the same. But his athleticism did not seem quite up to his old standards. That is to be expected, of course. The Niners expected it. They played Moss only in formations that were distinctly favorable to him (mainly as the single receiver in run-heavy sets or on the strong side in three-plus receiver sets). These formations created natural one-on-one matchups for Moss, who is 35. Or, often, they created one-on-zero matchups, as Green Bay's zone defenders had a tough time picking up Moss's inside routes (thanks to crafty play structure). This is a microcosm of the 49ers' offense. Virtually everything they do is a product of shrewd design and timely play-calling, not outstanding individual performances. It will be interesting to see how far this carries them in 2012. So far, it has carried them to a road win over the presumed Super Bowl front-runner. Cardinals 20, Seahawks 16 The most intriguing player in the N.F.L. right now just might be Patrick Peterson, a second-year cornerback for the Cardinals who is on the verge of becoming Darrelle Revis 2.0. Peterson matched up with Seahawks' top receiver, Sidney Rice, for much of the afternoon. He was flagged for what could have been a costly pass interference penalty late in the game, but aside from that, he mostly won the matchup. Peterson's presence allowed the Cardinals to be aggressive with their other 10 defenders. That was a big reason Russell Wilson averaged just 4.1 yards per attempt in his N.F.L. debut. As we