Good stuff from Troy and Sing

The QB, whichever one is your favorite, is screwed under Singlecell. I think he is so confused about the offense that he assumes all the QBs are too.

Originally posted by boriken_9er:

Originally posted by Bali-Niner:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by susweel:
You guys are setting yourself up for a big let down with Troy. I know he may seem like new shiny toy compared to the old beat up broke down one.

Yup; but, as a fan I'm enjoying having a decent QB. If even for only one game...

+1

Fans continue drinking the Singletary Kool-Aid. He is selling the leadership BS. Leadership is overrated and does not have to come from the QB necessarily (altough it does not hurt).
Singletary still believes the QB is not important and is talking about leadership attributes instead of talent, capacity to read defenses, capacity to make throws, etc.

add good instincts to your list, it's very important and cannot be taught....

Troy had one decent game against a bad team...hold the applause 'til he can beat the Rams, Bucs and a few other teams. I liked what I saw, but we also need to be real...pay no attention to Sing's praise, either. If Smith can beat some quality teams, then I might get excited about him. 'Til he does, I'm taking a wait & see approach.

Originally posted by mufasa76:

add good instincts to your list, it's very important and cannot be taught....

Totally agree that it isn't something that is taught.

Hmmm... I wonder if it could be , though.

I know from studying psychology that people who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder display a symptom called "hyper vigilance". It is as it sounds, an increased and acute awareness of their surroundings. Obviously this leads to severe anxiety and even paranoia... but it also causes the brain to react on an instinctual level in stressful situations.

So... anybody seen "A Clockwork Orange"? Maybe instead of the bench, Alex should take a seat in the chair.







- I apologize if I have offended anyone who suffers from or knows someone who suffers from this disorder. It is not a joke and I did not intend it to be so. It's just easier to use as a way to explain the concept than an essay on cognitive psychology and the strengthening of neuro-pathways.

Originally posted by boriken_9er:

Originally posted by Bali-Niner:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by susweel:
You guys are setting yourself up for a big let down with Troy. I know he may seem like new shiny toy compared to the old beat up broke down one.

Yup; but, as a fan I'm enjoying having a decent QB. If even for only one game...

+1

Fans continue drinking the Singletary Kool-Aid. He is selling the leadership BS. Leadership is overrated and does not have to come from the QB necessarily (altough it does not hurt).
Singletary still believes the QB is not important and is talking about leadership attributes instead of talent, capacity to read defenses, capacity to make throws, etc.

Shows how little you know about team sports, specifically the QB position. Look, I'm as fed up with Singletary as anyone so this is not a defense of him in any way. But to say "leadership is overrated," especially in the context of sports (and even more so, the QB position), is just ridiculous.

The QB role is so much more than just repeating the play, taking snaps, handing the ball off or throwing it. The QB of any GOOD football team is literally the coach on the field, the boss, the dad, lead singer, President, platoon leader, motivational speaker, band director, psychologist, etc., etc., etc. Reason being, is that you're dealing with a disparate collection of human beings, all with their own (and usually differing) motivations, agendas, personalities, beliefs, troubles and frustrations...some of them being very strong/stubborn-minded and with the ability to cause division/strife, if not put in check in the right way.

Someone has to give them a reason to believe, to fight, to sweat, to bleed and to get them to pull on the same rope all at the same time. It almost never happens naturally or because some coach wants/wills it to happen. It almost always comes from someone within the ranks, stepping up and taking the reigns of leadership, putting the team on his back and saying, "follow me...I'll take you to where we need to go, and I'll fight, sweat, bleed and die with you to make it happen."

On a football team, the QB is on center stage, putting him in the unique position to not only lead the offense, but serve as a leader to the entire squad. Typically, as the QB goes, so goes the fortunes of the team. Almost always, if the team believes in their QB, they will give it their all (which is all you can ask). And of course the flip-side being, if they don't believe in that guy, that team is in for a long season.

Now, that doesn't mean you can just throw any ol' talentless bum out there behind center, and with his good leadership skills, he'll lead his football team to victory. No, in the NFL, it all starts with talent...make no mistake about that. However, you can have all the talent in the world, but if you lack leadership skills, if your teammates don't believe in you, they will not follow you. They'll go through the motions, and you'll be left wondering why, with all this talent we have, are we losing....

Originally posted by BleedRandG:
http://www.49ers.com/media-gallery/videos/London-Postgame-Locker-Room/8c733251-53d1-4b04-8d5a-3da7716329bc

I cannot help but think that Troy is going to be a good one. He only has one start under his belt and he already has the team behind him. If Alex were smart he would take notes on what Troy does as a leader. One week. It is too early to say that Troy is the future(infact its about 8 games too early) but the man is off to a damn good start!

an upgrade from alex/used-carr, perhaps. but, we have much football left... i'm just hoping we still pull out 8-8 and that troy answers all the critics with positive results.

Originally posted by binary2nd:

Originally posted by Dirty9er:

Originally posted by binary2nd:

Originally posted by Dirty9er:

Originally posted by unst4bl3:

Originally posted by susweel:
You guys are setting yourself up for a big let down with Troy. I know he may seem like new shiny toy compared to the old beat up broke down one.

This, if he comes out and throws 4 picks in the first Q then you guys will call for Carr again......

We called for Carr because we didn't have any other choice! It would have been "We want Nate!!!" which on its face is just a desperate cry for competence but Sing made sure that, that wasn't an option... No matter what happens the rest of the season the fact is CLEAR that Sing sacrificed "our" (yours, mine and the teams) season for one player and there just ain't no Alexcuse for that... I look forward to any effort that Troy can bring to this team - he is my new 9er savior. Not for a great rest of the season, not for a great future past 2010 but for an end to the current 9er apolocalypse! Addition by subtraction... We are a better team now!

Dirty

Sticking with Alex this long is the one thing I can't critique Sing for. His gameplanning, strategy, and personnel moves in other areas have hurt this team much more. Alex was easily the best option coming into the season (people that were chanting for Mcnabb have now floundered into obscurity), and if you look at last season, there SHOULD have been an improvement. Sing's choice to stick with Raye this offseason was a much bigger error. Alex's play, along with the rest of the Offense, has taken a HUGE leap forward with the absence of Raye. I can't place blame on Sing for not knowing that Troy was an upgrade, no one could've predicted that.

I might be able to see your point if Sing hadn’t confirmed “the fact” that he did not want ANY possible threat to Alex. It didn’t have to be Mcnabb it could have just been someone like I don’t know Shaun Hill who was already here. Fact Hill is better at the short ball than Alex and Alex’s only game is the short ball… But No he (sing) brought in the absolute worst, shell shocked scrub that he could find in David Carr thereby making Smith the best QB ONLY by default. Smith could also be seen as the most mobile QB in a camp of paraplegics… The fact is Sing knew his own decision wasn’t in the best interest of this club! Heck Troy Smith could have come into camp as the number 2 and the chant would have been “We want Troy!!!” Again, there is no excuse! At this point I just want to stop the lying and the bleeding!

Dirty

Like I said, Shaun Hill was a personnel move that Singletary clearly failed on. He would've been a solid backup and probably could've won us the Carolina game. Sing obviously thought Hill was expendable, so that gaff falls on him. Again, going with Alex hasn't been my problem with Sing, it's how he's handled it. For instance, if you're going to go with a guy that is successful in the shotgun, use more shotgun, don't handcuff your QB because it's not smashmouth. Sing is a very, very silly man.

This team has far more talent than 6 of the next 8 opponents it faces, so I could see us going 6-2 based on talent alone. I really hope it doesn't save Sing's job, he's held this team back enough already.

I don't want a last good run to save his job either .

The only saving grace this season is that Dallas is having a bad time of it as well!!!


Dirty

I did a little research to get a feel for Troy's past history. What can we find that gives us hope that he will be our franchise QB?
He was drafted in the 5th round as player #174 in '07
His play during the '07 preseason games earned him a 70.4 rating on 26 attempts, with 1 TD and 1 INT.
At the end of the season he played in three regulat season games, with a 79.5 rating on 71 attempts, 2 TDs and no INTs.
He only played in preseason games in '08, '09 and '10
'08: 34.9 on 17 attempts, with no TDs and 1 INT
'09: 64.9 o 49 attempts, with 1 TD and 2 INTs.
'10: 64.8 on 63 attempts, with no TDs and 2 INTs.
At the end of preseason this year he was cut. BALT chose to keep only 2 QBs on the roster - Flacco and Bulger. Why did the team decide to not keep Smith as a third QB?

Obviously, the Ravens, who got to watch and analyze Troy over 4 years, were inept in developing QB talent, and failed to bring out his best. But he is now under the tutelage of the 49ers, known for their ability to recognize and develop QB talent. I think we have finally found our guy.

Originally posted by excelsior:
I did a little research to get a feel for Troy's past history. What can we find that gives us hope that he will be our franchise QB?
He was drafted in the 5th round as player #174 in '07
His play during the '07 preseason games earned him a 70.4 rating on 26 attempts, with 1 TD and 1 INT.
At the end of the season he played in three regulat season games, with a 79.5 rating on 71 attempts, 2 TDs and no INTs.
He only played in preseason games in '08, '09 and '10
'08: 34.9 on 17 attempts, with no TDs and 1 INT
'09: 64.9 o 49 attempts, with 1 TD and 2 INTs.
'10: 64.8 on 63 attempts, with no TDs and 2 INTs.
At the end of preseason this year he was cut. BALT chose to keep only 2 QBs on the roster - Flacco and Bulger. Why did the team decide to not keep Smith as a third QB?

Obviously, the Ravens, who got to watch and analyze Troy over 4 years, were inept in developing QB talent, and failed to bring out his best. But he is now under the tutelage of the 49ers, known for their ability to recognize and develop QB talent. I think we have finally found our guy.

Nobody in their right mind believes he can be our "franchise QB." Right now, at 2-6, it's just about winning games...and if he gives us a better chance to win games than any other QB we currently have, you start him. You ride the hot hand for as long as you can.

Then, after the season is over, you either draft/trade for/sign a veteran that CAN be your franchise QB.

Originally posted by GhostofFredDean74:

Originally posted by boriken_9er:

Originally posted by Bali-Niner:

Originally posted by D_Niner:

Originally posted by susweel:
You guys are setting yourself up for a big let down with Troy. I know he may seem like new shiny toy compared to the old beat up broke down one.

Yup; but, as a fan I'm enjoying having a decent QB. If even for only one game...

+1

Fans continue drinking the Singletary Kool-Aid. He is selling the leadership BS. Leadership is overrated and does not have to come from the QB necessarily (altough it does not hurt).
Singletary still believes the QB is not important and is talking about leadership attributes instead of talent, capacity to read defenses, capacity to make throws, etc.

Shows how little you know about team sports, specifically the QB position. Look, I'm as fed up with Singletary as anyone so this is not a defense of him in any way. But to say "leadership is overrated," especially in the context of sports (and even more so, the QB position), is just ridiculous.

The QB role is so much more than just repeating the play, taking snaps, handing the ball off or throwing it. The QB of any GOOD football team is literally the coach on the field, the boss, the dad, lead singer, President, platoon leader, motivational speaker, band director, psychologist, etc., etc., etc. Reason being, is that you're dealing with a disparate collection of human beings, all with their own (and usually differing) motivations, agendas, personalities, beliefs, troubles and frustrations...some of them being very strong/stubborn-minded and with the ability to cause division/strife, if not put in check in the right way.

Someone has to give them a reason to believe, to fight, to sweat, to bleed and to get them to pull on the same rope all at the same time. It almost never happens naturally or because some coach wants/wills it to happen. It almost always comes from someone within the ranks, stepping up and taking the reigns of leadership, putting the team on his back and saying, "follow me...I'll take you to where we need to go, and I'll fight, sweat, bleed and die with you to make it happen."

On a football team, the QB is on center stage, putting him in the unique position to not only lead the offense, but serve as a leader to the entire squad. Typically, as the QB goes, so goes the fortunes of the team. Almost always, if the team believes in their QB, they will give it their all (which is all you can ask). And of course the flip-side being, if they don't believe in that guy, that team is in for a long season.

Now, that doesn't mean you can just throw any ol' talentless bum out there behind center, and with his good leadership skills, he'll lead his football team to victory. No, in the NFL, it all starts with talent...make no mistake about that. However, you can have all the talent in the world, but if you lack leadership skills, if your teammates don't believe in you, they will not follow you. They'll go through the motions, and you'll be left wondering why, with all this talent we have, are we losing....

Great post!

And you score additional points for using the term "disparate"!!!

Troy Smith may not turn out to be the answer at QB for the Niners, but despite Alex Smith being given "ownership" of the offense, and having many, many obstacles cleared for his success this season, most fans by now recognize that he's NOT the answer. Presumably, the coaching staff and HC see this as well.

Alex Smith showed alot of maturity and dedication in sticking it out with the team and trying to make it work. There is alot to admire about him. It would have made a wonderful story if he had succeeded. But he didn't, despite the efforts by all involved.

Time to move on, unless Singletary is deliberately planning to try a new and different profession in the near future, and I don't believe he is.

I think the Alex Smith experiment, under Singletary, was at least in part, a result of input from the front office, which was reluctant to give up on the No. 1 overall pick.

So Singletary made A, Smith the No. 1 QB, and tried to remove any obstacles to his success. Ultimately that means that there is really no excuse for Smith's lack of success. He wasn't looking over his shoulder at Shaun Hill. He had consistency at OC, and then he got that OC removed when he complained about not getting the plays in quickly enough. He got a new and reworked OL, with a new OL coach, and he got a new speed WR to open up the field. It seems to me that Singletary and the team did all they could to help Alex succeed.

Although his play did improve somewhat, ultimately Alex failed, on his own, no excuses.

The losses are on him, and we've seen more than enough to know its time to move on. IMHO.

For Troy Smith to step in and succeed where Alex had been failing gives me hope that he might be the offensive leader needed. We shall see.

Originally posted by BleedRandG:
http://www.49ers.com/media-gallery/videos/London-Postgame-Locker-Room/8c733251-53d1-4b04-8d5a-3da7716329bc

I cannot help but think that Troy is going to be a good one. He only has one start under his belt and he already has the team behind him. If Alex were smart he would take notes on what Troy does as a leader. One week. It is too early to say that Troy is the future(infact its about 8 games too early) but the man is off to a damn good start!

You seriously lol! after one start where if it wasn't for that throw we would of lost, you think he's going to be a good one! and its the broncos who gave up 59 to the RAIDERS!!!! lol!!! WE SURE HAVE A PRO BOWL TO BE!! TROY SMITH TO GINN HIS BUDDY ITS KIND LIKE MONTANA TO RICE LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

I cannot believe how many fans have the attitude that we let Alex go and then get our Franchise QB in the draft or through free agency. Look at the drafted QBs over the last six years, and you will see how few have shown much promise yet. It is largely a crapshoot. Unless you have the 1st pick, which we will not, the very best prospect is going somewhere else.

As for free agents, what team in their right mind cuts a franchise QB loose?

My point is that you keep Alex until you are sure you have someone better, then you let him go.

As for Alex, you focus on his incompletions, his INT, his fumbles. Well, look around the league. There are very few others who do not have their incompletions, etc. So much of a QBs success has to do with the surrounding cast. Look at McNaab. Look at Cassel He did well at NE when Brady went odwn. Then he goes to KC and struggles until a 1st class offensive staff comes along to help out. Look how Cassel's numbers improved.

Originally posted by excelsior:
I cannot believe how many fans have the attitude that we let Alex go and then get our Franchise QB in the draft or through free agency. Look at the drafted QBs over the last six years, and you will see how few have shown much promise yet. It is largely a crapshoot. Unless you have the 1st pick, which we will not, the very best prospect is going somewhere else.

As for free agents, what team in their right mind cuts a franchise QB loose?

My point is that you keep Alex until you are sure you have someone better, then you let him go.

As for Alex, you focus on his incompletions, his INT, his fumbles. Well, look around the league. There are very few others who do not have their incompletions, etc. So much of a QBs success has to do with the surrounding cast. Look at McNaab. Look at Cassel He did well at NE when Brady went odwn. Then he goes to KC and struggles until a 1st class offensive staff comes along to help out. Look how Cassel's numbers improved.

6 years and the only chart that he tops is turnovers... I think the Towel boy may be better...

Ok sarcasm aside, you do have a point; but, we picked up a guy that was cut this past year from Baltimore who looks to be better than Smith. I'm sure we can find another QB who's better than 11 without too much effort.

Originally posted by excelsior:
I cannot believe how many fans have the attitude that we let Alex go and then get our Franchise QB in the draft or through free agency. Look at the drafted QBs over the last six years, and you will see how few have shown much promise yet. It is largely a crapshoot. Unless you have the 1st pick, which we will not, the very best prospect is going somewhere else.

As for free agents, what team in their right mind cuts a franchise QB loose?

My point is that you keep Alex until you are sure you have someone better, then you let him go.

As for Alex, you focus on his incompletions, his INT, his fumbles. Well, look around the league. There are very few others who do not have their incompletions, etc. So much of a QBs success has to do with the surrounding cast. Look at McNaab. Look at Cassel He did well at NE when Brady went odwn. Then he goes to KC and struggles until a 1st class offensive staff comes along to help out. Look how Cassel's numbers improved.

No, I focus on one stat and one stat alone, Win-Loss record as a starting QB from 2005 - 2010:

17-30

Maybe I'm wrong, but I feel pretty confident that we can find another QB that can AT LEAST match that record, if not (very likely) better it.

Btw, plenty of teams give up on QBs that turn into damn good QBs (and even Super Bowl winners) down the road, so if I were you, I wouldn't worry to much about replacing your beloved Alex:

Here's a small sample of scrap-heap/traded/signed QBs
Steve Young (highest passer rating of all-time, Bucs gave up on him)
Kurt Warner (5th highest passer rating of all-time, Packers cut him in TC)
Drew Brees (9th highest passer rating of all-time, SD let him walk in FA)
Matt Schaub (10th highest passer rating of all-time, ATL traded him)
Jeff Garcia (13 highest passer rating of all-time, signed from the CFL)
Johnny Unitas (Pitt didn't want him)
Mark Brunnell (Packers gave up on him)
Jim Plunkett (Pat and 49ers gave up on him)
Brett Favre (ATL traded him after 1 year)

Leadership, shmlership. Just give me a QB that can hit receivers in stride.