plummer is on a record pace for interceptions.

49ers (1-1) at Cardinals (1-1)
9 p.m. ET, ABC
Line: 49ers by 2½
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Ron Jaworski's Monday night breakdown

Why to watch:
It's time to get an assessment of the 49ers dynasty, which appears to be crumbling after an ugly season-opening loss at Jacksonville and a shaky victory over New Orleans. Niners GM Bill Walsh admits QB Steve Young and WR Jerry Rice are starting to show their age, and that was apparent last week when Young hobbled off the field at the finish. Still, the old crew might be able to put it together here for another prime-time performance. Meanwhile, the Cardinals can prove they haven't taken a big step backward following last season's playoff run. Arizona quarterback Jake Plummer always makes something happen -- but it hasn't all been good in 1999. Still, the Snake should relish the chance to play in his first Monday night game, and remember the Niners passed on him and instead took Jim Druckenmiller in the 1997 draft. With these two passing attacks, the football should be flying around at Sun Devil Stadium.

Who to watch:
Niners RB Charlie Garner, who started to get going a bit in Week 2, should find some room to run against a Cardinals front four that's missing injured DT Eric Swann and holdout DT Mark Smith. Garner must provide a ground threat, and the entire Niners offensive line is under pressure to keep the heat off Young, who has taken a beating this year. Cardinals DEs Simeon Rice and Andre Wadsworth are good pass rushers. Niners WR Jerry Rice has only 64 receiving yards and hasn't reached the end zone this season. Cardinals WRs Frank Sanders, Rob Moore and rookie David Boston will test San Francisco's shaky secondary.

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Cardinals' numbers to know:
Plummer has thrown seven interceptions and only one touchdown pass in his first two starts. He threw 20 picks and 17 TD passes in 1998. The Niners have picked off two passes this season.

What it means:
The Cardinals are hosting their first Monday night game since 1995 and only their third since moving to the desert in 1988. Obviously, Arizona will want to put on a good show for this rare national appearance. Although these two teams were playoff squads last season, both have been inconsistent in 1999. This game should provide some type of read on two clubs that have been very difficult to figure out.

Sean Salisbury's breakdown
49ers' game plan:
The Niners aren't going to have Steve Young for the whole season if their pass protection continues to fail. If the 49ers want to take themselves out of the playoff race, they just need to keep doing what they are doing -- not blocking and playing poorly at cornerback.

The offensive objective, first and foremost, is to protect Young. If the line protects Young, San Francisco will score -- it doesn't matter who is playing running back, whether it's Charlie Garner or Lawrence Phillips. It helps Young to have a running game to complement him, as it did last year when the 49ers led the NFL in rushing. But the line needs to take some pride and keep him healthy.

It might mean playing an extra tight end, or motioning Terrell Owens down on max protection. They need to give Young a chance to compete. If the 49ers only run the ball 15 times, they can still win because Young's accuracy is so great. But they can't win if Young is sitting on the sidelines with his chin stitched up.

The 49ers defense, hurt by the offseason losses of ends Chris Doleman and Roy Barker, has shown no pass rush. If the 49ers are going to pressure Jake Plummer, knowing he has a tendency to be impatient, they need to play a basic defense, with two or three deep, and make Plummer be patient and dump the ball off to a back or short receiver. Very few quarterbacks are patient enough to go 80 yards by the dumping the ball off. They want to push the ball up the field.

So, by forcing Plummer to be patient, the 49ers could capitalize on Plummer's impatience, forcing him to make a dangerous throw. If Plummer beats the 49ers with patience, then they deserve to lose. They can't let him run around and make spectacular plays. Charles Haley and Gabe Wilkins, who have combined for a total of five tackles and no sacks in two games, need to step up and pressure Plummer.

Cardinals' game plan:
What's the offensive strategy? Keep the score within six points and give the ball to Plummer with less than two minutes to go. If they do that, the Cardinals will probably win. Plummer needs to make better decisions early in the game. He might end up being the MVP of the league in the next two or three years, but he can become too impatient and get too excitable. Patience will allow him to throw the ball away instead of forcing an interception. He doesn't want to risk an early interception that would give the 49ers a short field in the first quarter because the Niners usually capitalize.

The Cardinals have a quality receiving corps of Rob Moore, Frank Sanders and David Boston, and Adrian Murrell is a solid running back. With their weapons, the Cardinals need to attack the suspect San Francisco secondary. They should make Mark McMillian, Craig Newsome and Darnell Walker make all the plays for the 49ers. Have they made the plays so far? No.

If I were offensive coordinator Marc Trestman, I would take my shots outside until the cornerbacks prove they can stop it. Because the 49ers haven't mounted much of a pass rush, they have been forced to blitz, putting their cornerbacks in single coverage. Like any good quarterback, Plummer can excel in that situation. Plus, if the 49ers blitz and miss him, they are dead meat. I expect a lot of big plays from the Cardinals.

The defensive philosophy against the 49ers is always the same: stop their passing attack. With Andre Wadsworth and Simeon Rice up front, and good cornerbacks in Aeneas Williams and Corey Chavous, the Cardinals have a favorable matchup. The only problem is the absence of Eric Swann, one of the game's best defensive tackles who uses up a lot of blockers.

The Cardinals will rush four or five at a time because players like Wadsworth and Rice can apply pressure without having to blitz. That's the best of all worlds because the defense won't have to compromise its pass coverage to get a pass rush. So they will pressure with four players and not give up the home run in the secondary. That's what the Jaguars did so well in Week 1; they kept the 49ers receivers in front of them. The Cardinals should play zone defense, take away the slant routes the 49ers love, and make Young hold the ball longer so the pressure can get to him.

Pivotal players:
The 49ers offensive linemen. The onus is on them to protect Young. If he's protected, Young will make plays. If they do not protect Young, he won't be around by Week 7.