A lot of fans have the characteristics of a 7 year old in the cereal isle. "I want this, I want that," and when they don't get it they have a fit. Same w/ some fans, when the team doesn't win, logic flies out the window, and instantly every player is a "bust" and all the coaches are idiots and should be fired, which is equally as perplexing.

Alex has carried the bad weight of this franchise since he's arrived here. No one else (other than Nolan) has been labeled the scape goat more than him. I hope he rises up and shuts the nay-sayers down. The man deserves all the success coming his way.

Alex Smith has yet to have a reasonalble oppportunity to show what he can do. Even this year, yet another new system/coordinator and better talent around him, but still a below average OL. It was nice to get Rich Gannon's view that it takes 2 offseasons before an offense gets into gear. The Niners haven't had that in what seems like forever.

I agree with Stampede and only write to add, that the fan's perception is not helped my simplistic media opinions like the one offered by Terry Bradshaw before the Colts game. I think Noland's (aka No-clue) mismanagement of a QB's development ought to be in a textbook somewhere.

Someone has a mancrush on Alex!

Just kidding Matt. I think people here are just really spoiled when it comes to the QB position. I remember all the people calling for Steve Young's head (people calling into radio shows actually wishing for him to get hurt). And this was when he was going to the pro bowl!

I couldn't be happier for Alex. We all have to remember that he is still just 25. His career is really just starting. Unlike Aaron Rogers, he didn't have the benefit of sitting a few years, learning from Favre, before getting his chance with a well oiled offense and a set offensive scheme already in place.

Have we all forgotten how amazingly bad the 9ers were when they drafted Alex?

Also, the more i think about it, the more I like gutsy move to take Crabtree: (I still remember a lot of you bitching: diva, overrated, system player). And he was already my favorite player in the draft and the one I wanted us to pick even before I thought it was possible.

Nothing helps a quarterback develop more that having that outside guy who you can throw to on hot reads and KNOW he will find a way to get his hands on the ball, even in traffic. It's such a confidence booster. Now with Vernon's mindset starting to match his skill-set. And Frank, who is a terrific blocker and adept at breaking off into the slip screen...

Alex has everything he needs to finally succeed.

So now it's just a matter of Barry Sims keeping him alive for the next 7-9 games.

I really do believe with an improvement in the O Line this offense can take off next year. It is the last remaining piece, a big one, but we have a talented group of young receivers. I have always liked Walker. He is one of the most versatile players on the team.

As for Alex Smith I couldn't agree with you more Matt. He has fought through adversity with different OCs, a horrible O line, a severe injury, and adjusting to the leap from a spread Offensive in college to the coverages and speed of the NFL game. I remember Steve Young and Terry Bradshaw saying it takes 3-4 years to adjust to the speed of the NFL & defense.

I also like Coaches Sing & Raye. Give them a break. They are going to take this franchise to elite status in the future years. I have never been this optismitic about the Niners since the early 90's.

We need one truly talented & tough O Tackle added along with a great pass rusher and we will return to glory and compete yearly in the playoffs.

Thanks Matt! It's no fun when you back it up with facts.
Seriously I hope Smith turns out to be worthy of where he was picked so we an finally move on from the whole "who is the QB of the future" thing.

Matt, it's not a short answer rhetorical question. Having been a poster in the 49ers forums for over a decade, I saw that the Smith-hate started before Smith was drafted. When Smith struggled as a completely unprepared rookie on a very crappy team, he was written off by a huge swath of the posters who wanted Rodgers, Edwards or Rolle instead.

In 2006, despite obvious strides as a QB, both from his rookie season and during the year, he was constantly derided. In 2007, during his first three games he, and Vernon Davis, were the only effective weapons on the offense. Smith, instead of being recognized as the reason we won, he was derided again.

I pointed out many times that the WRs dropped 13 balls, which in those first three games were 15% of his attempts. I pointed that any club with decent WRs won't have a drop rate under 5%-6% and if we looked at Smith's stats in context (in statistics we call this process normalization) of his being sabotaged by Jackson and Battle, he actually had some very good stats. But you had to put your hate and immaturity aside to see what happened.

These were called "Alexcuses" and those of us that defended the "worst pick ever" were "Alexsexuals." I eventually left earlier this year. The atmosphere by created by the pack of football-imbeciles that were (a) clearly incapable of seeing Smith's growth and (b) were Pavlovianly hostile to any mature analysis became so overwhelming that there was no point in defending Smith any longer, so I left because I really, at this point in my life, can't deal with a bunch of spoiled, crybaby fans with the patience of two-year-olds.

Moving forward Smith is definately the guy. Now what needs to happen is whole lot of dough needs to be put into the offensive line. Sign a right tackle through free agency, 2nd and 3rd rounds devoted to the guard positions. And please for the love of God! draft an return specialist!

Fabulous: I think the 9ers are committed at this point to improve through the draft. I am pretty sure they would draft a OT before signing one. I also don't think there are any special tackles available in free agency. A guard is probably in the mix too, as I am not sure they will resign Baas. Even if they do, I think draft 1 for depth.

With 3 picks in the first 2 rounds, we are in good shape to fill holes now that the skill positions are pretty much set.

I agree with you on the return specialist, however... God it would be great if Cleveland doesn't find a way to resign Josh Cribbs... I would snap that guy up in a heartbeat.

Delanie Walker is a jem.His esprit de corps is exactly what Coach Singletary wants/requires from his players.Not to mention the kid is talented.As far as Alex goes,I remember being shocked at how brutal fans were when he tried to play with serious injury(some inferring he had no guts or will-sheesh!)I felt compelled to defend him and did(much like my response about S Hill when he was maligned by some fans!). .Once upon a time Alex was a very young golden boy who walked into the Valley of Shadows and was deluged.He hung his head down going back to the huddle with a back and forth motion as if to say "NO "in some subtle visceral language.I really felt he needed to go to another team to break the spell.Perhaps I was wrong-I sincerely hope so as he has always comported himself with courage and class in face of very trying circumstances.

His leadership on the field has been a bust, pocket presence without panic surging through his veins, accuracy, mechanics, body language all bust category. Now all of a sudden he's the prodigal QB come home. Lets see how this plays out before we get too nostalgic. I'm happy he looks more confident, and seems to have improved with respect to the aforementioned thanks in part to the new QB coach. Maybe he is now the man to lead this team but we won't know for sure until this season plays out. I'm pulling for him so we can be back in that situation where we have 2 probowl QBs on the roster. Smith/Davis. Go Niners!

Oh yea, can we please hire a real OL coach?

Alex is not out of the woods yet. Not even close. I have always rooted for Alex and think his intelligence and athleticism is rare. What he has shown in the last 6 quarters is very encouraging. I hope he continues to improve and prove his worthiness. As a 49er fan, that would only help my team. Not many teams can say they have a young franchise QB, I hope we can say that soon!

Ok Matt. I don't know how oneniner broke in and got on your computer. I understand all the problems he has faced in his career. But the main problem that I have is his accuracy. He has missed some tough throws which can be accepted at times, but when he misses short passes badly, open recievers on the screen, rolls right every time instead of forward to gain something instead of throwing it away. That you can't teach no matter who is the OC. His accuracy at times is real bad. I was with him and hoping he would turn out to be one of our greats. This is his last chance. But getting beat out by a career pine riding qb has got to speak volumes. I hope for the benefit of the team he becomes lights out when given the oppertunity to throw, or terrible. No in between. Either he is the future starting this year. Or it's time to move on.

All this is great... first pick QB realizing his potential, best young defensive player in football, steal of the best player in the draft already making an impact...

But Matt... I think it's time you started talking about the "REAL" most important story for the 49ers this year...

How the new uniforms are worlds better than those stupid ones we switched to a few years ago...

Crabtree looks smashing in the new garb. We might not play like world champions yet... but darn it, we sure look like world champions!

Rebel: I see that you are speaking in support of Alex but your comment "...worthy of where he was picked ..." is the essence of his lack of fan support. The fact is that the 2005 draft had no concensus #1 pick and nobody was really "worthy" of that draft slot or the money and heavy expectations that went with it. The years before and after that draft Alex likely would have been the 4th QB selected behind Manning, Rivers and Rothlisberger in 2004 and Young, Leinart and Cutler in 2006 (subsequent levels of success notwithstanding). But it wasn't his fault where he was picked or that he took the compensation that went with it. He is still a talented QB and may prove to be a successful one if everyone would quit holding that draft slot up as some sort of measuring stick.

I'm pulling for Alex. Remember the O line has been in flux his entire career. I think he may be jinxed. Soon as he gets a start the left OT goes down. The right OT is already down. Bass and Snyder are coming off injuries, Rachel is regressing. Hopefully we won't have to use a first round draft now for a QB next year. Maybe we can draft a stud right tackle. Come on 49ers, lets finally get that offensive line we've been needing for 5-6 years now! And let's not forget Nolans' brain freeze idea of having 2 offensive line coaches at one time. That really worked out well!

THANK YOU FOR LETTING ALL THOSE ALEX HATERS UNDERSTAND THAT THEY WERE COMPLETELY WRONG IN CALLING ALEX A BUST. HE HAS A CHANCE NOW TO SHOW WHAT HE CAN DO AND I BELIEVE THAT IT WILL AT LEAST BE MORE THAN WHAT SHAUN HILL GIVES US.GO NINERS!

I'm with whoever said we should stick with facts.

Alex was the #1 pick in the overall draft.

Thus far he hasn't delivered. He was beaten out by a journeyman before the season started. Let's see what happens on the field.

Let's see what the future holds and what the actual facts are. Or we can simply close our eyes and just believe.

I always pulled for Hill because I thought his leadership skills were better coming out of pre-season, and throwing Smith in there right away had risk if they started out losing. Smith coming in as a replacement AND doing well was my long-term hope.
I pointed out earlier that Brady looks great when he can sit back and just find receivers, and mediocre when he's rushed. Even Manning had trouble when he had no time.
But football is the most complex team sport. It is very difficult to assess Smith in terms a QB skill, other that right now he's doing pretty well and if he improves he'll have a good solid career. To be great you need a better team. In our case without a better line he could be good, but we will win some and lose some the rest of the year.

Tom Brady and the Patriots? Oh yeah i forgot, the Patriots.

Actually should be more like Big Ben and Parker in super prime.

I hope the O-line gets recognizable credit from now on, they deserve it. they gotta come out shootin airbags.

I think most fans that consider him a 'bust' do not give him a pass on the shoulder. Regardless of the reasons, he has not provided the ROI on our 1st overall pick investment. That may not be fair, or an objective evaluation of his talent/potential, but it is a reality.

The good thing from all that bull Alex went though he can say hes been around the block, son.

gossiping is such a reputation killer...whether in high school or life

+1

Matt,

First time blogger & I as much as I love the coverage you provide 49ers fans I really don't like to get into these conversations on-line but I had to today. I'm just as perplexed as you are concerning the attitude toward Alex Smith by many so called Niner Faithful. I'm nearly 54 yrs old & have been a fan of the team since 1962 so I think I have a more mature perspective on Alex. I completely agree with you in that it is impossible to have any judgement on his career to this point because he hasn't played in 2 years & prior to that played just one full season. But I think the problem is too many fans keep thinking back to the 3 games Alex attempted to play in after he came back from the shoulder injury in 2007 which we know he should have never been allowed to play in the first place. Those 3 games seem to have left a lasting impression to many of the critics you are writing & wondering about. If they had any common sense they would ignore or disregard those 3 games & understand he should have never been allowed to play again that season & should have had the season ending surgery in Sept of that year instead of Dec & should have had his head coaches unwavering support based off his greatly improved performance in '06 & first few games of '07 in addition to his very young age. Nolan completely mishandled that situation & by all rights should have been fired at end of '07. I was at that New Orleans game in '07 when Alex made his first home start after the injury & was disgusted with both the fan reaction to his performance, even though it was so obvious how badly his shoulder was hurting, & by Nolan for leaving Alex in that game to take such a beating. He is only 25 years old, but very mature, very intelligent, has great character & work eithic, is athletic enough with vastly underated arm strenth & improving accuracy. Now he has vastly upgraded players at the skill positions & more importantly the right support system surrounding him to make it work this time. If 9ers finally upgrade the o-line this coming off season then this team will really take off with Alex as the QB.

If they can hit with those two first rounders or even the 3rd rounder on improving the o-line that would be huge. I think that a better bet would be to bring in a veteran tackle in, use the first three picks on the secondary, linebacker and d-line. From there you can pick up some depth on the o-line in the later rounds. What concerns me is if Alex Smith does not pan out, is Davis the next up or do they change their stance and draft QB in the first round?

I agree with Matt, Stampede and others: no quarterback could have succeeded under the circumstances Alex Smith came into with the 9ers: bad WRs, wretched O line, no time to learn, ever-changing offensive philosophies, injury, crappy HC. The real problem was that the 9ers organization was in a period of dysfunction, maybe the worst since the Joe Thomas days.

I also agree that far too many fans seem unable to look any deeper than wins and losses. These people would have called for Bill Walsh to be fired after the 1979 season, while the groundwork for his Super Bowl teams was still being laid. There are many developments, not easily apparent to the casual fan, that must take place before the wins come.

2 things:

1. I didn't think Smith played very well in 2006. I didn't see anything all year that indicated he would be a good NFL QB. Gore was the reason we finished 7-9, not Smith.

2. Will someone rationally explain why a lot of folks blame Nolan for Smith's lack of progress. I am genuinely puzzled by that accusation.

Sure, in hindsight, Nolan should have put Smith on IR after the initial shoulder injury. At the time both the doctors and Smith said he was good to go but Nolan should have overruled them.

But how does that play into Smith's development? since the injury thru to the start of this season, Smith hasn't been availble to play so why exactly is that Nolan's fault?

Really no blame should be affixed to Coach Nolan or Alex Smith ,Things transpired the way they did - change and circumstances don't always favor the individual in the moment. The best that can happen under unfavorable circumstances is one uses adversity as springboard toward better outcomes.Coach Nolan seems to have done that,now let's see if Alex does.What matters is what occurs now.

Matt,

Thanks for sticking up for my boy Alex. I also want make clear that Alex has not arrived...he's not even close! The kid has been out of action for 2 years. He's a work in progress just like the whole offensive unit is but it looks promising based on the 6 qtrs we've seen so far. Like I said before young NFL players are only going to get better by simply being on the field & competing. You can't substitute that. Look for Alex to continue to improve & getting a victory Sunday while the Cardinals lose in Chicago. That sounds nice doesn't it?

...nice read....

I disagree, Matt... a lot of ppl ARE remembering 2007, but they are remembering only that we were wretched in the last 2 pre-season games and first 4 regular season games. We could not stop a blitz to save our lives. Now that wasn't all Alex's fault - in fact, it was mostly other peoples fault. The offensive line simply fell apart, and we could not figure out how to stop any kind of blitz. But a lot of ppl only remember that Alex looked frazzled and confused a lot of the time even Before he went down.

The good news is, Alex seems to have learned a lot from that experience and in the interim. He is getting the ball out much more quickly - the best way to discourage the blitz. He looks far more poised. Its too soon to be sure, but he may have turned the corner as an NFL QB.

And he has proven that he is not. Bust title until he proves otherwise.

Smith did nothing in preseason this year to suggest he had grown at all. He surprised the Texans and his QBR against the Colts was DeBerg-like, just good enough to get you beat.

I am in favor of seeing if Smith can continue to develop. Sadly, he's stuck with Mike "I never met a pass I liked" Singletary and Jimmy "1940s" Raye and I suspect that will continue to hinder Smith's development.

Based on last year's exuberant utterance by Jed York that this was the last year the 49ers would not be playing in January, I suspect Sing and Raye will probably be ejected if the 49ers fail to make the playoffs, which means if they fail to win the division. There will be no wild-card opportunities for the 49ers. It'd almost be worth it to lose this year if it means we get Holmgren or Shanahan next year.

Enjoy reading all the pros and cons about Alex .
I think we are seeing his maturity at age 25 . When Alex was first playing he looked very tentative and did no not appear ready to lead .Alex had very bad body english and seemed to always hang his head when a bad playtook place.
So far he is playing with awareness and comands the huddle . I actually have seen him giving directions to fellow members .This is encouraging and speaks well to our teams future.Go Niners

Matt,

Your chronological detail of Alex Smith's career and the last two paragraphs sums it all up (best factual write-up I've seen on the subject). There is no way this kid is a bust. If the organization gives him time, and he can get continuity from the HC and OC, he may be something special. My concern at this point is the weak o-line and keeping him healthy. We definitely don't need him hurt and have a setback.

I have been a Smith detractor and will readily admit that that my memory before/after his injury is a bit fuzzy (actually, my memory in general is a bit fuzzy). I do remember that first AZ game in 2007, pre-injury. He came back and had one good drive at the end to pull out a victory, but prior to that, I thought he truly stank. But, I have now come to accept that he really had some crappy options (other than Gore) and very little help from the OL, which is a QB killer.

My gut then was that -- at that point in his career -- he had not shown the poise, accuracy and release that a successful NFL QB needs. He does look better now, no question, and he also has better players (well, except for that OL) around him.

The one thing that a few have mentioned, and I totally agree with is that the key for him is to be accurate. It can be a very small difference between the screen pass that floats in stride to the RB and the one that has him reaching, slowing, every so slightly to grab the ball -- the difference between a 3rd down conversion and a punt. I look forward to Smith mastering this, because let's face it, as 9er fans, we WANT him to succeed.

I will be jumping up and down screaming for joy to say that all the doubts I had about him were wrong. I think he is better now, but I am not ready to anoint him our QB for the next 10 years any more than Hill. But Hill WAS stop gap. Smith really DOES have a much better upside.

Finally, I have never questioned him as a person. I only doubted his ability to be a good or great QB. The guy has handled himself with dignity at every point. It makes it even easier to hope that he comes through.

Good luck Alex.

Hi Matt, Nolan received so much ink after Alex hurt his shoulder that I believe it affected the perception of the QB. Alex kept quiet even as Nolan questioned his machismo. I'm waiting for Alex to pull the naked bootleg around left end that he ran in 2006 against Seattle.

There is a reason that a couple of Smith fans are the minority. He hasnt progressed into what a #1 pick should be. Its simple look at his accuracy percentage. I dont want to hear about dropped balls. Unless you have the footage of those drops to prove if they were bad throws or just bad hands. And with my eyes at the time when I was rooting for Smith I saw bad throws most of the time. There is a reason why 100s of fans boo him at training camp, and 1000s boo him at the stick. Its because he isnt #1 worthy. Plain and simple.In this blog world you live in you may think your the majority, but go to a bar or a game and ask what fans think of Smith and you will learn reality real quick. Most dont agree with you. And thats from alot more fans that dont blog. Oh and 198 yards and 1 td and 1 int isnt that impresive. If he wants to win the majority of fans back. He better do a whole hell of alot better than that.And I am speaking for the majority jury on Alex Smith.

It is very interesting how some on this blog require so much attention they have to be negative and disagree with the majority. They want to mix it up and get a rise out of the positive posters. MM's detail and write-up on this is based on facts.

HoPerfan67, I can put some Alex stat facts up like I have before. Do you REALLY want to argue with those? Now I'm going out to the bar to enjoy myself and I'll be sure to come back and give you an Alex Smith popularity poll?

Matt, you're almost batting 100% among the posters this time.
WOW! Where were all these fans when the rest of the world was crowning him with THORNS? I gave up finallly on the 49ers MB because I couldn't take all the insults and mean remarks about Alex--even when he was barely 21 years old (rookie year).

As far as ninermd, there are just no words base enough to degrade your remarks. How can you be such a cruel person in your thoughts and expectations of a Niners QB who has gotten the worst circumstances in his brief reign--not to mention all the serious injuries, unkind treatment from his coach, worst possible OL, a different OC in EVERY YEAR, etc in his introduction to the NFL as a youngster who finished college in 3 years. You must not have a HEART inside your chest. Maybe what's ticking is a bomb?

Niner MOM

Look here Jan. This is football.Critisizm is part of the game. I have never said anything personal about this man. As a matter of fact from what Ive seen from him in interviews and some of his actions off the field. I think he is a hell of a guy. But its not about his personality its about production. And thats what counts in football. And more importantly my team. I guess this is why they call it a mans sport. He isnt worried about what fans think. Im sure he wouldnt give back the millions he earned because he isnt popular. Life ISNT fair. You win some and you lose some. I hope you dont treat your kids like this if they are in sports. If you do you. They will have a rude awakening coming. Either your good or your not. And from what Ive seen from this kid on the field HE in NOT. He has a chance to prove us wrong and get our support again. But at this point he is going to have to earn it. Have a great night.

It doesn't matter if you are pro Smith or Anti Smith. What Matt is saying is, the kid hasn't played enough to make a decision one way or the other. The people that are slagging Smith for being a bust are ignoring the fact the kid has a little over a season's worth of games he can be graded on: The 2006 season and the first 3 games of 2007. If you look at anything other than those games you aren't being reasonable, and I'm guessing that is why Matt wrote that part.

He had no chance of success his rookie season, so throw that footage out the window. In 2006, he wasn't great, but progressed very well for a young guy in his second season without much in the way of talent at the reciever positions another than Antonio Bryant. He struggled a bit at the beginning of 2007, but they won 2 of the games, and he played his best one against Pittsburgh right before he got hurt.

So for those of you talking about accuracy and poise and whatever else you wanna talk about, think about this: He was 22 years old the last time he was healthy and playing regular season football. His arrow was pointed up and he got hurt. Unfortunately it's taken two years to get back to a position where he can throw the ball well again, and we will see over the course of this season whether he can pick up where he left off two years ago. But whatever the outcome, what Matt said about people jumping the gun to call him a bust, when the only crime he's committed is injuring his shoulder, is true. It's perplexing to see people ignore common sense so they can get some sort of boost to their self worth by piling on the kid simply because he's the QB who was taken #1 in 2005.

I'll add this to what Matt said: Some of you need to grow up, and be open to the fact that not everything is black and white, and there is often underlying and mitigating factors involved in whether a player beocmes successful or not. Matt listed the numerous problems Smith had to overcome above. You don't have to love the guy. but get over the hating crap and look at the situation for what it is.

Who was it that said there will be a point and time when technology will be changing everyday and humanity will not be able to keep up with it....case in point...this blog...

Ya know it seems very easy at this point to criticize for some fans to be the obvious but then again we would be talking about the clueless! It seems that ninermd has figured everything out just like the rest of the Dunderheads. But as he failed to mention as I've said all along is that Sing & Raye are basically flying by the seat of their pants to do EVERYTHING possible to stop the losing streak & I for one commend them for doing so. I can't help but recall hearing the KNBR morning show on Tuesday with coach Sing & he said that "everybody in the building is working very hard to be successfull" so if you don't believe that then you're a complete IDIOT!

It's funny how even factual reporting brings out so much bias, one way or another. It just shows how fickle or adoring many fans really are. As for me, I believe Alex was in a no-win situation early on...he joined an absolutely horrible team in 2005. For fans to say he showed nothing in 2006...well, I don't know what team they were watching, but as that season ended, Alex was showing clear signs of "getting it". Then Turner left and things began to unravel...Hostler clearly wasn't ready to be the OC and then Rocky Benard ended the season for Alex for all intents & purposes. 2008 was on IR...so, rolling forward to now, he's getting another shot at the job. I'm happy for him...he's been a class act throughout all the bad things that've happened to him. Yes, it's about performance...but I believe you have to take his in the proper context. You can't perform if your shoulder's not right, and his clearly hasn't been right for two years. Yeah, he's struggled at times...most young QB's do, even on good teams. Agree, let's see what he can do now that he's got much better talent around him, albeit a somewhat shaky OL. I think he's up to the challenge, but only time will tell. I wish him nothing but the best.

reviewing the video from another blog of montana's glory i surely saw a QB staring down his receivers, i clearly slaw receivers underthrown and accuracy not so great, and those were the good plays....i also remember montana's crap plays as well getting trounced...by giants and vikings and saints etc.

my point is that montana was not great by himself, he was barely good, he just had a great team around him, such a great team with superstar weapons that it transcended his better than average skills into monumental fan searing memories....that were not so much montana as it was his superstar weapons and a walsh system that made defenses look sluggish and out of position.

superstar weapons and a system that a more accurate and stronger armed young was able to extrapolate to greater personal deeds

smith is perfectly fine....it is now dependent on his burgeoning superstar weapons and a system to bring smith's attributes to a flowering fruition and hopefully not like foul smelling rafflesia

LOL You are are funny. This must be a joke? I cant imagine you being serious. QB in most cases make recievers great. Montana wasnt great? ha ha ha ha ha. Montana didnt have Rice, Taylor, and Craig. All of his career. Wow your comment says it all on how blind some of you are to TRUE greatness.

Let's see how the kid does today... can we at least give him a few games with his new weapons before we come to any conclusions?

I will be back after the game to give my thoughts.

Most of the experts like you are still clueless as to the fact that football is one of the ultimate team games. Good players need other good players surrounding them so that their "greatness" is allowed to develop. It's all about confidence in you're teammates and it's also about the stability of the organization. Montana was as extremely fortunate to be drafted by the Niners as the Niners were lucky to get him, the perfect storm so to speak. Ask Steve Young about the difference between playing for the Bucs, where he was nowhere close to being a HOF QB and then playing for the Niners who were loaded with other good players. If you think Montana would have been great playing for a team as bad as the Bucs then you prove me right about being clueless. Do yourself a favor and pull your head out into the sunshine.

Fabulous: The problem is, as far as I can tell, nobody of any worth is going to to hit the free agent market at the OT position.

Also, if one did, you'd have to factor age, injuries and salary. The 9ers are in a position, depending on where they draft to possibly get a Taylor Mays, a 3-4 DE. or 1 of top 3 OT coming out with the Carolina pick... I really believe we still need a Safety with speed that will wreak havoc over the middle, but can still get back in coverage. Which is why I am a proponent of Taylor Mays (sorry guys, but Eric Berry will be long gone when we pick, so don't even get worked up about who is better).

If they go that route a good Tackle should still be available with the 2nd 1st round pick. But either way, tackle needs to be addressed with 1 of the first 2 picks. the 2nd and 3rd round picks can fill in whatever we didn't get already. I wrote to you earlier in the RJF post, that we are still 2-3 players away. This upcoming draft, because it's so deep with talent, and we are set up so well with picks... should propel us into an upper echelon team... As long as we draft the right kids.

Of course all this is dependent on the scenario of Alex Smith convincing the GM and Coach that he is the QB of the future. Otherwise this goes out the window and a first or second round pick probably goes to get a QB

Another scenario is getting Atogwe from the Rams in free agency, at safety. that fills that need just fine. not sure if he wants to play for his girlfriend's father, however.

ps. i wasn't joking...

and i emulated my game after montana when in college intramural sports .... emulated the way he would read defenses...emulated his style to beat the schools 2nd stringer football players in the playoffs....

didn't montana have all the players u said he didn't have plus russ francis, and barton and a host of other greats

i have daughters who have played against montana in b-ball and have been to his house and yes i have a fondness for montana....

but that still doesn't obliterate the facts montana needed his coach and his superstars to be a star himself...and garner those MVP's though i think rice should have had one more of montana's

i meant montan's daughters

I don't believe it. If Jed & Scott had being working balls out for the team to be successful, Crabtree would have been signed for training camp.

I watched every game in 2006 and Smith didn't show anything. A couple of good drives out of a years work. Now go watch Peyton or Troy in their 2nd years on bad teams and they showed more.

Doesn't mean that Smith won't become a good if not great QB.

It does mean that there's folks here that are rewriting history when they imply or claim that Smith had showed good signs before this year. He didn't.

So to sum up your comment, if we draft great players we'll become a great team.

I don't know if you realize it but you come across an an arrogant know it all.

"if Jed & Scott had being working balls out for the team to be successful, Crabtree would have been signed for training camp."

I don't know if you realize it, but you come across as a moron.

They offered basically the same deal to Crabtree back at the start of camp. So Jed and Scott are somehow to blame for Crabtree and his agent wanting to destroy the cap system?

All honest fans must admit that alex was a disappointment ,even when 100% healthy.He simply didn't show much ability to become an NFL QB. But he has now had time to sit and watch and learn and mature.He looks like he is getting it,at least more than he ever has before. Right now I would say that Alex has shown me that he can be a pretty good backup QB in the NFL,if he stays at the level he is at and doesn't regress.
BUT I must say that IF he continues to mature and get better(much better) as he matures more and plays more,he might just have a shot to be a quality starting QB in the NFL. I would not have said that a month ago,but he has shown something in the 6 recent quarters that this MAY be a different Alex than we had ever seen before.
We shall see .Go get em Alex !!!

Niners offered 5 years $20m and Crabtree signed for 6 years/$40m.

Yep that's just the same (eyes roll).

NO EXCUSES>>> ALEX SMITH SUCKS! IF THERE WAS EVER ANY DOUBT ALEX SMITH IS NOT AN NFL QB, TODAY ERASED ALL DOUBT. ANY OTHER QB IN THE NFL WINS THIS GAME! ALEX SMITH SUCKS!!!!!!!!!

How many teams do well or make the playoffs with an OL like this...blame Alex but that is where the game is lost!!

No doubt the O line sucks too. But Alex Smith is terrible. And the Niners have been playing three card monty with Shaun Hill and Alex Smith for years, thinking each new switch will somehow rejuvenate the fan base and bring us more hope. The only qb hope is Nate Davis. The only offensive hope is for the Niners to fire Foerster, move Staley to right tackle, keep Heitmann, and cut the rest of the O linemen. Fire McCloughan, and have the new GM draft lighter, quicker O linemen who pull, trap, run stretch plays, get to the second level and can pass block better than the statues that are Simms, Snyder, Rachal and Baas.
If you don't have secondary, quarterback or an offensive line, you can't win.... period. Scot McCloughan has had too long to build a team. Good things start with the firing of Scot McCloughan.

Like Bill Walsh said about Steve DeBerg when he replaced him with Joe Montana: "He plays good enough to lose."
Alex Smith & oneniner = Steve DeBerg LOL!

Too many negative posters...new WR, new OC, bad OL. It's easy to blame Smith or Hill. Big thing, when Smith did well against Houston, he had Pashos and Staley at OT.

Is anyone really surprised about Alex smith? Honestly, I think we would have all been more surprised if he was "changed". Hey Oneniner can we move on yet? I can't handle anymore 4th quarters with this guy. Let the Nate Davis experiment begin.

Hoferfan67,
You're the kind of fan the Yorks love. Either that or you're a York plant on this board to try and confuse the issue. Alex Smith is sooooooo terrible. He was booed during mini camp and yet Singletary and the media still sell Alex Smith. Alex Smith sucks. He has sucked since McCarthy, and there are no excuses. I've asked this question so many times..... WHAT DOES ALEX SMITH DO WELL AS A QB? Someone answer me. What does Alex Smith do well as a qb? He isn't accurate. He doesn't view the field well. He isn't elusive. He doesn't throw a touch pass well. Seriously, why is this guy in the NFL? Someone please defend Alex Smith without making excuses for him. NO EXCUSES - ALEX SMITH IS TERRIBLE!!!

Hopefully today's game will shut EVERYONE up about our QBs. We simply don't have a solid quarterback on our squad (and if you think a rookie will be solid with our o-line, I would like to talk to you about some swamp land in Florida I am willing to sell).

Spitblood, good response but no I remember when Steve Young replaced an injured Montana and later on replaced a traded Montana. Young made the same stupid mistakes that Smith makes. Again

Again, it is on our OL not giving him time and our defense not shadowing Chris Johnson their best offensive weapon. Rant all you want but you have to give Smith the rest of the year to see what he can do.

What's the line..."It doesn't take all day to recognize sunshine." I think it's pretty evident what we have here. If he was improved he would have won the training camp job, the fact that he was marginally better than Hill wasn't enough to get the starting job and it's not enough now to get a W.

"Again, it is on our OL not giving him time and our defense not shadowing Chris Johnson their best offensive weapon. Rant all you want but you have to give Smith the rest of the year to see what he can do."

Logically, I want to agree with you. But this is Alex Smith we're talking about, so all bets are off.

Hoferfan67,
Nice try, once again trying to defend Alex Smith by comparing him to Steve Young.... pathetic on your behalf. Truly pathetic. Alex Smith is garbage, and anyone defending him is either on the Niner payroll in some way, or they got a recess credit from the looney bin.

If Mike Singletary wants to survive a potential Niner fan outcry of "Singletary is now incompetent...." Singletary needs to stop selling. He needs to stop telling everyone he wants the spotlight on the Niners, not on him (but then Singletary's doing commercials). He needs to stop endorsing terrible players, running to the camera guys spinning loses. At some point you're either a winner or a loser by picking the right players to start and finding the right coaches. Alex Smith was a mistake. Chris Forester should be fired. Scot McCloughan is a joke. The Niners just lot to a 1-7 team that was just beat by the Patroits by 50 pts. My god, this team sucks and always will regardless who's the coach. GO RAIDERS!!!!

Hoferfan67,
Nice try, once again trying to defend Alex Smith by comparing him to Steve Young.... pathetic on your behalf. Truly pathetic. Alex Smith is garbage, and anyone defending him is either on the Niner payroll in some way, or they got a recess credit from the looney bin.

If Mike Singletary wants to survive a potential Niner fan outcry of "Singletary is now incompetent...." Singletary needs to stop selling. He needs to stop telling everyone he wants the spotlight on the Niners, not on him (but then Singletary's doing commercials). He needs to stop endorsing terrible players, running to the camera guys spinning loses. At some point you're either a winner or a loser by picking the right players to start and finding the right coaches. Alex Smith was a mistake. Chris Forester should be fired. Scot McCloughan is a joke. The Niners just lot to a 1-7 team that was just beat by the Patroits by 50 pts. My god, this team sucks and always will regardless who's the coach. GO RAIDERS!!!!

If the 49ers keep Alex Smith as their QB, they will not go to the playoff. I guarantee that.

Let's see, two passes that bounced off receivers hands right to a DB and a fumble caused by more pathetic pass protection from the right side of the line. Yep, it's Smith's fault all right any fool can see it, so if the shoe fits spitblood.
It's also all his fault the Niners can't put any pressure on the the other QB. The "D" hasn't caused very many turnovers lately either. Yes, any fool can see it's all Smith's fault.

Sorry I forgot to mention it's also all Smith's fault that the powers that be have been keeping Jason Hill and Brandon Jones on the bench so that those defense scaring playmakers Bruce and Morgan can stay on the field. Smith's performance will improve drastically when everybody else on the offense and defense start playing better.

Realfan49: Wow... you obviously didn't read the contract,did you? he made an extra 1 million in guaranteed money, but at the expense of an extra year (at the 49ers discretion. And to see the $40 million, he would need to put up Larry Fitzgerald numbers). If he doesn't meet the numbers, it's the 9ers option to enact the 6th year... at 4 million with no incentives. it was a wonderful deal for the 9ers. Crabtree will only see half that money ,and if even if he does by some miracle of god meet the incentives, the 9ers position is "great.. then we drafted the 2nd coming of Larry Fitzgerald" also the (9ers have the option of negating the 5th year under certain circumstances, that would take his guaranteed money down to $13 million.

I always thought you were one of the more informed posters on this blog... But sunshine, you totally lost the plot on this one. WHat happened to you?