49ers Woes Continue

I truly do not know what to say about my 49ers. In the last few years, we were building a stellar defense with key pieces such as Nate Clements, Patrick Willis, Manny Lawson and many more components. The York’s spent the money. This defense was shaping up to be one of the best in the NFL. This should have alleviated some of the pain of a struggling offense. This year with a few additions this defense was supposed to be feared, but it just has not been all that we had hoped for. However, the defense has been playing pretty well and maybe being asked to do more than they can do given how much time they are on the field.
Since Alex Smith has been trying to shoulder this team, he was not stellar on offense but he did mostly take care of the ball. JT O’Sullivan has glimmers offense in his long passes down the field, but his turnovers tend to overshadow those glimmers very quickly. There is really no need to go into the statistics; unfortunately it is time for the Shaun Hill era once again. Mike Shannahan knows that when the turnovers exceed about 2, that the teams chances of winning really decrease. If your turnovers go to 3 or even 4 then the chances are as good as winning the Wheel of Fortune in Vegas. Of course JT is not fully to blame, but his distrust of his offensive line is well understood. He can’t get comfortable in the pocket. He wants to make plays, doesn’t take care of the ball and he is darned if he throws and he’s darned if he doesn’t. This team is breaking down especially on the offensive side of the ball.

Calling for change isn’t going to do a whole lot this late in the season. We can have faith that the team will keep trying to make changes to shake up the mix on the field.

Surprisingly, the team has been in all of these tough games. If they watch their turnovers and get back to the basics of football, they may pull a few games out. It will be a struggle though with this upcoming schedule. Each game we take a few steps backwards it seems.
Looking back what was wrong with the Steve Mariucci team that was able to get to the first round of Playoffs every year? I know, the Bay Area is spoiled but I was happy watching that winning team. Jeff Garcia hand chosen by the late Bill Walsh at the helm, he was ugly when he played but he got the job done. Oh and he still is getting it done in Tampa Bay. Those days are long gone and we will be lucky to pull out a few more wins this year against some teams that are back on the up and up. A major shakeup maybe what is needed, especially at the most critical position in football quarterback. Maybe it’s not time for the Mike Martz offense. Maybe it’s time to go back to the West Coast offense with minimal down the field tosses. Stick with the running game, use Vernon Davis and yards after the catch. Time to Keep It Simple? Change something, because whatever it is, just isn’t working.

Latest News

I was not aware at the time of writing but Coach Nolan was fired. I personally liked the coach, he always said the right things. My question is were the players listening and rallying behind him? Sure Mike Nolan fired may not leave things in a better place but that's an unknown. Perhaps the Niners will rally behind a former football star in Singletary it is still to be seen. I will keep a watch and if the 49ers turn this around and get some wins it could be an interesting year.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3654528

And now a dedication...



The airwaves have been putting blame all the way to the top of the organization to the owner level. I am all about focusing on things that you can change, since ownership is not one of them it is truly a moot point. I do agree with the airwaves that there are a-lot of things missing top to bottom in the once vibrant 49er elite organization. Where is the culture that was cultivated to build a winning franchise of years past? It takes passion, rallying behind a leader, believing in a vision, a mission a cause. Most of all it is about believing in yourself. Then all the pieces internally have to tie together to meet that goal. Hopefully the team can at least bring some stability to the coaching staff at the beginning of next season. There is so much talent on this team, it just needs to be mobilized, nurtured and focused on the goal of winning which is no simple task.

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