Mid season poll, what position is the weakness of the team?

Originally posted by qnnhan7:
I think it might be more of Aldon Smith's weakness.

Ditto! Aldon is gonna be awesome but he still needs to be covered by the scheme until his understanding of the pro game becomes instinctive...

Dirty

Originally posted by Dirty9er:
Honestly if you have to ask to protect a player from scrutiny then you already know "who/what" the weakness is on this team... With that said this is a VERY complete team. We finally have good (name brand) WR's, our Oline is good and still developing, Frnak Gore has carried this team and continues to do so on the O side of the ball, our TE's are top notch (I think D Walker could/would be a starter on most teams)...

On the D side,,, we have talent all over and a scheme that maximizes that talent. We could use a mega dominant NT (but couldn't every team running the 3-4), our LB's are set (but we should still draft one or two of them for depth and continuity), we could use another young/proven FA CB and a young playmaking safety could be considered in the near future... Oh and I'd keep an immediate look-out for a future replacement for Ted Ginn (returns are a dangerous business). QB is our handicap and glaring weakness - it's the ONLY position not playing at a championship level... Look I never even used "Its" name. We are just an "average playmaker" (at QB) away from being totally complete...

Dirty

I think our WRs injuries has hurt our passing game. Morgan out for the year is HUGE. Crabs not playing during the preseason killed any chemistry with Smith. Braylon being new to the team and then getting hurt was another set back. Add to that the lack of an offseason and I'm surprised that the offense is doing as well as it has so far.

Hands down the fans on the Webzone are the weakest link, and they promote negativity in the media. basically they are really crappy fans that I wish would find a new sport.

Originally posted by gamechanger:
Catching the ball and 3rd down playcalling.

spot on

Originally posted by qnnhan7:

Originally posted by NCommand:
Weakness if the secondary and forcing Willis/Bowman in coverage. Brown needs to be worked out of the starting CB spot for either Culliver/Spencer. Goldson need to be quicker in coverage and help more over-the-top. A passing team CAN beat us...on offense, dropped passes. Unbelievable how many balls these guys drop!

I think it might be more of Aldon Smith's weakness.

Just meant that when we play teams that target more intermediate passing, it forces Willis/Bowman in coverage much more which naturally, is not their strength. True, Aldon needs to continue to work on dropping back once in a while but it's no biggie; he just covers a zone for a second or two anyhow.

Originally posted by taney71:
I don't think QB is a weakness. Smith is doing what needs to be done to win games. He's averaging something like 24 passes per game. I believe Big Ben had 50 passes last week. The passing offense would look much better if A) the run game wasn't as good B) Harbaugh wanted to pass more.

So now the running game "being too good" can be added to the list of excuses...? I think the running game being good is the only thing making the passing game seem at all legit.... I point this out because>>> we have had a great running game for a few years - and this is the first time I've ever heard that it somehow took away from the passing game until, well just now...

Dirty

Originally posted by gold49digger:

One of your most articulate posts!

Originally posted by taney71:
I think our WRs injuries has hurt our passing game. Morgan out for the year is HUGE. Crabs not playing during the preseason killed any chemistry with Smith. Braylon being new to the team and then getting hurt was another set back. Add to that the lack of an offseason and I'm surprised that the offense is doing as well as it has so far.

I actually agree with you on this!

Dirty

I dont see any one position as glaring. I do find as a team a couple of areas that seem to haunt us. Penalities are still a major concern. Seems like we get them at the worst time. Number one tho is the red zone offense. We have left lots of points on the field. I am not sure if it is due to play calling or players not doing their job. Against the high octane offenses field goals wont be enough. If we get those two things under control I do think we have a chance to go to the Super Bowl.

Originally posted by overthemiddle:
I dont see any one position as glaring. I do find as a team a couple of areas that seem to haunt us. Penalities are still a major concern. Seems like we get them at the worst time. Number one tho is the red zone offense. We have left lots of points on the field. I am not sure if it is due to play calling or players not doing their job. Against the high octane offenses field goals wont be enough. If we get those two things under control I do think we have a chance to go to the Super Bowl.

Not sure where the 9ers stand in drops recently but if they could eliminate some of these it will go a long way towards creating a very good offense. Edwards alluded to this in his interview, that they are nowhere near peaking. As they create a more fluid passing game, if they can stay healthy, the team will have a great shot at...shh, don't jinx them.

Originally posted by dtg_9er:
Not sure where the 9ers stand in drops recently

Currently working on this. Pretty good ways through the 2nd half, and count 3 so far... Gore wide open over the middle... two on VD, one short, one long.

Then I gotta catch back up on the Browns game... I iz slackin' ...

The passing game. This is a combo of the QB, the pass protection, the speed of the WRs, the drops of the receivers, the coach's lack of confidence because of all of this and the coach's belief that ball control and defense is enough to win most of the time anyway.

It's a symbiotic snowball that also results in so many runs on 3rd and long, more exposure for the defense and so on.

The wonder is that despite this real weakness, the team has been winning and often totally outclassing the opposition. The coaches have done a great job in masking the weakness in the passing game and many, many thanks to the kickers!

My vote is for QB. Alex has been doing great by Alex Smith Standards; but this isn't a Singletary team any more. What I mean is that we need a better QB on O to make this team rock... Alex is our Trent Dilfer...

I would say QB. Not that Alex Smith is playing poorly, but the passing offense is not at the same level as a great defense and rushing attack. With time, I expect the passing offense to get better, making it even harder to identify a weakness.

QB. Like many of you already mentioned, Alex is playing solid, but not at an Aaron Rodgers type level. He is not making stupid mistakes like he has in the past, but but is not playing at an elite QB level.