football junkie
12-09-2006, 01:58 AM
Mike Nolan has whipped the 49ers offense into playing shape. The team is now in second place in the NFC West and has a decent chance of finishing the season 8-8. (The Niners are 4-2 at home this season.)
After a horrible first year, Alex Smith is now performing like a legit No. 1 overall pick in the draft should play in his second year. He's on pace to complete 60% of his passes for 2,857 yards and 16 passing touchdowns. His release time has improved dramatically and he is definitely "seeing the field" and "the game is slowing down" for him -- to dust off a couple of QB cliches.
Frank Gore will be in the top four picks in next years' fantasy football drafts. He's currently on pace for 2,084 all-purpose yards. He's a power rusher who can run inbetween the tackles. Gore blocks well and he can get open -- presently on pace to purse over 60 passes this year. (He kind of reminds me of, dare I say, Barry Sanders.)
Antonio Bryant and Arnaz Battle are two young receivers proving all their critics wrong. Throw in tight ends Eric Johnson and future multiple Pro Bowl selection Vernon Davis and Smith is going have a lot of big, fast and young targets to get the ball to in '07.
The defense still kind of stinks. But it is getting better than last year. Manny Lawson is a huge upgrade at outside linebacker. CB Walt Harris has six interceptions, but he's not getting any younger. Neither is Bryant Young.
In my opinion, this team is one decent draft away from being bigtime contenders. They need speed on the defensive line and help in the secondary to be a real threat. That can be achieved in one draft. (And with a new stadium deal with Santa Clara and having finally gotten out from under the burden of "dead money" on the salary cap -- the team could be buyers in the free agent market as well.) And as Seattle descends back into murk, an old and familiar franchise is emerging as a potential powerhouse of pro football. The 49ers!
So get on the bandwagon now and next year you can claim you've always loved the team, even when Tim Rattay was fumbling and bumbling away the franchises place in history.
After a horrible first year, Alex Smith is now performing like a legit No. 1 overall pick in the draft should play in his second year. He's on pace to complete 60% of his passes for 2,857 yards and 16 passing touchdowns. His release time has improved dramatically and he is definitely "seeing the field" and "the game is slowing down" for him -- to dust off a couple of QB cliches.
Frank Gore will be in the top four picks in next years' fantasy football drafts. He's currently on pace for 2,084 all-purpose yards. He's a power rusher who can run inbetween the tackles. Gore blocks well and he can get open -- presently on pace to purse over 60 passes this year. (He kind of reminds me of, dare I say, Barry Sanders.)
Antonio Bryant and Arnaz Battle are two young receivers proving all their critics wrong. Throw in tight ends Eric Johnson and future multiple Pro Bowl selection Vernon Davis and Smith is going have a lot of big, fast and young targets to get the ball to in '07.
The defense still kind of stinks. But it is getting better than last year. Manny Lawson is a huge upgrade at outside linebacker. CB Walt Harris has six interceptions, but he's not getting any younger. Neither is Bryant Young.
In my opinion, this team is one decent draft away from being bigtime contenders. They need speed on the defensive line and help in the secondary to be a real threat. That can be achieved in one draft. (And with a new stadium deal with Santa Clara and having finally gotten out from under the burden of "dead money" on the salary cap -- the team could be buyers in the free agent market as well.) And as Seattle descends back into murk, an old and familiar franchise is emerging as a potential powerhouse of pro football. The 49ers!
So get on the bandwagon now and next year you can claim you've always loved the team, even when Tim Rattay was fumbling and bumbling away the franchises place in history.