Originally posted by elguapo:
Let' s see how we improved....
1. Hill as a full time starter not just half the season...right there that's a few games (even if it's smith, the fact that o'sullivan is not here we will turn it over less)
2. More running the ball with gore and co not to mention we have a FB now who can block. less blindside hits may help too by running the ball more and controlling the clock more. Remember how our time of possession was really good towards the end of the year.
3. Marvel Smith - even if healthy only half the year is better than sims, who cost us many sacks and the mia game at the end. The fact that synder is backup over sims even if marvel gets injured is a good thing too. Better O line play for the run and pass will help our offense.
4. Vernon not just blocking - Martz never had a great TE with talent who is open most of the time, he just used wr's. Well Davis will get the ball more than 30 times this year and that will help the offense.
5. On D, well our D was great especially the end of last year, best D in the division. best secondary, best lb's now that petersen is gone, and our dl is pretty dam good with smith.
Crabtree morgan and bruce will help out the offense as well.
I don't see how the niners won't finish ahead of the seahawks and at least the same record as the cards. People seem to forget we only lost by 10 points the first game after 5 turnovers and by 1 yard and a few horrible calls the second game to the cards.
1. Since Garcia, QB1 has been played by a 3rd tier QB, Hill is just a continuation of that. This is not an improvement. Rattay, Dorsey, Smith, Dilfer, JTO, Shaun Hill and others...NONE wereare an improvement over the other.....its just 1 mediocre QB taking over for another
2. Just saying...hey guys...lets be a running team....doesn't actually make you a running team. Just executing snaps to handoff to a runner, doesn't make you a smashmouth team...sometimes it just makes you a 3 and out team
3. I think our O-line is slightly better than 08'...but I don't think they are much better than a #15 ranked o-line...not sure where I would rank em in the division
4. Don't pretend that Martz reduced Vernon to be a blocker...that has been how he has been used for a few years now by many different coaches. We have to consider that we just might a blocking TE combine freak that we drafted #6. Vernon is on thin ice from being a bust....Martz gone doesn't change that...only Vernon can
5. Maybe we are tuning into different games...but the Niners Defense I see is GOOD...not Great. Maybe they could be great, but the O and their 3 and out Smash mouth rock em sock em new attitude on O.....will put them in very bad positions
and will zoners PLEASE stop using the Arizona game as some kind of indicator. Anybody who knows the NFL should know division play doesn't tell you anything about the teams and how they rank up. Case and point...during the New England dynasty, the Fins were known to upset them almost every year...sometimes in New England as well. Does that mean Miami was close to being a Dynasty team? It is very common for a championship team to go 3-3 in their division...that does not tell you anything about the other teams in their division...it just tells you that division rivals usually play each other close...no matter what end of the spectrum the teams happen to exist in outside of their own series.
[ Edited by danimal on May 18, 2009 at 21:09:44 ]
...............