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About everything looked normal on the field.

David Akers stood near his trusty holder Andy Lee, who was kneeling and getting ready for a routine field goal. But if you looked at the offensive line, you’d notice there were only eight bodies instead of the usual nine.

Standing by his lonesome near the left sideline, Michael Crabtree was about to score. The St. Louis Rams had no idea.

Instead of boot one through the uprights, Akers caught a direct snap and tossed it to Crabtree for a touchdown, one that loomed large in the 49ers’ 34-27 victory over the Rams on Sunday in the regular season finale.

“It’s great for us as a machine, as an organization, to take this win to the playoffs,” Crabtree said.

Once he crossed the goal line with the ball in his hands, not a soul within yards of him, Crabtree shrugged his shoulders and smiled. He made it look it easy, but things were just getting tougher for the 49ers.

Crabtree’s score gave the 49ers a hefty 27-10 lead late in the third quarter, but the last-place Rams (2-14) weren’t going anywhere. Fueled by two, fourth-quarter scores in a 13-second span, St. Louis made it a one-possession game with less than five minutes left.

But the 49ers (13-3) clamped down to close out the game, with Anthony Dixon’s 1-yard, fourth-quarter touchdown proving to be the game-winner. The victory secured the No. 2 NFC seed and a first-round bye for the 49ers.

“We start a new season as of today,” coach Jim Harbaugh said.

Though he was praising Akers’ arm after the game, quarterback Alex Smith had plenty to be proud about. Smith went 21-of-31 for 219 yards and two touchdowns, both to Crabtree, while rushing for an 8-yard score in the first quarter.

Crabtree and Vernon Davis emerged as Smith’s top targets, as the veteran tight end hauled in eight catches for 118 yards, the second-highest total of his career. Davis made big catches of 34 yards and 44 yards, while Harbaugh credited Davis with a great game blocking.

“Both of them stepped up when we needed big plays,” Harbaugh said.

Sunday’s effort was something of an exclamation point for Crabtree, capping a season when he established himself as a premier wideout. The third-year receiver gave his team a spark in the second quarter, when he used a menacing stiff arm before streaking down the right sideline for a 28-yard score.

It marked the first two-touchdown performance of young Crabtree’s career. He tied a career high with nine catches for 92 yards, finishing with 73 catches for 880 yards on the season, both personal bests.

Crabtree wasn’t the only one doing a Texas two-step on Sunday. Fellow Lone Star State native Tarell Brown recorded the first two-interception game of his career, while almost getting his hands on a third pick late in the game.

For the season, the 49ers forced 38 takeaways, tops in the NFL. Meanwhile, the offense didn’t turn the ball over again on Sunday, extending its turnover-free streak to 22 quarters. The 49ers also tied an NFL mark by turning the ball over just 10 times all season.

“It feels good,” Brown said. “Just coming into the program five years ago, it was never like this. The atmosphere was different. We were going into games not expecting to win, but now we go into games expecting to dominate.”

Notes and Quotes

Aside from tossing the first touchdown of his career, Akers also became first on the NFL all-time single-season points list for players who didn’t score a touchdown. In all, Akers has 166 points this year, topping the mark of 164 set by Gary Anderson in 1998. Lee set the NFL single-season record net punt average with a mark of 43.99 yards this season.

The 49ers defense returned to full strength Sunday, as captain Patrick Willis returned to his usual spot as starting inside linebacker after missing three games. Willis unofficially finished with four tackles.

“He looked strong physically – that’s the main thing I saw,” Harbaugh said.  “Maybe a little bit of rust.”

Frank Gore only carried the ball 7 times for 9 yards and rested in the second half, while Kendall Hunter had a career-high 16 carries for 76 yards. Dixon rushed the ball 8 times for 21 yards and a touchdown, the fourth of his career.

Hunter took over kickoff return duties with Ted Ginn Jr. and Kyle Williams sidelined due to injury, while safety Reggie Smith returned punts.  Receiver Brett Swain made his first career start for the 49ers and Joe Hastings made his NFL debut.