Oh Dear

I can't take much more of this. Holy shit. I think I really hate Seattle now. I mean, like, everything about that goddamn city. Jesus christ what a bunch of cheap shot artists. My vocal cords are completely fried, and I think I'm going to be dead of multiple myocardial infarctions before the night is through. If this is how I reacted to a regular season game, WTF am I going to do in the playoffs?! Dear god.

Their defense is good, so it's tough to knock the 49ers' offense too much. I really enjoyed how they obviously made changes at halftime. I'm still not completely used to how professional this coaching staff is: they saw what they were doing in the 1st half was absolutely not working, fixed it, then drove right down the field when they needed to. Vernon Davis finally started making plays he should make, which was nice. I think he made his first 2 sideline catches EVER on that drive, and they were both oh so pretty.

This game was crystal clear evidence that the 49ers will really really struggle if their formula for winning gets effed with. If their run defense isn't rock-solid, they're in trouble. If they start making big mistakes on special teams, they are absolutely screwed. That blocked punt looked like it would be a dagger, and all through the first half the special teams were making stupid penalties we're just not used to seeing from them. Before that blocked punt, it was readily apparent that Tavaris Jackson was still Tavaris Jackson, and that the Seahawks were not going to score any more points.

That's an uncomfortable situation for me. I don't like having to rely on something to be nearly perfect in order for them to win, but sadly that's the reality until their offense gets better. I guess the good news is that the teams they will most likely face in the playoffs have worse special teams than the Seahawks.

I'm not sure if it's a super bowl winning formula or not, but I do know that they match up well against the Saints and Packers, and I'm looking forward to seeing those games alone in my home so that my friends and family don't have to be put through the way I'm going to act during those games. I'm already doing vocal exercises so I'll still be able to speak after them.

So

I think that's what they call a "decisive win". And no, I don't care about any of the caveats. That was an awesome win, and the most fun I've had watching this team in awhile. Wow. This defense is legit, dudes.

Expectations

Blah. My chronic BFS (battered fan syndrome) is acting up big time this evening. 10 years of mediocrity, failure, and inability to rise to big moments have left scars too deep for one season to heal. Sure, there was the Philadelphia game, but then we learned that Philadelphia sucks. Then there was the Detroit game, but then we learned that the Lions, while very talented, also probably suck, and can't get out of their own way.

Sure, those are games that pre-Harbaugh 49ers teams wouldn't have won, so that's something. But then there's the Ravens game. Short rest? Yes, and the travel schedule was insane. But if I'm honest that's when a little doubt started creeping in. That was a big game for this team, and they failed fairly spectacularly on offense. It was hard to not have flashbacks to previous "big games" in which this franchise always seemed to be unable to put in a good showing.

I'm a little less worried about last week's game, partly because it's becoming more and more apparent that Arizona (especially at home) is not as terrible as I would have thought, but mostly because in division games, that kind of stuff tends to happen. But still. That doubt is creeping in.

All of this is a way of saying: please don't screw me over tonight, guys. I know it's not the Steelers at 100%. Harrison is out and Reotehoshlsltburger is playing on half an ankle, but it's still The Pittsburgh Steelers and it's still in primetime. I want to believe the team has truly turned a corner and that they're capable of not just showing up for a game like this, but actually WINNING a game like this. But I can't do it! 10 years is a long time and it leaves a mark on the psyche. A win tonight would do a lot to alleviate those doubts. A depressing loss tonight and, despite the 10-4 record, they go back to being "those" 49ers. I will expect a swift first round exit from the playoffs. They will have shown that the moment was too big. They can't keep up with New Orleans. They can't beat a good team in a big game. In other words, they're the 49ers.

So please win, guys.

At LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG Last!

Just wanted to say something on the new stadium, which now looks like a certainty to at least happen, if not by 2014 then very soon after. Santa Clara has voted to cover 800+ million dollars of the proposed 1.something billion, and the owners just recently voted to expand the NFL's stadium loan program, which provides up to 200 million dollars to teams in "small" markets looking to finance new stadiums. Jed York seems to be confident that the 49ers will be the first recipients of this program.

I'm not crazy about the design of the new place:


Sure, it looks real pretty, but why doesn't everyone take a page from the Seahawks' playbook and design their stadiums to be a true home field advantage? Can you really not design for acoustics AND for revenue? I thought the whole point was to win football games. Meh, oh well.

I'm very excited that this franchise seems to have finally turned a corner towards being at least a sliver of what it once was. Jed York is, if nothing else, at least trying, and is serious about making this team good. He failed with singletary, but he hit a home run securing Harbaugh, and now looks like he will finally be the man who gets the 49ers the new stadium they so obviously deserve. Just another in a long string of good news items from a really really great season for us fans.

Hmm

Maybe everyone saying that the 49ers' offense isn't very good were on to something. That was horrendous to watch. Up to now the defense has been so good that it didn't matter, but in this game they just simply couldn't stop Larry Fitzgerald. The offense should have won this game but they couldn't make any plays when it mattered. Or when it didn't matter. They just couldn't make plays. The offensive line was terrible, Smith was vintage 2005 Alex: oblivious to the blitz and scattering his deep throws like so much shotgun buckshot.

It could be that the Cardinals' defense is good, and given what they did the last 2 weeks that's probably the case, but the fact remains that the 49ers just lost to Red Skelton. That's not good. They should beat this team with 2 hands and a leg tied behind their backs.

Maybe this will be a good thing in the long run, but I don't think this was a team in need of a game like this. This team didn't strike me as an entitled bunch that needed to be brought back to earth. I think they just weren't good enough on offense to win this game, and that's pretty scary for their playoff prospects. This was a crushing loss, because it means the 49ers HAVE to beat Pittsburgh next week. If they'd have won this game, they could afford that loss and still almost assuredly clinch the 2 seed. Now we need to root against the Saints and hope the offensive line figures its shit out in time to face a much much better defense than the one they just got destroyed against.

Blech. I was really hoping for 14-2.

THE CORONATION!! (kind of)

GO CRAZY, FOLKS! GO CRAZY!!!

There's plenty of time to dissect the aspects of this team that will cause problems if they're not fixed before the playoffs, but tonight is all about celebrating the fact that they WILL in fact be IN the playoffs!! The 49ers will be in the playoffs! What an amazing season.

For the first time I can remember as a hardcore fan of this franchise, I'm going to spend December worrying about playoff seeding instead of draft order positioning. The only downside is that now tonight I have to root for Jim Schwartz' smug ass to win a game against the main rival for the 49ers. If SF gets the 2 seed, they have a great shot to beat NO. If they fall to 3, they could really be screwed.

But enough of that! Back to the mirth! Back to the merry! THE 49ERS ARE GOING TO THE PLAYOFFS EVERYONE!!!! What a great day for those of us who suffered through the terrible times!

Fucking Bullshit

Yes, the offense was terrible. But I guess that's to be expected flying 3 timezones with 2 days to prepare against this defense. Fuck this game. The refs were a fucking joke, a running theme in all 3 games today. Maybe the short week hurt them, too. The defense was its usual stellar self, when you give up 16 points on the road on a short week you should win. This fucking sucks. Fuck this game.

God dammit. This week is ruined now. Which I guess shows how far we've come, when going 9-2 is reason for me to want to fucking kill someone. It was unreasonable to expect them to win 15 games, but that doesn't mean this doesn't piss me off to no end.

Ahem. Now that I've cooled down, let me just say how amazing Jim Harbaugh is and has been for this franchise. Can you IMAGINE Mike Singletary flying 3 time zones on a short week and facing Baltimore? Holy lord. They couldn't even handle going down to San Diego. Last year this game would have been 44-3.

Whatever. I don't read anything in to this game. The Oline was on the field for 45 minutes on Sunday, and they looked like it tonight. 14-2 or 13-3 are still very possible, and those are records that none of us could have fathomed at the beginning of the season. This loss sucks, but it's hard to say it signifies anything in the grand scheme of the season because of the extenuating circumstances. Hats off to the Ravens and I hope we see them again under less bullshit-ey conditions.

Here's to no more depressing Sundays

It didn't look good to start. But when you can not look good and still win by 16, you're doing something right.

I've been wondering if Kyle Williams deserved a shot. He looked good today against a sub-par team, but Braylon Edwards was playing against the same defense and didn't make plays. I'd like to see him get some more action in the future, he's an interesting talent.

Other than that, I'm not sure what else to say about this game. I figured it would be a relatively easy win, and it was. The Liability once again proved that he isn't one. Arizona's offense was hilarious to watch. That was us last year. Well, I guess that was us in 07 actually. It was really really really fun to have the team with less than 100 yards after a full half be the OPPONENT, and not the team we were rooting for. This season has had a lot of those moments.

Remember all those years where we'd suffer through loss after loss? How we'd have to make 4 or 5 wins nourish us over the course of an entire season? Most sundays for me were spent in a deep, dark depression while I watched highlights of teams that actually knew what they were doing. It was not fun. But I couldn't not watch. Every week.

This year, there's been exactly one of those Sundays, and even that was a game they should have won. It's been incredible. Every Sunday this season has been spent in exuberant joy, soaking in all the stories the NFL has to offer without the dark cloud of my own team losing 5, 6, 7, and 8 games in a row. It really does make up for all of those depressed sundays. It has been so much fun. And judging by the way Harbaugh operates, we should have at the very least 4 more of these joyful Sundays over the final 6 weeks. Hell, maybe all 6 will be fun. This team could beat Pittsburgh and Baltimore for sure. That's something I never would have said 12 months ago.

9-1! And the Packers showed maybe the slightest bit of a chink in their armor today. I think they'll go 16-0, but that defense could come back to haunt them. I'm a big Lions fan this week. NINE AND ONE!!

Good God

15-1 is in play. The 5 remaining NFC west games are automatic. The Ravens are a joke. The steelers game is at home. What an absolutely fantastic game that was.

Alex smith (or The Liability as I'm now going to refer to him for all of time) beat the media's boyfriend head to head. Is anyone going to come around on the idea that he's good? Or are they still going to pretend that they can't beat good teams with him? Because wow. He beat Eli manning without frank gore for gods sake.

Who cares how many yards they gave up? Offenses can do whatever they want between the 20s, but if they can't cash in in the red zone, it doesn't matter. The 49ers defense has been incredible in the red zone. An unbelievable showing by them. Even without a consistent pass rush they still managed to exert their dominance down close.

After this game Im just not going to worry about this team anymore. Harbaugh knows what he's doing, and if there's one thing we know for sure its that they will always be in position to win. What a great season!!!!

Blechhhhhhh

Good God. This game was the football equivalent of warm wallpaper paste. Happy to get the W, but that was FUG-LY. I really don't have anything else to say about it. I'm not sure if the offensive..."performance" was indicative of anything other them treating this game like a bye week.

If they can play like that on offense and still win by 8 on the east coast against anyone, then this team has truly turned a corner. 7-1 baby! I'll take it. What a season.

Now it's just time to sit back and root for Phil Rivers and co. TOUCHDOWN VINCENT JACKSON! WOOOOOOOO! Number 1 seed here we come!

WTF

Amidst the absolute torrent of ignorant, lazy, and asinine narratives that are spewing forth from the national media's collective mouths about the 49ers this season, the one that I hear most (and the one that pisses me off more than any other) is that the 49ers are winning games despite their passing game. "Yes, Frank Gore and that offensive line are great, but get them down and force Alex Smith to throw and watch out!!! That's when the mistakes come pouring out in droves!!!" So far my new man crush Michael Erler at the excellent Neurosis With Balls (heh) blog is the only (semi) major media member I've heard give the correct narrative: Alex Smith is playing exactly the same this year as he was in the second half of 2010.

"Jim Harbaugh is coach of the year!!! Look at what he's done with Alex Smith! No more crazy interceptions!!! It's amazing!"

Somehow, Alex Smith morphed into Rex Grossman without me realizing it. I thought I'd been watching the 49ers fairly close over these past few months, but I must have been mistaken. Since when was the rap on Smith his crazy bad decision making? True, he'd had more INTs than TDs in his career before this season, but when you factor in that he was -10 in his first year, then his numbers don't look so bad. And why am I comfortable throwing out that first season? Because not a single one of us (die hard 49ers fans, all) could name a single receiving threat on that 2005 team not named Brandon Lloyd without resorting to google for help. In fact, since that rookie season, he's had more interceptions than touchdowns just one time: in 2007, when he played 3 games with a shoulder that was so badly injured that it kept him out nearly 2 full seasons afterwards.

There are things to bash about Alex Smith. He can't feel pressure well and doesn't make the proper adjustments 95% of the time to deal with a blitz. He cannot move in the pocket with any kind of consistency or effectiveness. He can't throw the ball accurately beyond 30 yards. One thing he doesn't do? Make terrible decisions that result in interceptions. He is *not* Rex Grossman.

I mean for God's sake, earlier this very season the 49ers were in the exact position that the experts say would be their downfall: down 23-3 to Philadelphia on the road, in the eastern time zone, in a game where they were heavy heavy underdogs. And all Alex Smith did was throw for 179 yards and 2 touchdowns in a single quarter, a quarter in which not a single pass he threw touched the ground. If that's not carrying your team to victory through the air, then I want somebody to explain to me what carrying your team to victory through the air looks like, please.

Are the 49ers the Packers? No, but nobody is the Packers. There is no other offense in the NFL that is functioning on that level right now. However, the people who say that the 49ers are not able to keep up with high powered offenses because somehow Alex Smith is a limitation on what their offense can do simply haven't been paying attention. In his last 11 games (the last 4 games after he took over as starter last season and the 7 this season), he's thrown 14 touchdowns to just 3 interceptions. 3! To put it another way, in his last 334 pass attempts, Alex Smith has thrown 3 interceptions. For those of you who are like me and suck at math, that is an interception rate of .008%.

So please, everyone who's getting paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to talk about football: STOP SAYING THAT ALEX SMITH WILL THROW THE GAME AWAY IF THE 49ERS HAVE TO RELY ON HIM TO WIN IT. Is he guaranteed to carry them to a victory if they need it? Obviously not, and we've definitely seen proof of that. But this narrative that he would somehow be forced into back-breaking mistakes and turnovers makes absolutely no sense, and is making my head explode every time I hear it parroted as gospel by talking heads.

I realize I'm the resident Alex Smith Defender, but the more I watch this team the more I become convinced that Jim Harbaugh and crew have a switch that they can flip on or off at their leisure. Game getting close? Is your team down? Well, let's start calling the *real* offense before it gets out of hand. Are you leading by 2 touchdowns? Well, then there's no point in going crazy and giving other teams hints at what you might need to do when you're once again trailing, so let's go vanilla. Harbaugh is *all about* competitive advantage, so why would he "open up the offense" in a game when his team is throughly dominating? Maybe the lack of offensive firepower is by design, because in the games where they've needed the passing game to come through, it has. The one time it didn't was in week 2, when I think it's safe to assume that the team wasn't as fully formed as it is today. That was basically preseason week 6 for these guys thanks to the lockout shenanigans.

During all those years of sucking I was always hating the fact that the 49ers weren't getting coverage in the national media. Now that they are, I realize just how little these people really know about the subject they're getting paid so much to talk about. I guess it's enough that we as fans can enjoy watching our team and coach out class the other guys on the field every sunday. This week should be another fun watch

Never In Doubt

I have to say first of all: Wow, the Browns really suck. Wow. I was having flashbacks to 2007 when I was watching their offense. I used to think Colt McCoy was good, but the more I see of him it certainly appears that that isn't the case. Course, they have nobody to throw to, so that doesn't help.

In regards to the 49ers, I'm not really that concerned that they kind of shut it down in the 2nd half. It seems to me that Harbaugh was almost coasting until the Browns made a play, and then he decided to start running the real offense again or something. Either that or he was able to counter the adjustments that the Browns made. Either way, it's to the point now where I have 100% confidence in this team to close out games on a regular basis. Yesterday's game sure wasn't pretty, but it was nice to see them once again coming up big when they needed to, and dominating a game at the end.

This version of Alex Smith has maybe a 45 deep accuracy rating in Madden. Just imagine if he could have hit on 1 or 2 of those deep passes that were *nowhere near* their target. Blarg. I like him, and obviously the team can be successful with him leading them, but if they had a guy who could hit on deep throws with more regularity, this offense would be legitimately scary instead of just utilitarian and functional.

And let me just take this moment to laugh in the face of everyone who thought Aldon Smith was a bad pick. I trusted Harbaugh then, and I certainly trust him now. IDK if it's him or Baalke that get the credit for draft picks, but those guys know what they are doing. Smith looks like a yearly double-digit sack threat, Culliver would appear to be a very good corner (when's the last time a rookie 49ers DB played as well as he has? He should have had another pick Sunday), and Kendall Hunter looks like he will be more than capable of taking over for Gore at the end of the year. A blockbuster first draft for this group.

6 and 1!!!! And I have every reason to believe they will be 7-1 after next week. Washington is really really bad. And the week after that? The Giants, who just barely managed to squeak out a win against the worst team in the league *AT HOME*. 8-1 is a very real possibility, and that would be 8-1 with 5 division games remaining. Good God gentleman! We could be looking at a first round effing bye for the effing FORTY NINERS. I would say we deserve it after the last 10 years. This is quite the season.

WHOOOOOOOOO'S GOT IT BETTER THAN US!?

Color me unimpressed

Really? This team is 5-0? Really? I'm sorry, but the Lions suck. Well, maybe not suck, but they are not any better than the 49ers. The Bears are God awful. The Bears played about as well as the Bucs played yesterday, and the Lions only scored 24 on them.

The Lions were very very lucky to beat the Vikings, a terrible team. They were EXTREMELY lucky to beat the Cowboys, a middle-of-the-road team. They played pretty unimpressively against the Bears, a TERRIBLE team. I'm not that worried about the Lions. They can't run, and if you put 3 guys on Calvin Johnson then there's not much they can do passing either. Their defense looks tough up front, but once you get behind their D line they are decidedly average at best. I don't buy the hype at all.

Know who went 6-0 one year? Josh McDaniels and the Broncos. Jim Zorn was 6-2 in his first 8 games with the Redskins. I'm not buying this. The 9ers should be able to beat this team and beat them handily.

......

..........







wow. There's really not much more to say. All those years I got on the message board and blog after a hot start and freaked out about how "THIS IS FINALLY OUR YEAR!!!"? Yeah, this is finally our year. Wow.


There is literally nothing coming to my mind when I try to find something wrong with today's game. Absolute domination in every single aspect from beginning to end. When's the last time we could say that about a game that wasn't at the end of the season against the Cardinals?

Alex Smith would appear to be a legitimate NFL quarterback. Jim Harbaugh would appear to be a legitimate NFL head coach. This is a legitimate NFL team!!

4-1!! And a fluke INT return in the meadowlands away from being 3 games up. 5 division games left, all of which are winnable. If they win all 5 of those games, they're in the playoffs. And for the first time in a loooooong time, I have confidence in this team every single week. This is incredible. This is how I felt watching the Giants make their run last year. I doubt the feeling will be the same at the end of the year, but it sure is fun to watch right now.

Gameday Live Blog

IDK if you guys are here during the games or not, but I figure we might as well have somewhere to express frustrations as the game is going along.

First quibble: I don't like how they came out in that stupid formation, called a timeout, then came out in the same formation and ran into a pile for no gain.

But as I was typing this, Alex made one of the best passes I've ever seen him make for the TD. This is a real football team you guys.

My Annual Appeal

And thus we arrive at the yearly "game the 49ers are not expected to win in which they are nearly double digit underdogs and playing on the east coast". Along with this annual event comes my annual PLEA with this team: I know you are not good this year, this much is obvious. I know you're not wining the Super Bowl, or even making a playoff run. Sure, you might sneak into the playoffs as an 8-8 team because the 2011 NFC west is quickly challenging the 2010 NFC west to become the worst division in NFL history, but who are we kidding? You suck. You might suck a little less than the rest of this division, but you sucky suck suck just the same.

But here's the thing: PLENTY OF OTHER TEAMS THAT SUCK WIN GAMES THEY'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO WIN EVERY ONCE IN AWHILE! How about you do that, guys? Isn't it embarrassing for you that you haven't won one single game you weren't supposed to win in nearly 10 years? TEN YEARS! The last time the 49ers won a game they were supposed to lose, the Patriots were a 1 year wonder. Gas was 1.36 a gallon. Jeff Garcia was throwing to Terrell Owens, and Chris Collinsworth was a bad announcer! Does anyone remember just how bad Collinsworth used to be? That guy is probably the best color commentator on TV right now, and he used to be worst guy in a booth that also included Joe Buck and Troy Aikman. Seriously.

Point is, it's been a looooooooooooooong effing time since this team has exceeded even extremely low expectations: win one game during one season that you were not supposed to win. Show up, look like a real NFL team, and outplay another real NFL team. I beg of you. Give me this one win that I can feel good about when you go 7-9. At least give me this one week that I can look back on and go "Sure, this season wasn't great, but remember when they beat the Eagles on the east coast?! That was awesome!"

Last year it was Green Bay, before that it was Minnesota, New Orleans, and Pittsburgh. And this team laid down at every opportunity to surprise us as fans and the media at large throughout the country. I want the kind of win that makes the guys on football night in america go "Wow, 49ers! Who saw that coming?!".

This year it's Philadelphia, you a-holes. WIN THE GAME YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO LOSE!! Give us fans who have slavishly watched 90% of your games during this last ridiculous stretch of historical ineptness one tiny sliver of redemption! WIN THIS EFFING GAME.

Holy. Crap.

Succeeding is not something this team has done well lately. It's not something this ownership has done EVER. What they do is fire a well-respected, successful coach and replace him with Dennis Erickson. Then they draft the wrong quarterback, pair him with a defensive-minded, in-over-his-head coach, and give that coach too much authority. Then they fire him, choose to ignore their offensive deficiencies, and hire another in-over-his-head, defensive-minded coach.

Then, when he doesn't work out, they fire him before the end of the season, do a cursory GM "search" that ends with them hiring the guy they had in mind all along, and then miss out on the obvious coaching choice to improve their team, choosing instead to hire a retread (billick) or a recently failed never-was (mcdaniels), or just poop on a platter and serve it to their fans (mora jr).

But not this time. They got the guy!! What the hell?! They got their guy! They got THE guy! They got the guy everyone else wanted...THE 49ERS got the guy everyone else wanted?!!!!?!?! What?!?!

When does THAT ever happen? Ever? Did you hear his press conference?! This guy...KNOWS something about football! He actually came out and said the quarterback is the most important position in football! IMAGINE THAT!

And this GM that nobody thought was the right call? He delivered on his first mission: coach by friday. Harbaugh by Friday, if we're honest. And he did it. He did it for a fair price, even. 5/25? That's a bargain for a guy who was as hotly sought after as Harbaugh. Amazing.

It's obviously possible that this move doesn't work, but you know what? They're trying. That much is obvious. York looked at the first decision he made as the lead guy (hiring singletary) and said "wow, that was retarded", and learned from it. He did what his parents never did: THE RIGHT THING! He looked at other successful teams and decided to be like them instead of stubbornly deciding he knew best.

I still can't believe they pulled it off. What a great way for Baalke's tenure to begin. He got his guy, and from hearing them talk, it sounded like there wasn't much doubt that he was coming here. I'm not afraid to admit that I have a full-on man crush on Jim Harbaugh. He sounds like a motivated, smart, professional coach who knows what's wrong and knows what to do to fix it.

I don't think we'll see too many more 31-6 losses to the Seahawks with this guy in charge. This is going to be fuuuuun.