Someone give us a plan to replace Alex Smith that will actually help us

I know that at this point, Alex Smith is far from what we're accustomed to (Joe Montana, Steve Young, and even Jeff Garcia). Can he become that good? Maybe, maybe not. Is he going to be forever horrible? I don't think he's quite so horrible anymore, and if he gets a chance, I don't think there's anybody who can definitively say that he'll NEVER get any better than he is right now, not even a little bit.

Also, QB is not our biggest problem, not by a long shot. Our O-line is horrible. We saw with Norv Turner, that with a solid O-line, we can do really well. Frank Gore ran for a team-record 1,695 yards. This year, without a good OL, nobody can say that we're doing our best running OR passing the ball, and a big part of that is our line.

With that, I want to ask everybody, what is a truly better, REALISTIC, alternative to Alex Smith? If we draft a QB, we're looking at either #1, starting him from day one, hoping that he's the next Matt Ryan (which isn't something to bet any real money on actually happening), or #2, letting him sit for a while behind (fill in the blank, probably Alex Smith).

In drafting a QB, we'd probably be using BOTH of our first round picks to get one, and only getting one player. Then, we wouldn't be in near as good of position to upgrade our O-line or our pass rush (which is another big need, IMO, a bigger need than QB right now). We'd either have to pick one up in FA (we've all seen how good that has gone), or draft one. The only good linemen available are either franchised (requiring a 1st round pick and a very hefty salary, plus the other team can match), or have injury histories (like Jonas Jennings or Marvel Smith). When drafting an OL, especially OT, which is definitely a need for us, it's far easier to pick up a good one in the 1st round than the 2nd or further back (just look at how well our picks from the 2nd round and back have done).

So, let's say we get a new QB and burn our two 1st rounders. Where does that put us in order to improve our team? How long would it take for us to win this pathetic division then? We've been a few mistakes from making it this year and last, and we want to risk moving backwards again? Please, someone give me a realistic plan before just throwing away Alex Smith, who, by the way is improving, and not only has the support of the coaching staff and ownership, but has the support of his teammates. Please give us a decent plan that won't actually hurt us in the long run.

No one is going to be able to do this because they are just ranting and raving with no real idea of what they are talking about.

Originally posted by cutbarlow:
I know that at this point, Alex Smith is far from what we're accustomed to (Joe Montana, Steve Young, and even Jeff Garcia). Can he become that good? Maybe, maybe not. Is he going to be forever horrible? I don't think he's quite so horrible anymore, and if he gets a chance, I don't think there's anybody who can definitively say that he'll NEVER get any better than he is right now, not even a little bit.

Also, QB is not our biggest problem, not by a long shot. Our O-line is horrible. We saw with Norv Turner, that with a solid O-line, we can do really well. Frank Gore ran for a team-record 1,695 yards. This year, without a good OL, nobody can say that we're doing our best running OR passing the ball, and a big part of that is our line.

With that, I want to ask everybody, what is a truly better, REALISTIC, alternative to Alex Smith? If we draft a QB, we're looking at either #1, starting him from day one, hoping that he's the next Matt Ryan (which isn't something to bet any real money on actually happening), or #2, letting him sit for a while behind (fill in the blank, probably Alex Smith).

In drafting a QB, we'd probably be using BOTH of our first round picks to get one, and only getting one player. Then, we wouldn't be in near as good of position to upgrade our O-line or our pass rush (which is another big need, IMO, a bigger need than QB right now). We'd either have to pick one up in FA (we've all seen how good that has gone), or draft one. The only good linemen available are either franchised (requiring a 1st round pick and a very hefty salary, plus the other team can match), or have injury histories (like Jonas Jennings or Marvel Smith). When drafting an OL, especially OT, which is definitely a need for us, it's far easier to pick up a good one in the 1st round than the 2nd or further back (just look at how well our picks from the 2nd round and back have done).

So, let's say we get a new QB and burn our two 1st rounders. Where does that put us in order to improve our team? How long would it take for us to win this pathetic division then? We've been a few mistakes from making it this year and last, and we want to risk moving backwards again? Please, someone give me a realistic plan before just throwing away Alex Smith, who, by the way is improving, and not only has the support of the coaching staff and ownership, but has the support of his teammates. Please give us a decent plan that won't actually hurt us in the long run.

what the hell is the point of this thread?

It's definitely impossible for us to replace a QB with a career rating of 67.7, 36 touchdowns, 43 interceptions, and a career record of 15-25.

We should definitely stay the course and pray really really hard that Smith miraculously develops into a good quarterback