Alex Smith Looks Confused. John Carroll | Page 5

foamingatdamouth · 2010-09-15T07:44:50-07:00

Here's a good article written about the last game from the San Francisco Chronicle's entertainment journalist. It's not so much another Alex Smith critique piece as it is an observation from a professional writer and ordinary fan. I am aware that many of my readers do not care that the football season is under way. I get a kinder, gentler crowd, people who want sports to be noncompetitive. The only truly noncompetitive sport I know of is earthball, and I don't think people are playing that much anymore. Nice while it lasted. I, on the other hand, love all sorts of competitions. I like "Project Runway" and baseball, citywide treasure hunts and tennis, chess and poker and rugby. And nothing comes as close to the discredited but oh-so-amusing gladiatorial ideal as football. It's pretty much indefensible on an intellectual level, but as entertainment - pretty much fun. Which brings us to the San Francisco 49ers, the team with which Bay Area residents are supposed to have fun this year. We might have fun with the Oakland Raiders, but they are run by an older gentleman who seems to have lost his grip on many things. The game, as they say, has passed him by, and until he releases the team from his iron grip - and, pre-mortem, that seems unlikely - it would be masochistic to root for the Raiders. In a sense, rooting for any team is masochistic, because at the end of each year, only one team can be champion. But some of them at least have had a chance to win it all, and the Raiders do not have a prayer. I'd say the over/under on Raider victories this year would be four, and that could be generous. The 49ers are in a crux year. Ol' Linebacker Eyes himself, coach Mike Singletary, has proved himself to be a molder of men and a fiercely independent man of character. He has not yet proved himself to be a football coach, though, and that makes me nervous. Now he has his pieces in place, his team on the field, and we are led to believe that the playoffs are not an unreasonable expectation. Except ... well, there's Alex Smith, our allegedly brainy hope of the future who has already arrived at the future without justifying much hope. His passes are often wayward, and his game-management skills are questionable, as his career has been studded with panicky timeouts called, apparently, because he has become confused. Confusion is not a good look for a quarterback. It also seems to me, heresy of heresies, that Singletary becomes confused in game situations. A confused coach guiding a confused quarterback - not a good thing. Apparently both men are hardworking, studious, straight-shooting human beings admired by all who know them. Everyone so wants it all to work out well. And maybe it will, but the game against Seattle on Sunday was not encouraging. Understand: I don't have the inside scoop on anything. I am not a sportswriter; I do not cover games; I do not have off-the-record chats with people in the know. I just hang around in front of my television on Sundays and suffer. I believe that the offensive line will improve. I believe that our receivers will remember their skill sets. I believe our defense will discover its inner angry child. I can live with all that. But ... let me tell you about a fellow named Sam Bradford. He was a quarterback at Oklahoma who won the 2008 Heisman Trophy. Then he ripped up his shoulder in 2009, got it fixed up and entered the 2010 NFL draft. He was picked first by the St. Louis Rams, who haven't had a decent quarterback since Kurt Warner left town. Bradford started his first game as a professional football player on Sunday. He went 32 for 55. And he looked like the real deal. He looked realer than Alex Smith looked. His first game in the NFL, and he looked like the hope of the future. Not that the Rams will improve; he's probably the hope of someone else's future. But ... gosh darn it anyway, the Niners are the team of John Brodie and Joe Montana and Steve Young. We are entitled to greatness. Now, I admit that exactly one game has been played in the 2010 season. I admit that generalities and received wisdom may have crept into my penetrating analysis. But that is the right of every fan, to hold as many opinions as he wants, opinions that he may very well change after the next game - which will be Monday night against the Saints, so also maybe not. That's the whole point of spectator sports, to allow amateurs to argue about things that do not matter at all. Hooray! Boo! There's always next year! Cheer, cheer, for your San Francisco 49ers, who seem confused and preoccupied but what the heck. Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/09/15/DDCU1FD9SR.DTL#ixzz0zbpkn5CV

Sep 15, 2010 at 2:29 PM

#61

ninerfan818
Veteran
Posts: 6,410

Originally posted by defenderDX:
Can we PLEASE stop with the Alex Smith threads already? PLEASE?!??! Jesus f**king christ, is it really necessary to post EVERY single article up about Alex Smith from the internet in reference to the week 1 game at Seattle???

Actually it is not regarding only week 1 at Seattle. It is directly correlated with his with his entire career which in wihch he has strangled the 49ers. (or more accurately, the Yorks and management have strangled the niners with investing too much hope and not cutting losses)

If Week one was an anomoly than that would be an entirely different story and people could be more patient and understanding. But when it is nothing new to us fans than we have reason to grumble and complain, though sometimes it falls on deaf ears.

Sep 15, 2010 at 2:29 PM

#62

susweel
Hall of Nepal
Posts: 122,136

Originally posted by FredFlintstone:
Originally posted by bigmike55:
Originally posted by DaveWilcox:
Originally posted by WestCoast:
Originally posted by BETTERDAYZ9ERS:
Originally posted by SybErkRimInAL:
Originally posted by susweel:
Originally posted by SybErkRimInAL:
Originally posted by WestCoast:
alex smith is the main problem, but we have no other option right now

this. Watching the game again right now. Should of been up 17-0 in the first half had it not been for Alex Smiths overthrows of both Morgan and Norris. Flawless first 25 minutes by our D. FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

Your watching that again ? You must be really into self mutilation.

just wanted to see some things.
People were saying Smith HAD to throw the ball that high to get it over the defender, bulls**t. He threw it at least 3 feet over the outstretched arms of the jumping linebacker. So....... LB is about 6'2", add arm length and vertical leap another 3'6" (at least) plus how much higher than the tip of the defenders hand the ball appeared to be, 3' (probably more). Smith lofted the ball 12 and 1/2 feet in the air. Is that really necessary to get it over a defender who's about 5 yards away from you???

I watched the game again yesterday as well and this is one play where I said the same damn thing. I rewinded that pass to Norris at least 5 times and saw that the DE wasn't as close to Alex as I thought. Alex did not have to lob the pass. He got impatient. The defender didn't even jump at Smith.

Watch the tape.

ive seen aaron rodgers have pin point accuracy throwing the ball while his reciever is bracketed 20 yards downfield and threads the needle with chaos all around the pocket. alex smith will never have that kind of poise.

I think we can all agree that drafting Smith instead of Rodgers was a huge mistake. Look at it this way. We can't undo the 2005 draft, that ship has sailed. This is a make or break year for Alex, he'll either earn a new contract with his play on the field or he'll be gone.

I was watching the replay of the packers eagles game and boy was Aaron Rodgers on point with his throws.

especially that beauty to jennings. F**K I HATE WATCHING RODGERS PLAY

I was the same way before I hated watching him play. However after that game against the Cards in the playoffs I gained much respect for his game. I actually enjoy watching him now, he is a great player.

I cheer for him, he grew up a niner fan, is a local norcal guy. Its not his fault that our team had a bunch of dumb asses running the show and draft the other dip s**t.

Sep 15, 2010 at 2:32 PM

#63

BETTERDAYZ9ERS
Veteran
Posts: 3,078

Originally posted by nyc49erking:
The majority of the 49er fan base has quite a lack of football knowledge. If anyone watched the game, they would understand that QB Smith played the position quite well. Even the so called "bad pass" to Norris, was exactly where it needed to be......but Norris, who is the most un-athletic guy on the team decided to stop his route, like an amateur. The hatred for our QB id FLAT OUT RIDICULOUS. I swear sometimes this fanbase acts like the KKK toward a brotha, in regards to Smith.

Sep 15, 2010 at 2:40 PM

#64

fryet
Veteran
Posts: 3,386

Originally posted by nyc49erking:
The majority of the 49er fan base has quite a lack of football knowledge. If anyone watched the game, they would understand that QB Smith played the position quite well. Even the so called "bad pass" to Norris, was exactly where it needed to be......but Norris, who is the most un-athletic guy on the team decided to stop his route, like an amateur. The hatred for our QB id FLAT OUT RIDICULOUS. I swear sometimes this fanbase acts like the KKK toward a brotha, in regards to Smith.

So Norris was supposed to cut inside on that play? That is where Smith threw the ball. If he overthrew him towards the sideline, I suspect Norris could have adjusted and caught the ball. But on his back shoulder, he wasn't able to jump and do that. If he had, it would have been a fantastic catch.

Morgan's out of bounds TD I don't blame Smith for as much. It was a difficult throw to make. The one positive I saw in the game was the 80+ yard drive that Smith engineered on the 49er's second possession. And that was with no running game. Let's just hope we see more of those, and fewer of Alex Smith in the second half.

Sep 15, 2010 at 2:42 PM

#65

CrAnKD4TCRabTree
Member
Posts: 868

Originally posted by DaveWilcox:
Originally posted by WestCoast:
Originally posted by BETTERDAYZ9ERS:
Originally posted by SybErkRimInAL:
Originally posted by susweel:
Originally posted by SybErkRimInAL:
Originally posted by WestCoast:
alex smith is the main problem, but we have no other option right now

this. Watching the game again right now. Should of been up 17-0 in the first half had it not been for Alex Smiths overthrows of both Morgan and Norris. Flawless first 25 minutes by our D. FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

Your watching that again ? You must be really into self mutilation.

just wanted to see some things.
People were saying Smith HAD to throw the ball that high to get it over the defender, bulls**t. He threw it at least 3 feet over the outstretched arms of the jumping linebacker. So....... LB is about 6'2", add arm length and vertical leap another 3'6" (at least) plus how much higher than the tip of the defenders hand the ball appeared to be, 3' (probably more). Smith lofted the ball 12 and 1/2 feet in the air. Is that really necessary to get it over a defender who's about 5 yards away from you???

I watched the game again yesterday as well and this is one play where I said the same damn thing. I rewinded that pass to Norris at least 5 times and saw that the DE wasn't as close to Alex as I thought. Alex did not have to lob the pass. He got impatient. The defender didn't even jump at Smith.

Watch the tape.

ive seen aaron rodgers have pin point accuracy throwing the ball while his reciever is bracketed 20 yards downfield and threads the needle with chaos all around the pocket. alex smith will never have that kind of poise.

I think we can all agree that drafting Smith instead of Rodgers was a huge mistake. Look at it this way. We can't undo the 2005 draft, that ship has sailed. This is a make or break year for Alex, he'll either earn a new contract with his play on the field or he'll be gone.

You think wrong..

If we drafted Rodgers and he was in the same situation that Alex was in 2005 he'd be at the same point to where Alex is right now.
You're talking about a team with a HC like Nolan, a terrible OL, Brandon Lloyd and Bryan Gilmore as the starting WRs, a garbage defense, a garbage OC, there was literally nothing good about the team.
Aaron Rodgers on the other hand sat behind and learned from one of the greatest QBs of all time Brett Favre, had and still does have a good offensive minded HC in Mike McCarthy, a great WR duo in Jennings and Driver, and a supporting D that the packers have had the last couple of years. Also, the OC in green bay right now has been part of their coaching staff for 7 years now and hes been the OC for the last 4 years. You know the OC situation Alex has had...

My point is if we drafted Aaron Rodgers with our 1st pick in 2005, he wouldn't be ANYTHING close to what he is right now..not with the talent we had in 05 and 06..

Sep 15, 2010 at 2:43 PM

#66

SybErkRimInAL
Veteran
Posts: 59,185

Originally posted by fryet:
Originally posted by nyc49erking:
The majority of the 49er fan base has quite a lack of football knowledge. If anyone watched the game, they would understand that QB Smith played the position quite well. Even the so called "bad pass" to Norris, was exactly where it needed to be......but Norris, who is the most un-athletic guy on the team decided to stop his route, like an amateur. The hatred for our QB id FLAT OUT RIDICULOUS. I swear sometimes this fanbase acts like the KKK toward a brotha, in regards to Smith.

So Norris was supposed to cut inside on that play? That is where Smith threw the ball. If he overthrew him towards the sideline, I suspect Norris could have adjusted and caught the ball. But on his back shoulder, he wasn't able to jump and do that. If he had, it would have been a fantastic catch.

Morgan's out of bounds TD I don't blame Smith for as much. It was a difficult throw to make. The one positive I saw in the game was the 80+ yard drive that Smith engineered on the 49er's second possession. And that was with no running game. Let's just hope we see more of those, and fewer of Alex Smith in the second half.

you obviously lack football knowledge. The pass to Norris was right on the money.

Sep 15, 2010 at 2:53 PM

#67

9erfanAUS
Veteran
Posts: 16,281

Originally posted by rxrunner:
2 words: NATE DAVIS

Only 49er fans still carry with them the illusion that Nate Davis is our saviour.

-9fA

[ Edited by 9erfanAUS on Sep 15, 2010 at 14:54:55 ]

Sep 15, 2010 at 3:13 PM

#68

Joecool
Veteran
Posts: 70,984

Originally posted by 9erfanAUS:
Originally posted by rxrunner:
2 words: NATE DAVIS

Only 49er fans still carry with them the illusion that Nate Davis is our saviour.

-9fA

The QB coach is very high on him and wanted to keep him on the roster.

I can no longer go by Singletary's statements of Nate Davis as it is apparent that Singletary has no idea what is going on with the offense during a game.

Sep 15, 2010 at 3:20 PM

#69

Giggidy
Veteran
Posts: 435

Originally posted by mcbaes72:
"But ... let me tell you about a fellow named Sam Bradford. He was a quarterback at Oklahoma who won the 2008 Heisman Trophy. Then he ripped up his shoulder in 2009, got it fixed up and entered the 2010 NFL draft. He was picked first by the St. Louis Rams, who haven't had a decent quarterback since Kurt Warner left town. Bradford started his first game as a professional football player on Sunday. He went 32 for 55.

And he looked like the real deal. He looked realer than Alex Smith looked. His first game in the NFL, and he looked like the hope of the future. Not that the Rams will improve; he's probably the hope of someone else's future. But ... gosh darn it anyway, the Niners are the team of John Brodie and Joe Montana and Steve Young. We are entitled to greatness."

That was worth reading after skimming the article. Good points.

Tittle should also be mentioned with our other great QBs. Not trying to knitpick - I'm just sayin'...

Sep 15, 2010 at 3:30 PM

#70

fly15
Veteran
Posts: 5,790

Originally posted by 9erfanAUS:
Originally posted by rxrunner:
2 words: NATE DAVIS

Only 49er fans still carry with them the illusion that Nate Davis is our saviour.

-9fA

Its not an illusion, just bench the robot.... he will choke again

Sep 15, 2010 at 3:35 PM

#71

IstruckG0LDS0N
Veteran
Posts: 76

once again a thread about Smith, I have a question, who here has coached at the NFL level? who here played in the NFL for an extended period of time (at least a few seasons)? that's right, not one of you haters out there. you sat on your A$$ all throughout the 80's and 90's and got to watch JOE and STEVE. because you were privileged enough to see 2 of the greatest QB's to ever play the game doesn't not mean that you know more about the position than anyone on our coaching staff, you just don't and you never will so shut the HELL up. you so called FANS have no credibility at all, none, so please stop with this HATING on Smith already and just cheer for the team that you supposedly love, please...

Sep 15, 2010 at 3:43 PM

#72

ninerfan818
Veteran
Posts: 6,410

Originally posted by Joecool:
Originally posted by 9erfanAUS:
Originally posted by rxrunner:
2 words: NATE DAVIS

Only 49er fans still carry with them the illusion that Nate Davis is our saviour.

-9fA

The QB coach is very high on him and wanted to keep him on the roster.

I can no longer go by Singletary's statements of Nate Davis as it is apparent that Singletary has no idea what is going on with the offense during a game.

Coach Sing should focus on making comments about defense. Defensivley the guy is a guru and possibly one of the best linebackers to ever play the game. Offensively I don't really trust his judgement. Is there a link to quotes that showed the QB coach wanted to keep Nate on the roster?? I'd love to read that. I think they should have for sure.

Sep 15, 2010 at 3:52 PM

#73

Jersey9er
Veteran
Posts: 3,972

Originally posted by PatrickJira411:
Our whole team and coaching staff looked confused.

And that's the truth.... Stevie wonder could see that. Point out one guy if u want but everybody including are so called cornerstone of the team.

With Smith honestly of course many may doubt which is the norm in the zone. But a part of the team im upset more with is the D that has said for the past few years they can be one of the best. Well just like sum say with smith, how long does it take to go from good to great. Our D has had at least 3 yrs in the same system and still makin the same mistakes.

That says a lot too in my opinion. Yes our D is off da hook, but to say the foundation of our team that's consistent. I'd have to disagree. Baltimore and Jets are truly great defenses. And they hold up their end, Regardless if the o scores tons of points. Why can't we hold our opponents just like they do?

Sep 15, 2010 at 3:55 PM

#74

SJniner7
Veteran
Posts: 5,749

Originally posted by Jersey9er:
Originally posted by PatrickJira411:
Our whole team and coaching staff looked confused.

And that's the truth.... Stevie wonder could see that. Point out one guy if u want but everybody including are so called cornerstone of the team.

With Smith honestly of course many may doubt which is the norm in the zone. But a part of the team im upset more with is the D that has said for the past few years they can be one of the best. Well just like sum say with smith, how long does it take to go from good to great. Our D has had at least 3 yrs in the same system and still makin the same mistakes.

That says a lot too in my opinion. Yes our D is off da hook, but to say the foundation of our team that's consistent. I'd have to disagree. Baltimore and Jets are truly great defenses. And they hold up their end, Regardless if the o scores tons of points. Why can't we hold our opponents just like they do?

The sad part is, if our D didn't give up those huge gains and TD's, we would have still lost 10-6: The pick-six and at least a FG from Smith's other INT

Sep 15, 2010 at 3:58 PM

#75

Sanfran_chrisco
Veteran
Posts: 33,918

Originally posted by ninerfan818:
Originally posted by defenderDX:
Can we PLEASE stop with the Alex Smith threads already? PLEASE?!??! Jesus f**king christ, is it really necessary to post EVERY single article up about Alex Smith from the internet in reference to the week 1 game at Seattle???

Actually it is not regarding only week 1 at Seattle. It is directly correlated with his with his entire career which in wihch he has strangled the 49ers. (or more accurately, the Yorks and management have strangled the niners with investing too much hope and not cutting losses)

If Week one was an anomoly than that would be an entirely different story and people could be more patient and understanding. But when it is nothing new to us fans than we have reason to grumble and complain, though sometimes it falls on deaf ears.

No it is regarding week 1, because ALL of these articles and threads haven't been posted in THIS amount since the game at Seattle. If you know what I mean.