Yet, after the 49ers organized team activities wrapped up today, Singletary said he is more confident than ever that the 49ers have the personnel to be a division winner, playoff team and, possibly, go deep into the playoffs.
"No doubt in my mind - none," Singletary said. "I don't even blink at that. No doubt in my mind."
So what makes the 49ers behind the elite teams?
"What makes (us) behind is having several different (offensive) coordinators in the past few years," Singletary said. "What us makes us behind is not knowing exactly who the quarterback is. What makes us a little bit behind is not knowing exactly who the No. 1 receivers are. So, yes, that puts us a little bit behind. And you got a new head coach, that puts us a little bit behind.
"There are a lot of unknowns up to this point. When the other teams - whether it be a Carolina or whether it be an Arizona or a Dallas - they've known for a couple three years, 'This is who we have; this is who we are; this is where we're going.' "
Obviously, the biggest issue facing the 49ers with training camp set to open in about six weeks is the quarterback situation. Alex Smith showed some real improvement during the past couple weeks and has an opportunity to win the starting job over Shaun Hill, Singletary said.
"When the offseason started I wasn't really sure where Alex was," Singletary said. "He's been through a lot in four years. In order for he and Shaun to compete on a level ground, he had to get healthy. He had to get his mind focused. He had to let go of some of the bitterness that happened to him; some of the bad things and get the bad taste out of his mouth and be ready to go. I think that has happened. I'm very excited about that."
Based on the competition that has taken place during the past several months of this offseason, Singletary said neither quarterback distanced himself from the other. But, mostly based on the most recent game performances, Hill has an edge.
Q: Is Shaun still leading the competition?
Singletary: "I don't think anybody is leading the competition right now. I never heard anybody say Shaun was leading the competition."
Q: Didn't you say at the beginning of the offseason that Shaun was . . . ?
Singletary: "Yeah, OK. In principle, I'm saying that. As far as the competition is concerned, I want to see both of those guys continue to compete. From that standpoint, yes, you can say that technically Shaun is the guy until proven differently."
Q: So it's up to Alex to win the job from Shaun?
Singletary: "Yes."
* * *
Yes we are behind the elite teams. My question is how behind were some teams like the Dolphins, the Falcons and the Ravens last year? How behind were even the Cardinals on the beginning of the year?
They also had so many questions at some positions, and found the answers. We have the potential to find those answer too.
If things start to fall in place as those teams had last year, we will have a lot of fun.
The talent around the league is so balanced that what separates the elite teams from the mediocre and bad teams are continuity and the quality of the organizations. Singletary nails it when he points out that the turnover of offensive coordinators, new head coach, and uncertainty with the starting quarterback are all factors. I like how he isn't hiding behind them as excuses, but merely points them out matter-of-factly. He understands they are obstacles and hopefully he will put them permanently in the rear view mirror. I am more and more excited about this year's team the closer we get to training camp and the beginning of the regular season. I'm going to have to miss all the preseason games because I am being stationed in Florida, but thanks to DirecTV I will catch every game :D
Matt great timing on asking the question about the QB position. It's always been Shaun's "job to lose," however we seemed to have gotten so swept up in the fortunate uprising of A.Smith, sight of the actual situation "in principal" got lost. Nice read.
Matt,
Great read & it's going to be "must see TV" when the Pre-Season games start so we can FINALLY determine with our own eyes which QB gives the 49ers the best chance to win in the 09' season. I can't wait!
Pigeon-holed! Nice work Matt!
nice read.......49er snoozzzze time
.MM -
would appreciate your observation of the rookies this last OTA.....especially A.Boone, McKillop aka willis jr, Taylor
.....and Whtz Up with D BASS?... looking like he his going to be a FA in the future unless he plays like or close to a pro-bowl form...
You are correct Ron in what you say.
Beyond that, what separates teams are:
A). Limiting turnovers (and taking the ball away).
B). Limiting STUPID penalities (witness the VD meltdown)
and, maybe most importantly
C). Finishing games. Winning when you have a chance at the end and conversely, not losing when you have it almost all wrapped up.
There's a fine line between winning and losing in the NFL.
Quote of the day
“I don’t think anybody is leading.”
– Mike Singletary on the quarterback competition between Hill and Smith
Yeah but, you gotta keep reading.
That's all I'm gonna say F49er, scouts honor.
I'll say it again Stampede you're a good man by preventing anarchy. It's much appreciated!
Here's what crazy about Hill being "in the lead" based on his performance last year... The last time Smith was under center and healthy (underscore the word "healthy"), he was coming off a very good second half of his second year as -- what? -- a 22-year-old QB? And he was coming off a 2-1 start at the beginning of his third year, including a come-from-behind win. His teammates were clearly playing for him. That's the last time Smith was under center and healthy. So... Tell me, did he "lose" his job because of that level of play? Bottom line: this absolutely should be an open competition, and no one should have a problem with that if you factor in what I said above. You must throw out what you saw from Smith after Rocky Bernard busted up his shoulder -- that's a ridiculous benchmark, other than the guts he showed trying to play through it. He clearly wasn't right physically. All I'm saying is this: let the best man win, but going with Hill purely based on what he did last year discounts what a healthy Smith did in his last seven or eight games.
Matt, thanks for the great reporting. The item that hit me the most was Sing's recognition of the complete mishandling of Alex by Nowin and the devastation he experienced. Coach does not miss a beat and tells it like it is. Even though supposedly friendly with Nowin, he is not reluctant to share the truth. Have you ever asked him how he was able to survive the Nowin experience, keeping his cool and zipping his mouth, when all this coaching malfeasance was going on?
Good question although I doubt it ever gets asked let alone answered. Nolan saw within Singletary the raw talent of coaching which is why he brought along to San Francisco, but I doubt he realized at the time that the day would come when he would grow into a head coach with a potential that he could never hope for in his best football dream. I am apprehensively excited about the finished product Coach Singletary puts out on the field of battle. The wars to come will begin his march towards a new legacy of achievement. Through victories and defeats he will I believe persevere into possession of the Lombardi Trophy.
Hopefully Alex Smith will prove his value as a high pick, and not only win the job, but excel. That one thing would change the team's performance enough to make them true contenders every week.
They could have a decent year if Hill is the guy, but his upside, and the team's, is limited.
The upside with Hill at QB is far superior to the offense with Smith at QB,as of now.
That comment has nothing to do with what I said.
My point was that Alex Smith finally has a chance to prove what he's worth. And if he fulfills his worth, the team is better off due to his arm, his athleticism and his age.
Coach Singletary is obviously a man of strong conviction -one can only presume there were excruciating and conflicted moments working as an assistant coach. My impression is that he was on board with rebuilding the talent base on a team that was so decimated . Coach doesn't strike me as someone who spends much time on things he can't change and certainly not one who would disrespect a superior post. No, we are fortunate it seems to have landed a man of great character- whose forbearance (yes even in face of his explosiveness) and depth of will seem undeniable! Time will tell the wiser - however- sans some cataclysm, a couple years of stability in the areas aforementioned and happy days are here again say I!
There's a positive in what MS says about all the new things the 49ers are "behind" in. It's true the elite teams can say "This is who we have; this is who we are; this is where we're going" as MS says.
The positive is that the 49ers know who the elite teams have, they know who they are, and they know where they're going.
But the elites don't have the luxury of knowing those things about MS's 49ers. And I think that MS has that in the back of his mind. And we'll all find out what MS has in store for the elites and others!
This is pretty much the nail on the head. With some discipline and will to win/finish games the talent on this roster can do some pretty awesome things, I think.
One thing to think about when Shaun Hill enters the season as our Starting QB ...... teams now have more film on him to study and game plan for. His lack of physical tools and skills will be more evident. I think this is why the 9ers did not want to let Alex walk away so fast and is giving him all the opportunity to battle of the starting position. He has more upside than s. hill does. However, Alex has a 2 yr, contract, is that right? I do think that Nate Davis takes over as our QB at the end of Alex's contract.
I think the "more film" excuse is dated. Hard to believe he would win 5 of 8 games w/out teams knowing what's coming.
Anyone else notice the NFL Network has the 49ers as the 27th best team in the league, behind the Seahawks and Bengals? Don't know why I let myself get so exercised about that. Sorry to jump off topic right quick.
I watched the NFL Network pretty often for a while. Then I noticed a trend on their Network. It seems like the Dallas Cowboys own the Network! EVERYTHING seems to be about them and I've gotten sick of it!
I wouldn't worry about what they say! They look at every team thru blue and silver glasses! I don't know anybody on that Network besides a couple of ex. coaches who even know what their talking about and the rest wear expensive suits, wear big rings and just make noise!
Watching the NFL Network is like watching a game listening to John Madden constantly babbling on about Brett Farve whether Farve is playing or not! Did you notice that Madden retired the same time as Farve? He lost his talking points!
Now that Farve might come back (again!) maybe Madden will too!
I watched the NFL Network pretty often for a while. Then I noticed a trend on their Network. It seems like the Dallas Cowboys own the Network! EVERYTHING seems to be about them and I've gotten sick of it!
I wouldn't worry about what they say! They look at every team thru blue and silver glasses! I don't know anybody on that Network besides a couple of ex. coaches who even know what their talking about and the rest wear expensive suits, wear big rings and just make noise!
Watching the NFL Network is like watching a game listening to John Madden constantly babbling on about Brett Farve whether Farve is playing or not! Did you notice that Madden retired the same time as Farve? He lost his talking points!
Now that Farve might come back (again!) maybe Madden will too!
Whiner: I do agree with you about Nate Davis probably taking over after Alex's contract runs out. But that does not mean that alex ever played during those two years. That only means that 2 years is the outside time frame for when Davis should be the undisputed starter . I believe Davis will probably take over from Hill,who will probably have one ot two pretty good years as the starter. The real contest might be who will remain on the team to be Davis' backup,Hill or Smith? (Of coourse this all hinges on if Davis actually lives up to his great potential . If he flops big time like Alex has done ,then we better have another option on the team by then,because Alex is not the hoped for great Franchise QB we should all be hoping for. Maybe Davis is ! He has by far the best chance to be exactly that of any QB on the roster now.