I thought the challenge for the Hill catch shouldve been overuled. I probably have to see that again but i thought his elbow was down with the ball therefore the ground cant cause a fumble.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVn1Pwzplnk

I believe a receiver has to maintain control of the ball throughout the entire process, including when he hits the ground. --Matt M.

I'd rather see Tarell Brown covering Avery, with safety help over the top. He's the only player that scares me on that team playing tomorrow. I think Harris is too slow to be covering Avery... Unless we get a good pass rush.

Matt i asked you this yesterday. I would really enjoy your input. Do you think there is any chance Singletary finds an OC like Indianapolis or New England has? Those are defensive coaches, whose OC's stick with them and are very successful. They've maintained offensive continuity. To me, it doesn't seem impossible. The chance might be small, but do you think there is a chance?

There's a chance, but I don't know whom that person would be. Singletary has been coaching only six seasons, and I'm not sure he has a lot of contacts around the league. He would have to find someone who is really good but who either has no head-coaching aspirations or will not be an attractive head-coaching candidate, for whatever reason. More likely, he'd have to get really, really lucky. (I'm not sure New England is a good example. They've lost their offensive and defensive coordiantors in previous seasons. But at least Bill Belichick was able to keep continuity by promoting capable men from within his staff.) --Matt M.

I really appreciate this column, Matt. It is very disappointing how moronic sports fans can be. They jump to a conclusion, or are quick to blame someone, based on no facts or, sometimes, only one fact. This is true with the criticisms of Marathe, of whom nobody knows an iota, as well as the quick to blame recriminations on Tuesday morning before anybody knew any of the facts.
That is why I enjoy your blog so much, why I read it regularly - you bring us facts that allow us to understand what is going on. It is disappointing that so many readers, however, don't need your column to reach their wholly unsupported, usually angry, opinions.

Thanks Matt. I pretty much agree luck would be the largest factor. I forgot New England has lost Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel. Hopfully the niners staff can get some stability some day. It seems like it could take another five to ten years before they could develop strong continuity. I'm going to root for Singletary to do well, but as a fan, I really only want the niners to win. Whatever it takes. I think if Paraag is really as smart as the entire staff and niner insiders say he is, maybe the sideline should take all the challenge/decision blame. I don't know who is to blame, but I hope Paraag does well. He and Jed York are really close, so fans shouldn't count on him leaving any time soon. All we can do is keep trying to turn it all around.

Coaches in the booth. With the confusion on the sidelines and field in the Cards game, I'm left wondering if this a justification to move the coordinators back to the booth, I'm thinking Martz would have had a better vatange to see where the ball was placed.

Very good point. Can't Singletary or some higher authority make that happen?

Matt...I am officially tuning you out. I know you have built a blog empire here with your tireless work but you being a "nolan" guy has now gone over the top and is getting kind of disgusting to read. telling fans to "lay off" a guy that we KNOW for a fact is contributing on game days is simply bad journalism. I'm glad you "liked"
nolan generally as a good honest media friendly guy( I think safe to say that has been your words over the years) but the "house that nolan built" is a joke/disgrace and fans have every right to blast every single thing about it....just keep telln us what is going on at practice/mood of players/other insights but you have said repeadetly you are not a "fan" of the niners so pls stop being a "fan" of nolans....I have removed the blog from my internet explorer favorites and will return once you have turned it around....good luck

I agree with Randy in Santa Rosa. Or why doesn't Clements cover Avery? IMO he's the Rams most dangerous WR that could hurt us. Since Holt's lost a step it only makes sense to me to put Harris on him since he's also lost a step (or two). I know Coach Singletary really needs the WIN on this game but sometime soon I think Harris should be downgraded to nickel & for Brown to take his spot & see what he's got.

Also it's too bad JSmith is our best DLineman. I say that because he's in the same scenario as he was in Cincinatti. In the offseason I hope we can...1)Finally once & for all decide which scheme we're going to run 2)Once that's done start building our DLine & front 7 correctly 3)Get an upgrade on the front line to ALLOW JSmith to be more effective on the pass rush. I think getting a stud DLineman to cause more havoc & draw double-teams will really raise his effectiveness & production.

I want to say that better about JSmith. I'm glad we got him & he's solid. I hope we can get an upgrade of talent on the DLine so he & everyone up front can get better production & take it to the next level. JSmith deserves his props & what I said should've been in a positive light. Keep up the good work JS!

Hey Matt, with all due respect, you are probably the main reason Paraag has been getting ripped apart. You went on Razor and Mr. T and said that Marathe was in charge of letting Nolan know when to challenge. This was the first anyone outside of the organization heard about this. Razor went bezerk, even asked Steve Young about it. Steve questioned the credibility of that. Since then, Razor talks about Paraag everyday. Razor has made Paraag a lot more famous than he was... I'm not sure what his role is, but he has become really famous this year. Obviously, the reason fans don't like him is because he is definently not a football guy.

Justin would do a credible Dwaine Board imitation if we had a Fred Dean. He is a good player but would be far more suited as a second banana to another, better pass rusher on the other side.

Matt, could you talk a little about how Ray McDonald's play? Either I'm seeing things or he's evolved into a starting caliber 3-4 DE and appears to be a very competent bookend to Justin Smith, with his very high upside remaining relatively untapped. Thoughts?

I agree 100% with Matt. I quit reading that psychopath Kamikaze over on the Merc because he is OBSESSED with Paraage - I think he even stalks him and has posters of him plastered all over his bedroom. Every team could use a guy like Paraage - especially for the salary cap and contracts.

Matt, I agree with you that Paraag is getting treated unfairly....Due in large part to people like Ralph on KNBR who bashes Paraag and the York-owned 49ers on local radio every chance he gets ....As I recall over the course of the last few years, the 49ers have been rather successful on winning challenges...I just wonder what the heck is happening this year? It seems that during when things really matter what can go wrong does. Between all of those assistants in the box, they should be able to make better decisions...Monday's situation most likely would've been avoided if Martz were upstairs in the box to oversee the field.....

Matt- You're right, the communication and decision making process is the responsibility of the HC. Whatever Nolan had going didn't work very well, whether it was his judgement or his process, or both. Doesn't look like Singletary has set up anything better yet, but he's new and that end game situation was difficult. So far it seems like Singletary wants to change things that aren't working, so I'm hopeful.

you are a moron. matt isn't denying that marathe has input on challenges and game days, but rather stating that he's a consummate professional and that any blame for lost challenges falls on six other guys in the booth and the whole coaching staff, too. stop taking your frustration out on a journalist whos job is to communicate information; if you don't like the information, don't read it.

Matt, it's misguided on your part to think you can stop this onslaught with reasonable commentary. Didn't you ever read "Julius Caesar?" Crowds = Dumb.

Is this Darren #2?

Regardless if Paraag should be in the booth or not, he got us back in a great cap situation and he continues to manage it very well. I got no problems with the guy.

Now, fickle fans on the other hand...

MM - Thank you for this report. KNBR has become obsessed with this issue and it was getting absurd. As Randy in SR stated PM has been nothing short of perfect with our Free Agent and Draft pick negotiations. Fans need someone to blame and for whatever reason PM has become that man because he is a virtual unknown that I have a feeling does a lot of good behind the scenes.

MM - Is Smith the type of locker room guy in the mold of Deese, Newberry, and Young? Will he get in people faces to make it a little uncomfortable for all? He plays nasty, I wonder if he carries that into the locker room. BTW - If we don't go QB early, I have a feeling we will get an explosive Pass Rusher to play opposite Smith. That is all Justin needs to really explode as a dominate player. He is outstanding, but needs a little help from his fellow line mates. I also like his nasty streak.

Matt, nice report on the Paraag issue. Is this directly towards Ralph? When are you going to be on with Ralph & Tom again? You know he's going to grill on this one.

The team needs football people in the booth. Statistics, probability, and scientific formulas do not always help in football. Besides, didn't Paraag write a book on how to hire a perfect coach based on his scientific data? Yea! That worked out well with Nolan. The fact of the matter is, the booth has not been up to par, mismanaged clock and challenges. I am really beginning to think coach Nolan shoulders only a small fraction of inability to manage clock, challenges and other things.

P.S. I do think Paraag is a major factor in the mismanagement of the games this far. Get him out!

Although I'm not gonna take it that far, I agree. All this A** kissing on this blog is making me sick!

The story of the AZ game was improved effort and production by the Niners under Singletary, not their end-of-game issues. A month ago they wouldn't have had the end-of-game issues because they wouldn't have been in the game. However, since the end of the game keeps coming up: Martz blew it. He panicked when we got to the 1, screaming "Spike it, spike it" instead of calling that play calmly like a professional. He then called for a change of personnel for the spike play! This is all by his own admission. Then he failed to find out from the booth whether the challange would go vs the Niners. Then he failed to find out where the ball would be spotted, which didn't require the booth's input since the players already knew because they had already lined up on the two and a half yard line for the second spike play. There is no need to look any further for a goat. Martz' play calling has been the major factor in the failure of the SF offense this season (although it has improved over the last game and a half). It appears that Martz and/or Nolan may have rigged the QB competition during Training Camp in favor of JT, thus dooming the season. I hope Singletary has a better option for OC.

Hey Matt, also with all due respect, I agree with Ross on this....I believe you were the first one who "broke" this info on the Razor and Mr. T show, and Ralph has not stopped talking about it (I will admit, he's pretty funny about it, but Ralph can be like a Saturday Night Live skit, and beat a good/funny thing into the ground - see also the Singletary Pants dropping)....why not just put an end to the discussion right away when it was brought up on the show? It seems that because he's not a "football" guy, is why folks have a problem with it. If he knows the rules and can help, what's the big deal?

if that be the rule, it is real bad. Two feet in with control should be enough.

The story of the AZ game was the improved play and production by the Niners, not the end-of-game issues. A month ago they would not have had end-of-game issues because they would not have been in the game at the end. However, since the end of the game keeps coming up, let's stick with the obvious: Martz blew it. When they got to the one, Martz panicked. First he started yelling "Spike it, spike it" instead of calling the play calmly like a progessional. After all, there was no need to hurry with 40 seconds left. Then Martz inexplicably called for a change of personnel for the spike play, thus losing the 25 seconds and setting up the situation where the team really was short on time. Next, he failed to find out from the booth that SF was going to lose the review of Gore's run. Finally, he failed to find out during the review that the ball would be on the two and a half yard line. This didn't require booth input since the players knew where the ball would be spotted there because they had already lined up there for the second spike play. Martz' play calling has been a major factor in the failure of the SF offense this season (although it has improved over the last 6 quarters). It appears that he and/or Nolan may have rigged the QB competition during training camp in favor of JT, thus dooming the season. I hope Singletary has a better option for OC next year.

Matt, I think it might be fair to criticize the Niners for having Marathe in the booth. There is a major problem with someone up there as there's just been way too many screw ups. Maybe the coaches are intimidated by having him there since he's management and not part of the coaching staff.
I agree with you totally on J Smith. He'd have way better stats if there was some pressure up the middle once in awhile. He just doesn't quit. The last d-lineman we had that played non stop like that was Charles Haley who had alot more help from his d-line than Smith gets.

Exactly!

Ain't losing a blast?

Would Paraag Marathe get so much heat if his name was Joe Smith?

It is really getting creepy how everyone in the 49ers organization, associated with the 49ers organization, and covers the 49ers as their job (*cough Matt Maiocco *cough) goes to bat defending this guy. I could give two shits what his name is, the simple fact of the matter is that he is a bean counter through and through, to my knowledge has never played football at any level, except maybe Madden, and really has no business being involved in game day football. Then again, other than Martz and Singletary, it doesn't seem like anyone in the organization deserves to be involved in game day football.

I think we have to fix the defense. There were games that we were in and could have won if our defense would do their job and stop the other team. Monday night we were in the game but allowed the Cardinals to pass at will, we did fine against the runs but we did lousy against the pass. The Eagles game we did the same, we were winning and then collapsed in the fourth quarter. I truly think we just seem to get a new problem every year.

Hey Matt, yet another note on Kwame Harris... Warren Sapp claims that his daughter, Mercedes Sapp, would "take him to the house".

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/afceast/0-4-313/Sapp-predicts-Porter-will-abuse-Raiders.html

Hi Matt,

Thank you for the article on Paraag Marathe. I have been listening on the radio for the last few weeks and heard nothing but bashing of Paraag from radio personalities on KNBR (The Razor & Mr. T).

It would be great if you could explain Paraag like you have done with this great article to both The Razor and Mr. T on KNBR when you're on their show on Monday.

I believe that they're bashing on Paraag Marathe in part because of what you told them about him originally.

I said a lot of the same things on the radio Friday that I shared in this blog post.

http://media.knbr.com/knbr/1114mattm.mp3

--Matt M.

Matt last week you said the niners were going to have a hard time staying in the game with the cards. even though they botched the end, they kept it close. Do you think they will be abke to win this game? What are your overall thoughts? Thanks.

Yes, they should be able to win this game. It shouldn't be close, either. But you really don't know what you're going to get with the 49ers from week to week, so le't see what happens. And, yes, I do consider this a GPS game in the sense that it will show us exactly where the 49ers stand in comparison to one of the worst teams in the league. --Matt M.

Thank you. Matt, I don't want to sound stupid, but at the risk of doing so, what does GPS game actually mean?

What we really need to know about the challenge process is who speaks to Singletary. In other words, for the challenged pass to Hill, who communicated the advice to Mike? That would be a lot more useful than listing the guys who are in the booth.

The head coach, who doesn't have the advantage of instant replays, shouldn't make a decision himself unless he has an exceptional view of the play.

On that play somebody should have confirmed that Hill got two feet down (which he did), and somebody else (or the same guy) should evaluate the play re the rule book (and should have advised Singletary that Hill didn't maintain possession when he hit the ground). One of the booth guys or Singletary should also judge whether the challenge would result in enough benefit to be justified, or whether it would be better to save the challenge for a more significant situation.

That Hill challenge wasn't a bad one compared to Nolan's doozies, but somebody should have known that losing the ball when he hit the ground would result in an incompletion. Ideally you'd have somebody up in the booth who is brilliant at all that minutiae and would take everything into consideration quickly and advise Singletary and be consistently right on. They sure don't have that person now.

Something just doesn't make sense about the Hill no-catch on the sideline. If the ground cannot cause a fumble, how is it that the ground can cause an incompletion? The rule itself is ridiculous. Kind of like the "forced out" rule they used to have in the NFL before getting rid of it this year. If a guy caught the ball and was pushed out before landing in the field of play, a catch was awarded. That made no sense either, since another rule says once a receiver comes into contact with the ball, a defender can make contact with the receiver to break up the pass play; this would include knocking him out of bounds. The NFL is becoming too complex. It's time to return to simplicity and letting the players play the game. It goes even beyond that- it's tough to produce new fans when those who don't know the game inside and out can't understand a lick of what's going on? Now throw in all the stupid QB protection rules; Justin Tuck said it best (I'm paraphrasing) when he said you can't hit him high, you can't hit him low, and now you can't hit him hard either.

Regarding the rule on Hill's play on the sidelinem, some of you have been citing the Madden canard that the ground can't cause a fumble. If a player goes down because of contact and the ball comes out when he hits the ground that's true, but if there is no contact and the player loses the ball when he hits the ground it IS a fumble. And the rule is clear that a receiver must maintain control of the ball after he hits the gournd.

Thoughtful comment...thanks. I agree with you that the ground causing the ball to come out should be treated the same way on both running and passing. You and I are on opposite sides on QB protection, though. However, I like your thoughtfulness and your point about the rules getting too complex. I thnk there is way too much "unnecessary roughness" that does not fall under the rule(like blasting a guy who is down when just a touch will do). On the other hand, calling Gore down by contact because Okeafor's hand brushed Gore when he was already stumbling seemed silly to me. The entire nation knew Okeafor had nothing to do with Gore going down and the ruling deprived us of a great highlight: Gore crawling into the end zone with the winning TD!

Which 49er team will show up on the field today? The one that played so badly against Seattle? The one that played well in Arizona? Will we throw multiple interceptions and get none? Will we suffer multiple sacks and get none? Which Ram team will play today? The one that was down 40-0 at halftime? Or the one that won 2 games in a row?

Ralph should apologize to Marathe. But is a too big a jerk to admit his loud mouth mistakes.

We all know how Ralph Barbieri grabs hold of something he doesn't like(right or wrong) and won't shut up about it. Imagine the Barbieri household at Christmas time many years ago when Ralph was a kid. He doesn't get exactly what he wanted under the tree, do you think his parents probably heard about it until the following Christmas !!!

Not sure where that whole gound-can't-cause-a-fumble thing started. The fact is that the ground CAN cause a fumble. If a player is down by contact, making him down the moment he goes to the ground, then it's not a fumble. But if a player goes down on his own and the ball pops out, it is a fumble. A receiver has to establish possession of the ball to be awarded a reception. So in that case, the rule is consistent. --Matt M.

Matt, I'm with you on the Marathe bashing. It's absolutely ridiculous to spend any time on this subject. Every team has someone who's not a coach that helps the organization in multiple ways. Thank God I don't have to listen this Razor person. I listened to his "interview" of McCloughan where he challenged him on Marathe. What a hatchet job. And that voice, it's like fingernails on a chalkboard.

Matt, I think the ground can't cause a fumble was a simplified explanation when the league implemented the down by contact rule. I remember a Ram - Niner game back then where the Ram TE caught a pass, ran for 5-10 yds stumbled untouched, fumbled, the Niners recovered it and were awarded possession. The TV guys were confused about the call using that interpretation.
I agree mostly with OMG!! about the rules being too complex. Just like Hill's sideline catch that that was ruled incomplete, if he makes the catch and hits the ground in bounds, he's got a chance of being called down by contact since the Arizona guy pushed him down.

Grumpy..or a stud DT in the middle who commands double-teams. It would be awesome to get both & I don't see why we can't make that happen next year via FA & the Draft. It's been 4 years McCloughan...DT & legit pass rusher, let's get 'er done!

Here's my updated list of FA DT/DE/OLB's we should consider.....

1)Albert Haynesworth / DT / Titans / 6’6”, 320 lbs / 28 yrs old / TN / From Hartsville, SC - LONG SHOT

2)Tommie Harris / DT / Bears / 6’3”, 295 lbs / 25 yrs old / OK / From Killeen, TX

3)Julius Peppers / DE / Panthers / 6’7”, 283 lbs / 28 yrs old / NC / From Wilson, NC - LONG SHOT

4)Will Smith / DE / Saints / 6’3”, 280 lbs / 27 yrs old / OHIO STATE / From Queens, NY

5)Terrell Suggs / OLB / Ravens / 6’3”, 260 lbs / 26 yrs old / AZ STATE / From Minneapolis, MN.

6)Karlos Dansby / OLB / Cards / 6’4”, 250 lbs / 27 yrs old / AUBURN / From Birmingham, AL

absolutely on the money on haynesworth. if the titans franchise him and we give them two first rounders for him and sign him to a long term deal, i'll consider us to have gotten the better end of the deal.

as for your other guys: i don't think tommie harris is going to be a free agent; didn't the bears just sign him to a long term deal a few years back? also, he's too small to be a nose tackle, which is the biggest need on our dline. plus the bears won't let him go.

peppers is kinda the same as harris; no way the panthers let him go. plus he's a great 4-3 end but too big to be an outside lb in a 3-4 and too small to be a 3-4 end. not a good target imo.

will smith... i haven't seen anything from him since 2006. not worthwhile.

Terrell Suggs, now... this kid would be HUGE for us. he's built for a 3-4: a great outside linebacker who can cover tight ends and blitzes with the best of them, and to top it off he's a veteran of half a decade and still young. I'd be very happy with the niners if they gave him nate clements-level dollars to come over, and with even a merely decent NT in front of him i think he would take our defense to playoff caliber.

As for dansby, no way AZ lets him go. No ones higher on him than the cardinals.

Pray, PRAY for Haynesworth and Suggs.

Can someone please tell me what a GPS game means? thanks.

GilroyAl..to me instead of intimidated I think it's more of a slap in the face & an insult to the assistants to have a guy in a suit who "knows the rules better" than they do watching over them.

I think Paraage's brilliant managing our cap & getting the FA/Draft contracts done. I've always given him his well deserved props for that. IMO he's just not a football guy & shouldn't try to be. I bet our guys in the booth would do just fine without him in there.

We're in a rare situation with both Coordinators on the field right now, but shouldn't this job be for 1 of the Coordinators anyways, specifically the OC? He automatically follows down/distance, has to know/learn the rules of the game, & already has direct communications to the HC. Either him (or the DC) should be relaying this info along with the final challenge opinion (made by committee by a few select assistants in the booth) to him. Since neither of our Coordinators are in there give the job to the next assistant who's best qualified & shows he can do the job.

jersey niner..I put that whole list out there to cover both the 4-3 & 3-4 D. But FIRST & FOREMOST at the end of the season we have to get our Front Office, HC, & Coaching Staff settled ASAP. Once that's done we can then figure out the type of Offense we're going to run & our Defensive scheme ONCE & FOR ALL.

Knowing who our HC & Coaching Staff will be is going to be VITAL in luring the Free Agents here.

Sorry but 2 1st Rounders is WAY TO STEEP for Haynesworth, he probably has 3-4 good years left in him MAX. Don't worry about that anyways because he's already in his franchise year right now. The ONLY way we have a chance is to throw a ridiculous amount of money at him which I think we SHOULD DO. But Tennessee will likely get him signed. He's an East coast guy, played his college/pro ball in Tennessee & they're the best team in football right now.

Scratch Tommie Harris from the list..he signed a 4 yr extension in June.

Is it too much for a Head Coach in the NFL to actually know the rules of the game? Did Bill Walsh have a "Marathe" to whisper in his ear about the rules? Maybe Marathe should be the Head Coach. Its weird that none of the other coaches know the rules either.

don't know why you think haynesworth only has four years left in him; he's pretty young for a player this good and the closest thing to warren sapp in a decade. I'd say he'll be dominant till age 32-33 and very good until 35.

I said 3-4 "GOOD" years (meant to say DOMINANT) in him at his prime. Plus he's never played a full season & teams key in on him & he takes a pounding every game. That mileage adds up quick once your over 30.

If your right about Sapp then I agree I don't see why Haynesworth couldn't do the same as he did. It's amazing those guys last that long. They EARN their money.

don't know why you think haynesworth only has four years left in him; he's pretty young for a player this good and the closest thing to warren sapp in a decade. I'd say he'll be dominant till age 32-33 and very good until 35.

(sorry bout the double reply, dunno how that happened)

seriously, haynesworth would be an amazing pickup and i believe easily worth two first rounders. look at kris jenkins and the dominance he's brought to the jets that extends to the entire defense's play (and the fact that they're 5th in the league against the run), then take an even better player in haynesworth and imagine the possibilities. this kid would make our team elite, no joke.

I totally hear you jersey..I KNOW this ONE player in Haynesworth would totally change our Defense. This is what I've been posting all along since Berger brought him up to me months ago. We disagree about 2 1st rounders but I'm all for making him the highest DLineman ever to get paid a la Clements in his time. We just have to blow away everyone else's offer including Tennessee's because Haynesworth deserves to be the highest paid DLineman. IMO McCloughan shouldn't hesitate about this.

Understood Matt. However, in the case you specify being touched by an oppsing player resulting in the runner being down, I say that the sideline is equivalent to an opposing player; the player landed out of bounds while getting 2 feet in bounds. The play is essentially over before the ground causes the player to lose possession because he is out of bounds before the ball is out by virtue of touching the field out of play. It's all semantics, but the NFL needs to simply all of this for the pure sportsfan.

"There is no question in my mind Marathe knows the NFL rulebook better than anyone in the organization."

Then that's a sad commentary on the coaching staff1

Let's be real...that was a great comment flip3. "Would Paraag Marathe get so much heat if his name was Joe Smith"

There are 7 people in the booth, he is just one of them. Why do we not know the names or criticize others in that booth, because it is so easy to hit the guy with the weird name!

Btw, it was nice to finally cheer the 49ers to a win at the local sportsbar (Buffalo Wild Wings)!

Hopefully we can pull one off while I am at the game in Cowboy Stadium.