So much for Alex Smith and his lost confidence. "It was in my closet," he said. Indeed. Smith was almost perfect in San Francisco's 24-3 victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Monday night. But for a dropped pass, he would have been. The 49ers quarterback completed 18 of 19 passes for 232 yards and three touchdowns after a week that saw some speculation that Smith's belief in himself was shaken following a pair of poor outings. Coach Jim Harbaugh said questions about Smith's confidence came from "a couple of reporters," nothing more. "I don't think there ever was a question there," Harbaugh said. I think it was just a lot of gobble, gobble, turkey. Just gobble, gobble, gobble turkey. That paints a pretty good picture. He's a very confident guy. Smith threw two touchdown passes to Michael Crabtree and one to Randy Moss. "Eighteen of 19, I have never seen that," Harbaugh said. It was a performance that caught the Cardinals by surprise. My 5-year-old son's surprised," defensive tackle Darnell Dockett said, "but at the end of the day it wasn't like he had to make the long perfect throws. San Francisco 49ers defensive back Chris Culliver breaks up a pass intended for Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald (11) during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Oct. 29, 2012, in Glendale, Ariz. The dominant victory opened a two-game lead for San Francisco (6-2) in the NFC West. Arizona (4-4) lost its fourth straight after a 4-0 start. The Cardinals managed only a field goal against the No. 1 defense in the NFL. "They're a good defense, don't get me wrong," Arizona quarterback John Skelton said. They are a very talented defense. But to only put up three points, that's embarrassing, as an offense and as a team. It's in front of a national audience and we put up only three points and lost by 21. It's frustrating and it's humiliating. Moss caught a 47-yard TD pass, juking tacklers down the sideline on a play that seemed to turn back the clock to the receiver's prime. Smith, who tied a career high with the three touchdown passes, spread his completions among 10 receivers. Arizona's defense, supposedly the team's strength, missed tackle after tackle in an embarrassing nationally televised performance at home. Led by Smith's pinpoint passing, the 49ers methodically dominated from the start. The Cardinals, down 17-0, were booed off the field by the home crowd at the half.