what you liked and didnt like ( PRESEASON WEEK 1)

Originally posted by Shorteous:

Originally posted by AKfanster:
I'll tell you what I don't like, the right side of the starting O-line. Rachal and Davis got owned. I don't care if it was Davis' first game, first round picks should play better than that IMO. Don't get started on Rachal, how this guy is still starting is beyond me. He sucked last year, and it looks like he's gonna suck this year.

I didn't like Alex at first sight either. But since, I've read (Sando blog from ESPN) that some of the blame for his poor play should go to the recievers. He better improve the next time around though or I'll be on the Nate Davis bandwagon in a hurry.

Another thing I didn't like was the playcalling early on. I know it's preseason and teams don't really gameplan and what not, but come on Jimmy Raye! I would've never guessed that first play from scrimmage, run up the middle. With MRob of all people! Seriously! That first play was all I needed to see. The middle of the line got blown up, resulting in MRob getting mugged at the LOS and loosing the ball. BRILLIANT! Raye is a genius, lets run the ball with a 3rd string (at best) running back to start the game.

What I did like was Dixon. That guy looks like a beast. That guy is the ONLY reason the offense was able to move the ball during the game. Indy had no choice but to play run, which allowed the Niners QBs to throw the ball.
Briggs looked really good also. He looks a little bigger than he did last season, but still played with some speed.
Williams! Finally someone with the balls to actually return a punt! I got so tired of seeing the Niner punt returners call for fair catches last season.
Boone looked pretty decent against the scrubs. I wonder if he can RT?
Reggie Smith looked really good also.

If Rachal doesn't pull it together and Baas shows the ability to play center I am all for moving Hietmann to RG and letting him take over there when he gets healthy.

Heitmann would be even less effective at RG. At least at center he does a good job of making the line calls and a decent job reading blitzes. I have a feeling Baas will end up being a starter full-time before the season is over, either at C or RG, IF he himself can stay healthy.

Originally posted by PatrickJira411:

Originally posted by Shorteous:

Originally posted by AKfanster:
I'll tell you what I don't like, the right side of the starting O-line. Rachal and Davis got owned. I don't care if it was Davis' first game, first round picks should play better than that IMO. Don't get started on Rachal, how this guy is still starting is beyond me. He sucked last year, and it looks like he's gonna suck this year.

I didn't like Alex at first sight either. But since, I've read (Sando blog from ESPN) that some of the blame for his poor play should go to the recievers. He better improve the next time around though or I'll be on the Nate Davis bandwagon in a hurry.

Another thing I didn't like was the playcalling early on. I know it's preseason and teams don't really gameplan and what not, but come on Jimmy Raye! I would've never guessed that first play from scrimmage, run up the middle. With MRob of all people! Seriously! That first play was all I needed to see. The middle of the line got blown up, resulting in MRob getting mugged at the LOS and loosing the ball. BRILLIANT! Raye is a genius, lets run the ball with a 3rd string (at best) running back to start the game.

What I did like was Dixon. That guy looks like a beast. That guy is the ONLY reason the offense was able to move the ball during the game. Indy had no choice but to play run, which allowed the Niners QBs to throw the ball.
Briggs looked really good also. He looks a little bigger than he did last season, but still played with some speed.
Williams! Finally someone with the balls to actually return a punt! I got so tired of seeing the Niner punt returners call for fair catches last season.
Boone looked pretty decent against the scrubs. I wonder if he can RT?
Reggie Smith looked really good also.

If Rachal doesn't pull it together and Baas shows the ability to play center I am all for moving Hietmann to RG and letting him take over there when he gets healthy.

Heitmann would be even less effective at RG. At least at center he does a good job of making the line calls and a decent job reading blitzes. I have a feeling Baas will end up being a starter full-time before the season is over, either at C or RG, IF he himself can stay healthy.

I'll take either of those scenarios, I don't think Rachal is going to get it together anytime soon which is very disappointing for a second round pick.

Originally posted by PatrickJira411:
Like:

Anthony Dixon looks like a player. Big, powerful runner with a nice burst, wiggle waggle and vision. I know it is just one game but man he looked good.

Ricky Jean-Francois: looked like a legit starter out there. Really active vs the run.

Diyral Briggs- My guy Briggs continues to impress. He was very, very active in the game. I think he makes the team and LaBoy gets cut.

Kyle Williams: Really, quick, sudden, explosive player. We have our PR!

Reggie Smith: Has had a great TC and had a very nice game.

Mike Iupati: He looked run and pass blocking.


Dislike:

Alex Smith- I wasn't expecting a great game but man i thought he would be at least solid but honestly he looked pretty bad.

Chilo Rachal- Still very inconsistent. Looks good on one play and then lost on another. Really struggled in pass protection.

Anthony Davis- He did ok in run blocking but in pass protection he is a long ways away from being an NFL starter.

Our WR's did not look good and looked scared out there.

Michael Robinson is not an NFL running back.

Pretty much dead on with me Hey they gotta get Kyle Williams on the field to hell with Ted Ginn. The Wr's did looks scared I mean somebody get open or make a play out there. Can't have Delanie Walker as the only person getting open.

Smith did look bad no other way around it. Chilo looked very bad to me he wasn't doing much. As for Davis his problem is technique. He's not extending his arms instead he's letting the defender engage him 1st. He has long arms he just has to use them.

alex Smith has to get his act together when dropping back form under center. Can't be a run big time play action offense when the qb can't drop back from under center and look like a NFL qb.

Smith by far was the biggest disappointment for me. Shocker. Hopefully he was just rusty and will tear it up next week.

[ Edited by SybErkRimInAL on Aug 16, 2010 at 08:20:54 ]

Originally posted by SybErkRimInAL:
Smith by far was the biggest disappointment for me. Shocker. Hopefully he was just rust and will tear it up next week.

Have faith Syber

Likes:
-Briggs on D and Dixon on O
-Defense looks stout
-run blocking

Dislikes:
-Starting O looks shakey???
-Alex smith got a lot of bad breaks with drop balls and an underthrown TD to VD
-pass blocking

i thought the inside linebacker mike balogun looked really solid....i could see him taking matt wilhelm's roster spot....

i didnt get to see start of game yesterday because directv blacked it out due to technician error...after watching it this morning i dont think alex smith was so bad....

I think his first pass was a no chancer as the dline was swarming him before he could get a pass away....he hit robinson with one swing pass, while another later swing pass went off robinson's hands (not a great pass but one a pro should catch)

his two completions to walker were excellent throws, hitting walker in stride...not many seem to want to give him credit for the good throws...the 2nd completion to walker may have been the best throw any niners qb made yesterday

the davis pass that shouldhave been a td looked terrible, then you read what the espn west blog guy mike sando said, and it was just miscommunication between smith and davis

from reading descriptions of the ginn pass yesterday it sounded like smith throew the ball 10 feet over his head...i saw it this monring and it was right there..ginn dropped a catchable pass....smith threw it hard because he had to...if he doesnt ginn really gets blasted

on the int to walker i dont have trouble with the throw itself--walker should have caught it in my opinion...

smith is the qb who gives niners best chance to win....im more worried about the oline...remember these games are about getting ready for the regular season

carr had his moments but held onto the ball too long a few times....nate davis put up good numbers but none of his passes, as i recall, were drop back and throw plays, but rather he just rolled out and found a receiver when the play broke down...you can get away with that on occasion but not on a regular basis....

really like kyle williams performance...he will help in the return game..

Once again -- Nate Davis played lights out football in garbage time.

Yes -- I know it's garbage time. Yes -- I know he looked impressive against the training camp scrubs and roster fodder that will be searching for jobs after the final cutdown.

I understand as much.

But -- he continues to look good. He continues to look in control.

Why? Why can't we play him -- just once you understand -- in the 1st quarter? Against a real starting defense? Why don't the powers that be want to find out what they really have here?

I know -- he'll never get his chance unless Alex and David hit the skids. Seems like a big waste to me.

You'll never truly know what you have until you give the kid a chance to PLAY.

Yet -- he doesn't get that chance.

Boggling.

Carr

Watched Dixon highlights and saw Iupati just moving everybody in his way but what was funny is the colts defense trying to tackle a moving mass of niners Iupati and co. and not Dixon who was elsewhere. Iupati seems almost impossible to stop. He was pretty far out blocking for Dixon's long run. You give Gore the room Iupati opens and it's going to get ugly. As poorly as we view Alex Smith, I think the niners will hit often enough to win and if need be they can run and win. Barring injuries, I think they could. With two power mashers in Iupati and Baas, it looks like something just picks up the defensive line and moves the whole line backwards. Almost like the front of a glacier. It was funny to see two to three guys deep defense being pushed back. I think now the defense was all pooped out trying to slow the niners down. Even two or three times trying to slow that would gas defenses IMO. I think the colts defense had to commit almost all the resources to stop the runs so little was left for pass plays. I knew the team needed more then just a tackle but the difference Iupati has made is much more then I thought. In essence he has defined what the defense has to commit to. I think an offence running behind Baas and Iupati, etc will be just as exciting as long passes. The bad thing about running offenses is you need a lot of good pieces and some extraordinary pieces. It takes a while and some luck to acquire all the pieces. Now the niners seem to have the tools while Dallas seems to be imploding. Their OL is subpar and getting worse (Columbo hurt). I really don't think that team is going anywhere. The Cowboys may be a good customer for one of our surplus linemen.
Stick it to em. Hahahah

Originally posted by billbird2111:
Once again -- Nate Davis played lights out football in garbage time.

Yes -- I know it's garbage time. Yes -- I know he looked impressive against the training camp scrubs and roster fodder that will be searching for jobs after the final cutdown.

I understand as much.

But -- he continues to look good. He continues to look in control.

Why? Why can't we play him -- just once you understand -- in the 1st quarter? Against a real starting defense? Why don't the powers that be want to find out what they really have here?

I know -- he'll never get his chance unless Alex and David hit the skids. Seems like a big waste to me.

You'll never truly know what you have until you give the kid a chance to PLAY.

Yet -- he doesn't get that chance.

Boggling.

I'm sick and tired of apologizing for loving the way Nate Davis plays. He is similar to Big Ben in his style of play. He's big, he's hard to get down, he has a rocket for an arm and he threw the ball with great accuracy on the run. I would love to see what he could do with the starters.

My take:

Iupati--a frickin' beast from the get go! He will be a joy to watch for years to come. I kept focusing on him, replaying the game in slow mo. Holy crap is this dude awesome. Go back and look at his extension and power especially when he pulls.

Dixon--What I hoped, happened. He showcased his skills and power. Nice soft hands out of the backfield. Great frickin' stiff arm and an uncanny ability to stay up, shift, and lean forward for that extra yard or two. You know what, his moves reminded me of what Barry Sanders did: Make players whiff! He will be a great addition to Gore for our running attack.

A. Smith--Bottom line, you failed even though you had some good throws. All we will remember is "how in the world did you miss Vernon?" Rightfully so given his history. If he makes that TD throw, it would be different. Even though he was getting rushed by Freeny because A. Davis missed the initial punch, Alex HAS to make that throw! Period. I hope to see more progression than regression in the next game. Still, the 11-85 connection is going to be a good one for us.

A. Davis--Just like I thought and most did too, he's going to have problems with the speed rushers on the edge during pass protection assignments. Still, he did better as the game wore on, improving rather then regressing. Exactly what I expected and he delivered. I am excited about his mid-season form as he develops. Man, what a great call to get these two magnificent fatties in the first.

RJF--Now that's a man on a mission. He was all over the place running down plays as well as taking care of the point of attack. Overall did well as a starter at NT for being small for the position. Pleasant, pleasant surprise.

B. Davis--When did we get him? I remember him in college being a pass rushing demon. He showed us he can get to the QB so why did Pitt, NE and Denver shun him. Eh, our gain means their loss. Sure he played against scrubs, but he consistently beat out his opponent. Great for depth for sure! Maybe he and Briggs can make it. Both he and Briggs were another pleasant surprise for me.

K. Williams--I am calling he will be our PR. He's got some skill in the open field and vision to boot. I can't wait until the ST gets their blocking down to open holes for him because he is explosive. I see him being our #5 WR playing the slot, Wes Welker clone.

Mays--Dang this kid jumped in with the ones in the first quarter, but got beat on his first play, coverage in fact was suspect. However, he did make some other plays especially that one of Brown in open field. That was impressive closing speed and tackle--I remember seeing him whiff on some like those in college. Overall, nice to see him step up.

OL overall--Impressive. Why? Two rooks and new center starting. Even with all the adversity, Baas, Davis and Iupati held there own. Unlike Rachal who didn't do as well as he should have. I was very worried about Baas, but he came through like a champ. Now that the webs are brushed away, maybe these guys will gel better at home. Still, not bad for an away game with all the changes.

Well, I have been touting for some time that "depth" wins championships. Our depth was certainly better than the Colts for sure. What about other "Championship" teams like the Saints, Eagles, Cowgirlies, etc.? I remember Singletary describing his second stringers as just replacements. There should not be a drop off in plays when a sub comes in. Given how our backups played, I can see a good year in front if something does happen especially with Gore, now.

It is a pre-season game, nonetheless and should be taken with a grain of salt both good and bad. Again progression, development and limit the injury witch are the goals. Time to see what happens next Sunday night against Minny.

Overall, a win is a win and it felt good.

PS--What the heck were you thinking Jimmy Raye on that 3 and 1 with a pass?

[ Edited by ninertico on Aug 16, 2010 at 09:58:01 ]

Originally posted by 9erfanAUS:

Originally posted by DynastyChile:
LIKE-

God i love watching Nate Davis throw a football. After having to watch Smith, JTosull and Dilfer, its pretty nice to watch a legit throwing motion. Cant believe it's so hard to ask for.

Dixon was a beast, straight up. He made some defenders look stupid, 2 string or not.

DISLIKE-

No shot we win a game in the playoffs with this offensive gameplanning. Its downright not fair to this team, and I can't believe no one else can see this.

Nobody does game planning in preseason.

-9fA

you're right, play calling, my bad.

Or just anything on the offensive side. Receiver routes, the formations, i just dont like it.

Like:

K. Williams- found our return man- finally!
Iupati- good mauler
Dixon- great moves for his size
B. Davis- I remember his UCLA days; hope he makes it.
RJF- who needs Franklin??
Briggs- always seemed to be presurring.

Disliked:

A. Smith- only 1st game, but can't help but to be concerned.
Playcalling- SO SICK OF THAT DAMN DIVE PLAY! I'm worried these stupid calls will sabotage a game or two.
Offense- overall they just looked rusty, but i didn't expect to see this after a good camp and all this talk of "continuity."

Originally posted by ninertico:
My take:

Iupati--a frickin' beast from the get go! He will be a joy to watch for years to come. I kept focusing on him, replaying the game in slow mo. Holy crap is this dude awesome. Go back and look at his extension and power especially when he pulls.

Dixon--What I hoped, happened. He showcased his skills and power. Nice soft hands out of the backfield. Great frickin' stiff arm and an uncanny ability to stay up, shift, and lean forward for that extra yard or two. You know what, his moves reminded me of what Barry Sanders did: Make players whiff! He will be a great addition to Gore for our running attack.

A. Smith--Bottom line, you failed even though you had some good throws. All we will remember is "how in the world did you miss Vernon?" Rightfully so given his history. If he makes that TD throw, it would be different. Even though he was getting rushed by Freeny because A. Davis missed the initial punch, Alex HAS to make that throw! Period. I hope to see more progression than regression in the next game. Still, the 11-85 connection is going to be a good one for us.

A. Davis--Just like I thought and most did too, he's going to have problems with the speed rushers on the edge during pass protection assignments. Still, he did better as the game wore on, improving rather then regressing. Exactly what I expected and he delivered. I am excited about his mid-season form as he develops. Man, what a great call to get these two magnificent fatties in the first.

RJF--Now that's a man on a mission. He was all over the place running down plays as well as taking care of the point of attack. Overall did well as a starter at NT for being small for the position. Pleasant, pleasant surprise.

B. Davis--When did we get him? I remember him in college being a pass rushing demon. He showed us he can get to the QB so why did Pitt, NE and Denver shun him. Eh, our gain means their loss. Sure he played against scrubs, but he consistently beat out his opponent. Great for depth for sure! Maybe he and Briggs can make it. Both he and Briggs were another pleasant surprise for me.

K. Williams--I am calling he will be our PR. He's got some skill in the open field and vision to boot. I can't wait until the ST gets their blocking down to open holes for him because he is explosive. I see him being our #5 WR playing the slot, Wes Welker clone.

Mays--Dang this kid jumped in with the ones in the first quarter, but got beat on his first play, coverage in fact was suspect. However, he did make some other plays especially that one of Brown in open field. That was impressive closing speed and tackle--I remember seeing him whiff on some like those in college. Overall, nice to see him step up.

OL overall--Impressive. Why? Two rooks and new center starting. Even with all the adversity, Baas, Davis and Iupati held there own. Unlike Rachal who didn't do as well as he should have. I was very worried about Baas, but he came through like a champ. Now that the webs are brushed away, maybe these guys will gel better at home. Still, not bad for an away game with all the changes.

Well, I have been touting for some time that "depth" wins championships. Our depth was certainly better than the Colts for sure. What about other "Championship" teams like the Saints, Eagles, Cowgirlies, etc.? I remember Singletary describing his second stringers as just replacements. There should not be a drop off in plays when a sub comes in. Given how our backups played, I can see a good year in front if something does happen especially with Gore, now.

It is a pre-season game, nonetheless and should be taken with a grain of salt both good and bad. Again progression, development and limit the injury witch are the goals. Time to see what happens next Sunday night against Minny.

Overall, a win is a win and it felt good.

PS--What the heck were you thinking Jimmy Raye on that 3 and 1 with a pass?

They literally just signed Davis off teh street one day last week. He looked nice. and Williams better be teh punt returner. Kid just catches the ball and takes off.