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SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Adam Snyder returned to the San Francisco 49ers this season because the offensive lineman thought it was his best opportunity to win a championship. Nothing that has happened the past two weeks has shaken that belief, and his teammates and coaches feel the same way. But theres a sense of urgency as the defending NFC champions take a two-game losing streak into Monday nights game against the Washington Redskins. The 49ers (6-4) have slipped to the sixth and final spot in the conference playoff picture, as San Francisco prepares for the seasons stretch run. Snyder will be in the middle of it Monday when he makes his first start of the season. The ninth-year veteran takes the place of injured All-Pro left guard Mike Iupati for a struggling offence that has been a big reason for the teams recent slide that followed a five-game winning streak. Its a familiar situation for Snyder, who made 69 starts at four line positions during his first stint in San Francisco from 2005-2011. Whats not so familiar for the 49ers is a losing streak that has dropped them near the edge of playoff contention. Its just the second time San Francisco has lost two games in a row since coach Jim Harbaugh and his staff arrived in 2011. But the 49ers, who were 9-1 and 7-2-1 after 10 games the past two seasons, remain confident they can get back on course for a return to the Super Bowl. "I still believe that and I know that everybody in this locker room believes that, and thats where we are right now," Snyder said Saturday. "The games become more important now. We put ourselves in this position coming down the stretch and we use it as motivation. Things didnt go the way that we planned, but we just have to keep fighting, stay on task, and thats what were doing every day." As his team prepared to leave for Washington early Saturday afternoon, Harbaugh was able to stray from his usual "one-game-at-a-time" mentality and look at the big picture. The 49ers, two-time defending NFC West champions, trail the Seattle Seahawks by 3 1/2 games in the division with six to play. One of those games is a home rematch with Seattle in two weeks. "The thing you look at is, the season plays out differently each year," Harbaugh said. "I mean, the sense of urgency is high every week. Theres plenty of opportunity ahead of us and the opportunity thats staring us right here in the face is a very good one, and thats what we focus on." Iupati suffered ligament damage in his left knee during last weeks 23-20 loss at New Orleans, ending his run of 63 consecutive starts to begin his career since the 49ers made him the 17th overall selection of the 2010 draft. San Franciscos offence had been struggling even with the first-team All-Pro in the lineup, gaining 151 total yards during a 10-9 home loss to Carolina two weeks ago and then 196 yards last week at New Orleans. In that game, 17 of San Franciscos 20 points came after turnovers by the Saints. The other three came on Phil Dawsons 29-yard field goal that followed the Saints turnover on downs in the third quarter. Dawsons kick culminated a 49-yard drive that was San Franciscos longest of the day. Quarterback Colin Kaepernick has been sacked nine times the past two weeks after San Franciscos line allowed just seven sacks over the previous five games. The 49ers arent expecting much drop-off with Snyder, who started 15 games at right guard in 2011 before leaving the team as a free agent. Snyder started 14 games for the Arizona Cardinals last season before returning to San Francisco. "Adams a guy we have complete and utter faith in," offensive co-ordinator Greg Roman said. "So thats really about it. Hes a very versatile guy. Plug him in and go. Dont even blink." Iupatis injury will break a string of consecutive starts for San Franciscos offensive line. All five starters along that unit earned recognition last season as either a Pro Bowl starter or Pro Bowl alternate, and all five started each of San Franciscos 19 games last season and all 10 so far this season. "Its rare to have an offensive line go through almost an entire two seasons and not have an injury," Snyder said. "They were fortunate enough to do that but now I have to step in and I dont want to have any drop-off in the level of production. I think Im capable of doing that. Theyre big shoes to fill, but its not like Im stepping into a situation that Ive never been in and theyve never been a part of." Cheap MLB Jerseys .com) - The NFL is investigating whether the New England Patriots intentionally deflated balls during Sundays AFC Championship Game against Indianapolis. Wholesale NFL Jerseys China . In mens doubles, Vancouvers Vasek Pospisil and American Jack Sock reached the quarter-finals with a 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3), 6-4 win over Croatian Mate Pavic and Andre Sa of Brazil. http://www.cheapjerseysbaseball.com/ . The attacking midfielder arrives on a free transfer from Spains Malaga. The 28-year-old joins Scottish striker Kenny Miller and Argentine midfielder Matias Laba as designated players on the Whitecaps roster. Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic . Hall joined Bengals teammates for a voluntary workout on Monday. Hes got his mobility back and is on schedule to be ready for the season. CINCINNATI - Bengals cornerback Leon Hall is happy with his recovery from a torn Achilles tendon and expects to be ready for the start of training camp in July. NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap . -- Conor Casey scored two goals, his first of the season, as the Philadelphia Union beat Chivas USA 3-0 on Saturday night.FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - Indianapolis Colts starting cornerbacks Vontae Davis and Greg Toler are active for Sundays AFC championship game against the New England Patriots.Davis (knee) and Toler (groin) both were listed as questionable after missing practice Wednesday and being limited Thursday and Friday. Colts running back Trent Richardson is inactive and didnt make the trip because of a family emergency. Richardson was a healthy inactive last week.Patriots rookie cenntre Bryan Stork is inactive because of a knee injury.dddddddddddd Right guard Ryan Wendell is expected to start at centre in Storks place and Josh Kline would replace Wendell. Defensive tackle Chris Jones (elbow) also is inactive after being limited in practice all week. Jones was listed as probable.Reserve offensive tackle Xavier Nixon missed the Colts flight Saturday and is inactive.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL ' ' '