2007 -- We've seen this before

Originally posted by caSTATEofMIND:
Worst thread ever!

C'mon have you seen that thread with The Endzone Hunter thread??

Originally posted by DaDivaRecieva15:

Originally posted by Leathaface:

Originally posted by DaDivaRecieva15:
didn't read, lol

Too bad, it's some good s**t!

will reconsider, lol

Originally posted by MILFS:
If Harbaugh can magically fix up this o-line to play decent, we have a serious chance at winning the NFC West. If not, I don't see how Alex will last an entire season behind this line. knock on wood

We don't need to fix anything else to win the NFC West. The Seahawks are sucking for Luck and the Rams and Cards are back to their wretched selves (like it shold be, IMO.)

We're in teh Wild Card by default.

Originally posted by Leathaface:

Originally posted by gold49digger:
the difference is that 2011 squad has more talent than 2007 and we have a coach that knows offense.

I can agree that we have more talent on the outside, but I'm not so sure about the o-line.

yeah the lineman need to drop their balls and play with a mean streak. hopefully we give kilgore a try, move staley to rt and give boone and davis a shot at lt.

Exactly who is it you posit isn't seeing how horrible this offense is? That record doesn't somehow delete what we all see with our own eyes. If the casual scrub on the sofa can see that, how do you figure Harbaugh doesn't? This sheds a little light - to me at least - on the difficulties of our Offensive line. It's not so simple as we all seem to think. A difficult transition sans the benefit of a real training camp, this was to be expected. Give 'em time(more the line not so much Smith). Let's have faith and not give up the third freaking week of the season. They're basically learning as they go and are somehow finding ways to win in spite of it all. Football comes and goes way too fast to be a downer, especially at 2-1.

in 2007 we were playing with a few different QB's and didn't have the defense we have now. we also lost 3 games by 7 points or less that year (as were all of our 5 wins). so in a best case scenario that year we could've been 8-8 and in contention if it weren't for the seahawks having a good team. think about that. one of our worst offensive years. we had no return game. we had a so-so defense (20th in points scored, 22nd in rush defense, 22nd in pass defense, 30th in turnover differential) and we were a few plays away from possibly being in contention for a wildcard spot.

now flashforward to this year. no, our offense has not looked good at all. aside from vernon davis, i can't say anyone has looked anything but bad (ill give alex smith a passing grade too i guess). but you know what's different than 2007?

1. there are no good teams in our division. we could feasibly win at 8-8.
2. we have one of the best special teams in the league. this isn't being a homer, it is a fact. 7/7 FG's, #1 punter for net average, 2 special teams TD returns, great kick coverage. SOMETIMES, this can win games for you. think about all the 7 points or less losses we've had in the past 8 years. think we might've made the playoffs in 2003 if we had akers over pochman? think we might have in 2008 if we had ginn returning punts instead of arnaz f**king battle?
3. we have a good overall defense. our pass defense is average (16th against the pass) but our run defense is top 5 in the NFL. this means something.
4. we have a better coaching staff from top to bottom. you can debate whether harbaugh is a better coach now than nolan was (nolan had experience in the NFL as a coordinator). but our assistants are much better now than they were in 2007.

so you can compare this start to 2007 and there are legit comparisons to be made. but when you actually look at the finer details i think you will find that we are better suited to pull some additional games out this year. not saying we're going 12-4 but i would be shocked if we went 5-11.

Originally posted by swarthymongol:
Exactly who is it you posit isn't seeing how horrible this offense is? That record doesn't somehow delete what we all see with our own eyes. If the casual scrub on the sofa can see that, how do you figure Harbaugh doesn't? This sheds a little light - to me at least - on the difficulties of our Offensive line. It's not so simple as we all seem to think. A difficult transition sans the benefit of a real training camp, this was to be expected. Give 'em time(more the line not so much Smith). Let's have faith and not give up the third freaking week of the season. They're basically learning as they go and are somehow finding ways to win in spite of it all. Football comes and goes way too fast to be a downer, especially at 2-1.

i like the link. i wonder why we didnt we try to hire tom cable as a lineman coach. did he run a zone blocking scheme or am i trippin???

Originally posted by swarthymongol:
Exactly who is it you posit isn't seeing how horrible this offense is? That record doesn't somehow delete what we all see with our own eyes. If the casual scrub on the sofa can see that, how do you figure Harbaugh doesn't? This sheds a little light - to me at least - on the difficulties of our Offensive line. It's not so simple as we all seem to think. A difficult transition sans the benefit of a real training camp, this was to be expected. Give 'em time(more the line not so much Smith). Let's have faith and not give up the third freaking week of the season. They're basically learning as they go and are somehow finding ways to win in spite of it all. Football comes and goes way too fast to be a downer, especially at 2-1.

You must not spend any time in the Alex Smith threads if you think people don't believe our offense is running well with him at the helm. And sorry, I know that the lockout is a legitimate excuse, but I don't see that as the main problem. The main problem is the playcalling and lack of production from the OL/QB.

In any case, I agree with you and I'm not giving up on the idea that our offense can get better. Just not going to be surprised if this offense remains in neutral, that's all.

Originally posted by frenchmov:
in 2007 we were playing with a few different QB's and didn't have the defense we have now. we also lost 3 games by 7 points or less that year (as were all of our 5 wins). so in a best case scenario that year we could've been 8-8 and in contention if it weren't for the seahawks having a good team. think about that. one of our worst offensive years. we had no return game. we had a so-so defense (20th in points scored, 22nd in rush defense, 22nd in pass defense, 30th in turnover differential) and we were a few plays away from possibly being in contention for a wildcard spot.

now flashforward to this year. no, our offense has not looked good at all. aside from vernon davis, i can't say anyone has looked anything but bad (ill give alex smith a passing grade too i guess). but you know what's different than 2007?

1. there are no good teams in our division. we could feasibly win at 8-8.
2. we have one of the best special teams in the league. this isn't being a homer, it is a fact. 7/7 FG's, #1 punter for net average, 2 special teams TD returns, great kick coverage. SOMETIMES, this can win games for you. think about all the 7 points or less losses we've had in the past 8 years. think we might've made the playoffs in 2003 if we had akers over pochman? think we might have in 2008 if we had ginn returning punts instead of arnaz f**king battle?
3. we have a good overall defense. our pass defense is average (16th against the pass) but our run defense is top 5 in the NFL. this means something.
4. we have a better coaching staff from top to bottom. you can debate whether harbaugh is a better coach now than nolan was (nolan had experience in the NFL as a coordinator). but our assistants are much better now than they were in 2007.

so you can compare this start to 2007 and there are legit comparisons to be made. but when you actually look at the finer details i think you will find that we are better suited to pull some additional games out this year. not saying we're going 12-4 but i would be shocked if we went 5-11.

Very good post and I agree with a lot of the points you made. The ST thing is huge, I definitely agree that it can help us win a game or two (it may already have vs SEA). I also do believe our defense is better and having a weak division helps a lot.

Looking at details, our team now is much better...however it's hard for me to posit a different outcome until our offense starts matching the production of our D/ST.

Nonetheless, a lot of the things you mentioned are undeniably true.

Originally posted by Leathaface:

Originally posted by swarthymongol:
Exactly who is it you posit isn't seeing how horrible this offense is? That record doesn't somehow delete what we all see with our own eyes. If the casual scrub on the sofa can see that, how do you figure Harbaugh doesn't? This sheds a little light - to me at least - on the difficulties of our Offensive line. It's not so simple as we all seem to think. A difficult transition sans the benefit of a real training camp, this was to be expected. Give 'em time(more the line not so much Smith). Let's have faith and not give up the third freaking week of the season. They're basically learning as they go and are somehow finding ways to win in spite of it all. Football comes and goes way too fast to be a downer, especially at 2-1.

You must not spend any time in the Alex Smith threads if you think people don't believe our offense is running well with him at the helm. And sorry, I know that the lockout is a legitimate excuse, but I don't see that as the main problem. The main problem is the playcalling and lack of production from the OL/QB.

In any case, I agree with you and I'm not giving up on the idea that our offense can get better. Just not going to be surprised if this offense remains in neutral, that's all.

Given our QB and the problem with the offensive line that I have every reason to believe Harbaugh fully expected, I'm not surprised at the playcalling. Alex is a big enough mess when things are going perfectly. Behind a shaky line? Fuhgetaboutit. BUT, there is one thing I wanna bring up about Alex. Watching MNF a couple weeks ago they were showing how quick Peyton Manning's decision making is. On average it takes the dude .3 seconds from snap to throw. That's mind boggling and is it any wonder why that line is viewed as good? Good QB's make their lines look better than they are. The opposite can be said for bad QB's cuz if they ever did a study on the quickness of Alex's mind under duress, there would be A LOT less people blaming the O Line for all his ills. Under fire, the guy is retarded. Good things only happen when he's micro managed and the coaches call a perfect play in which his first option is wide open.

didnt read

Originally posted by ObePwnD:
Different coaches, different circumstances.

+1

The theme for every year should be "cautious optimism." But like the OP noted, don't be "blindly optimistic." He is right...there are reasons to be skeptical...hell, we have 10 years of crap to fall back on. Yes, there are differences in personnel, coaching, the tpes of coaching, the schedule, etc. BUT, be smart...use your head. "Gotta watch the film!" Haha...but really, watch the games closely. Are you seeing progress from week to week? If so, we're on track even if we were behind the 8-ball even before the off-season started.

Must be tough being a 49er fan always looking for the bad in our team.

What, we can only be happy if we win a certain way?

Originally posted by rk1642:
Must be tough being a 49er fan always looking for the bad in our team.

What, we can only be happy if we win a certain way?

+1 to this.


I really don't get the negativity for one thing, but when it's forced on everyone else? Man, that's just disturbing. What could you possibly get out of being so negative? Just to say you were right later if we do lose out? Would that then make you feel good about yourself? What kind of fan would be 2-1 and be this gloom-n-doom?

Serious question... not trying to insult, but to understand... is this negativity a wall put forth to protect you from potential disappointment?