The biggest advantage for the 49ers is the Cardinals QB, John Skelton. He struggles mightily in most situations and unfortunately for their team, it is a battle to get the ball to Larry Fitzgerald.
Nothing like having a quality player on offense and not be able to get him the ball. Does that sound familiar?
I don’t think the 49ers will blow out the Cardinals. I don’t think the 49ers are capable of scoring points in massive quantities right now. The big play, throw-it-over-the-top-of-the-defense, quick strike element is lacking. They’ve returned the focus of the offense to running the ball. That actually shortens the game so they will have fewer offensive series.
The Cardinals run defense is vulnerable, as seen last Sunday, but they buckled down and gave up just 58 second-half yards to the Vikings.
You have to like some of their pass defenders, especially Patrick Peterson. His kick return skills provide an additional weapon for the Cards.
Their hyphenated running back, LaRod Stephens-Howling, rushed for 104 yards on 20 carries last week, but the Niners run defense is a little stiffer than the Vikings front-seven. if it copies the Vikings game plan of playing 2-deep to negate Fitzgerald and Doucet.
Remember, too, that the 49er pass rush probably is salivating as they watch Skelton because he is a sack waiting to happen. He likes to throw downfield to Fitzgerald and Early Doucet, but the Vikings took those plays away last week by playing a 2-deep shell for the majority of the game. It will be interesting to see if the 49ers copy the Vikings’ defensive game plan to corral Fitzgerald and Doucet.
The Cardinals will be pressing a bit to end a three-game losing skid. Bottom line, in a quarterback-driven league, they may be lacking at that position to beat the 49ers unless the 49ers gift them some points through turnovers and blunders.
Prediction: The 49ers will win, 20-16.
READER CHALLENGE:
Predict the stats in this game for Alex Smith, Frank Gore, Vernon Davis and Michael Crabtree.
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Alex Smith: 15-25 for 190 yards and 1 TD.
Frank Gore: 13 carries for 65 yards.
Vernon Davis: 3 receptions for 43 yards.
Michael Crabtree: 5 receptions for 64 yards and a TD.
The Niners will win 23-13
AS: 17-23 187 yds 2 TDs
Gore: 15 carries for 103 yds
VD: 5 recs for 73 yds 1 TD
Crabs: 4 recs for 43 yds
49ers 23 Cards 13
Why do all the names i’ve listed sound like a vanerial disease???
Alex 12-18 220 yards 2 tds
Vernon 4 for 105 2 tds
Gore 19 for 76 yds 2 catches for 22
Crabtree 2 catches 45 yds
Prediction: 9ers win 20 – 6
AS: 18-25 for 232 and 1 td
FG: 11 carries for 77 yds
KH: 8 carries for 53 yds and a td
VD: 4 receptions for 79 yds and a td
MC: 3 receptions for 31 yds
MM: 6 reception for 102 yds
Hofer,
At what point do you predict Brandon Jacobs will go Brandon Jacobs over not getting on the field? I definitely think this game will be KH heavy, which I look forward to. I would love to see him get 20 carries in a game, he is a home run waiting to happen.
BigP, I’m sure when he and JH had their come to jesus meeting that JH told him he would get plenty of carries in the 2nd half of the year when FG usually gets dinged up. After the bye week, I’m thinking BJac will start getting his share of carries (5-8 per game) especially in the RZ.
Hilarious,
Hofer, your brother in law is not trusted enough to throw the ball 35 times. 232 yards!!! Wake up out of that dream. You mean 132 yards.
Jordo, you are wrong again – it reads *25* throws – can you ever get anything correct on this blog?
Typo. He gets 20 throws max, and ill be scared to death on each check down!
Hofer, your stats look like 2 games not one
TBD.
Classic Neal!!
I doubt Alex throws 25 times. I’m thinking he goes more like 12-18, 127 yds, 0 td, 0 int.
The running backs in some combination combine for 200+ yards, 2 Td.
The recieving stats are not even going to be worth guessing…. 3 for 23 yds, 1 for 5 yds, 4 for 36 yds, etc.
Final score 21-6 niners. Skelton 3 ints, 4 sacks.
My prediction, a win. Fantasy football lovers live for stats, football fans don’t care about stats, just W’s.
If the Cardinals’ Offense puts their defense on the field too often, I believe the 49ers will impose their will running the ball to a 10 point victory.
Alex Smith 15-24 132 yards 0 TD 0 Int
Frank Gore 17 carries 89 yards 1 TD
Vernon Davis 2 catches 17 yards
Michael Crabtree 3 catches 32 yards
Buzz kill!! LOL
Realistic!! : )
Final score?
Niner 13 Cards 3.
AS 12 – 23 102 yards 1 intereception
Gore 15 carries 82 yards
VD 1 catch 17 yards
Crabs 2 catches 18 yards.
Akers 2 field goal
Niners return a interception for TD
The Predictalator is still working on that : )
My predictalator predicts your predictalator will predict a 10-3 49ers victory.
HA!!! Right now that 10 points might be stretching it.
Alex: 12-31, 37 yards, zero touchdowns, five interceptions.
Lol..its fine against the cards we still win by 7
Hilarious!
Smith 17-23 245 yds. 2 tds.
Davis 6 rec. 105 yds 1 td
Gore 112 yds rushing 1 td. 3 rec. 30 yds.
Crabtree 4 rec. 42 yds.
Kyle Williams 3 rec. 45 yds. 1 td.
Def. 1td.
49ers 31 Cards 13
Over/Under on Kaepernick plays is 4. Which way do you go?
*Under* unless they have CK to mop up in the 4th qtr.
I will go with over, Kaep going to break away on a few.
Hopefully over. They need to keep bringing CK along and find out if he’s the future QB or not. Game reps are the best training.
Thats a horrible idea. The team is winning, you dont experiment with your second stringers now at 5-2. Should we bench Frank Gore and see what with have with LaMichael James? I don’t think so.
How bout Larry Grant, lets see if he can take over for Navorro Bowman in case he leaves via free agency? I dont think so.
The Problem is Axel double poster PRIME , Frank Gore is not the problem, Bowman is not the problem, AS is the weakest link player on the offense, he is a second stringer already. I do think so, time to take a small risk and have Kaep , play a series or two.
No way 23 so many names/Neal, what you see as a weak link is in reality the leader of the offense and the system Harbaugh wants to run. He is doing a good job, just look at the win totals, not the stats, thats for fantasy football lovers. Are you a fantasy football lover because if you are, my apologies. I only care about wins. Alex Smith is a winning quarterback. No need to make any changes there.
It’s not experimenting Prime Foley, it’s preparing the future QB to take over the team. We aren’t talking an entire half; just 5 or 6 plays to get CK acclimated to the NFL game and provide a bad passing offense with an occasional spark.
Also, Mark Sanchez is a “winning” QB. Rex Grossman was a “winning” QB. The idea that the Precious is good because the defense carries him is laughable.
Alex DeBerg is very efficient when he is very limited, i.e. fewest pass attempts in the league. If the team wants a modern passing attack then they need to get CK ready.
Still a bad idea. no team has been successful with a Q shuffle, unless we are talking pee wee football which we are not.
Alex Smith is winning games. The defense is winning games, the coaches are winning games, and the front offoce is winning games. Experiments are for losing teams. This team is not losing.
We dont need a prolific passing game. That is not how the team is built to perfrom on offense. I am sorry if that bother a lot of you but the reality is we are a running team, good defense, and well coached.
Now go ahead and tell me I am this person or a Smither or whoever. Those are the facts. Hate the system, not the player.
Axel Primate.
If every player on the team played like AS, we would be 2-5 this year. We are winning games inspite of the weakest link on the team.
Msclemons67 its obvious you do not like Smith. Thats your problem, no one cares about your personal feelings. All I care about is winning and Jim Harbaugh hand selected Alex Smith to be the QB, they now are winning games together.
I dont care for comparisons, stats, this guy did this or that. If you want to argue, lets argue wins and loses. Thats all that counts. You can recite statistics to me all day, as well as other QB’s and their stats as well, I dont care. In this league, its all about winning.
Axel primate,
You’ve got a little less than a week, then you can take the mask off. You missed BS so much that you couldn’t keep your work. Aren’t the neighbors tired of you visiting for the Internet. Go home son and serve your time clown.
Neal/23 so many names, I dont care if we were winning inspite of anythng, what do you care, its winning? You think what you want about Alex Smith and any other player but never diminish the value of winning. Its really hard to do in this league and you take them anyway you can.
Sorry if that upsets you.
23Jordan/ Claude is a Clown, not sure what you mean but Im from the school of sticks and stones. Sorry to disappoint you, cannot wait to see who this Primate guy is you all speak so highly of. Thanks for sharing Neal.
Fair enough Prime Foley. You choose to ignore facts (stats are facts) and would rather go with emotion. You’re emotionally attached to Smith, that’s fine. The stats show Smith is another Sanchez/Grossman/Dilfer – just a guy being carried to wins.
But hey, if you prefer unicorns and rainbows to facts, well, more power to you.
Axel Primate.
Is BS ( Your Big Sister ) coming out to play today?
Im emotionally attached to winning. After 10 years of not making the playoffs and having a winning record, I will take it anyway I can. I also would enjoy a team of rainbows and unicorns if it brought the team more wins. Whatever it takes.
The stats dont predict the outcomes, in fact, they dont predict the path of any player. It just allows you doubters to have a hope. Good luck with that.
Whose BS now? Can someone forward me a directory of all these people I should know? I got a brief account on 23 welcher but if there is a manual I need to study and find out who everyone is, I would appreciate that.
They were winning when they were using ck too axel. Just sayin.
But then it came to a screeching halt against the Giants. Good on the coaching staff to get away from that. Trick formations and gadget plays have a very short shelf life in the NFL.
Well Axel if smith was doing his job right, there would be no CK talk. Don’t you agree?
But now we are not talking about CK cause he is not playing as much. Good thing cause it was getting too predicatable.
I think Alex Smith is doing a good enough job for a couple reasons. They are winning, the head coach publicly stated so and if they felt he was not doing his job, they would bench him.
If any player is not doing their job the coaches need to get another player in to do that job. If they did not, they would be doing a major disservice to the fan base, the rest of the team and entire organization. Even if Harbaugh was pig headedly stubborn, would not his superiors call him out if it was holding the team back? No, because the only true measurement of success, is winning games.
” Trick formations and gadget plays have a very short shelf life in the NFL.”
Umm, the plays CK is running when at QB are the same that Smith is running. There is nothing tricky or gadgety about them.
http://ninerchatter.blogspot.com/2012/10/is-there-wildcat-in-san-francisco.html?m=1
Jack Hammer, I get it, your an aspiring blogger writer, trying to promote your opinion. But I would just rather read the professionals. Sorry but that is just my opinion.
Prin Tin Axel,
Jack knows more about football than you ever will, your just a Kool aid light drinking Smither tea member cult member.
Neal/23 so many names, why such hostility? Did you get your servicing done? Obviously not, so angry today and last night.
Prime your act is so darn old
Here we go again with the name calling. Neal get well/serviced soon.
Axel,
It’s not my opinion in this case, it’s fact and unfortunate that some would rather go on with a misinformed idea. You don’t have to believe me, Harbaugh has said it as well.
Jack Hammer, sorry once again, but I would rather form my own opinions based on professional writers who cover the team on a daily basis.
Your best suited to promote your blog/opinion to the uneducated fans. Start with angry Neal. He seems to think very highly of you.
Axel, don’t you know there is a grand total of 2 people posting in this site? One smither, one hater, 100 different names.
What ever you say Mc Ribb, or is FDM or are you Prime rib .
I heard that Ribico. Apparently I am primate, prime, prin tin axel, and a tea party member who believes Alex Smith is doing a good job winning games.
I guess having the same opinion as someone has a certain classification to it. Lucky me.
Add FDM and McRibb and prime rib. The list keeps growing. Im a popular individual tonight.
Neal, its a weekend night. Go out have some fun.
Axel Primate,
is it just coincidence that you appeared just as Primate started serving his two week banishment? Is it just coincidence that you have the same writing style, same arguments, same flawed logic, etc.? What are the odds that you’ll disappear in about a weeks time? Or will you carry on double posting under two different names?
And here is an excellent example at how the haters get people to call them haters.
Axel made his point, and you guys don’t even recognize his initial post. Just start throwing your crap around. Making a great impression/argument that you’re right boys.
Good Job!
Hating is all you do.
Yes, it’s similiar to when Latino Heat dissapeared as soon as Oneniner was banned. Strange coincidence.
Just to examine the haters here, Axel began posting well before Primes deal.
But, hating is hating. Accuracy has nothing to do with it. Go forth little haters! Just hate!
“Umm, the plays CK is running when at QB are the same that Smith is running. There is nothing tricky or gadgety about them.”
Jack, a question for you. What percentage has AS run the ball versus CK in 2012? Please, let me help you… CK has played in 5 games for 24 snaps. CK has run the ball 13 times. They might be the same plays, but the ratio of runs when CK is playing tells you that GR and JH think his value to the team is running. More wildcat than run and shoot don’t you agree? He has two running TDs. The majority of his passes occurred in the 4th qtr when the game was no longer in reach.
BS is in the house, that is Axel Prmate big sister.
Hofer,
I am not debating the run % of Smith and Kaepernick. Any idiot actually watching the games would know CK has mostly run the ball. If they only ran the read option plays with CK, then I agree with it being called the wildcat, but the truth is, Smith runs those same plays far more often.
Thanks for the numbers, but they are wrong. You are only accounting for the 24 snaps when CK is either throwing or running the ball himself, and those numbers also decrease significantly if you take out his 4th Quarter garbage time stats.
Jack, when you stated, “the plays CK is running when at QB are the same that Smith is running”, it is misleading. You were incorrect, AS doesn’t run 54% of the time.
Hofer,
I was not incorrect, and it is only misleading to those who don’t understand the concept of the play and are trying to make the use of CK more than it is. The fact is Smith and CK are running the same plays. CK may have a higher percentage of them being runs, but they are still the same plays, as you can see from the pictures that I included. The idea that they are trick formations or gadget plays is false. They are base plays in their playbook that they run about 5-10 times per game with either QB in.
Jack, stating he is running the same plays is just plain wrong when he runs 50%+ of the time with a higher number when the game is on the line. If he is running the same plays where are the handoffs to FG or the bubble screens to MC? Even with 24 snaps if he were running the same plays, he would have only run twice and the other plays would have been handoffs to the RBs or passes to the WRs and TEs. It’s not the case!
Hofer,
To start with, CK has played more than 24 snaps. Your stat numbers are only accounting for those plays in which he is either running the ball, or throwing it. They don’t include those when he is handing off to others.
Second, I am not comparing Smith and CK in any way. The plays that they have CK in for, predominately runs and from the gun, are the same plays that you will see Smith run about 5-10 times, which was the point of my post. There is nothing tricky or gadgety about the plays CK is running.
Prediction: Niners 23-10.
AS: ~200
FG: ~65
MC: ~50
VD: ~50
Akers: 3 FG
Defense: 5 sacks, 2 ints
IT49ers board: following another win, another week of whining insanity
Another week of Smitherism from Rib, blind though he is.
Yup, another week of supporting the team I’m a fan of. Hard to believe for some, isn’t it?
You call it whining. When its just stating facts. Wheeew! Looking forward at another bad game from your hero Rib?
Nope. Just some good laughs reading complaints over a 6-2 record.
Ribico, 5-2 but I like your foreshadowing for Monday night.
Nope, pathetic whining, plain and simple md. Pretty disgusting for this team’s fan base. 10 times worse than all the Philly fans put together.
McRib
So you’re saying that defense, special teams, and running game will carry Alex Smith once again?
Yup, merely average. Keep convincing your buddy Bay – I’m just digging watching him die his slow death this season.
49ers 23 – Cards 10
The Precious: 17 – 25, 165 yds
Gore: 23-108-1 TD
Veron: 4-65
Crabtree: 6-75
Akers: three red zone FGs
CK7: one red zone rushing TD
Damn brotha.. That’s almost identical to what I think is going to happen. Every one except Akers gets 2 and misses one. 20-10 and the stats are close enough to the same. Stay out of my windows bro. Lol
msc,
I agree with MD who agrees with you. I think those numbers are pretty accurate to how this game will play out.
The only thing I see differently is the score.
Niners 17
Cards 13
We pound the ball we win 24-6
yep
Yes sir.
Alex Smith explodes on Arizona for 147 yards passing. All on checkdowns to Kendall hunter and Gire. VD gets one pass. It’s a 4 yard Checkdown that is overthrown. Niners run 51 times for 280 yards. Alex’s broken middle finger causes a pick inside the Niners 30. He’s later seen on the sideline talking to his hand. Lol.
The golden domers of ND are going to get their overrated Ass£s kicked tonight. BOOMER SOONERS!!!!
What was that?
Skelton and the Cards can beat the Niners as they did last December in Az when the Niner game plan was to run Gore 10 TIMES TOTAL! While I don’t see that happening again, I think offenses know how to play the Niners now. Keep passing, try to take the lead by two scores and let the Niners play catch up, which means forcing Smith to throw the ball. If this were a home game I’d pick the Niners, but if you give me points…….
Chewie please forward that game plan to the AZ and tell their offense to throw it around like you said til they get up two scores. In the meantime we will rush our front four, play 7 coverage in the back and put Skelton on his back over and over again.
Then on offense we can be methodical, run the ball, play action pass and keep it simple on the road and come out with a win. Brilliant plan.
i took another look at the Niner-NYG game, which i recorded before going on my extended SF Giants pilgrimmage.
imho the game boiled down to a very good team/qb (Niners/Alex) up against a great passer (Eli) and some excellent weapons. Alex made a couple of bad throws, but when i finally got to watch the 2nd half it wasn’t as bad as it sounded in the press. and I am no “Smither”. A couple of INTs and 3 short fields was the difference in the game, it wasn’t the bloodbath as it was described (Defense’s inability to shut down NYG game was worrisome, but by then the game was essentially over and for better or worse a part of this game is mental). the Seahawk game i toss out as a significant indicator – short rest vs a division opponent equals a battle of attrition, which we won as we should have, given our greater balance.
fact is, we’re at best the 2nd best team in the NFC, with NYG beating us twice within a year, and the first of which was a game which was for all the marbles. but i’m going 27-13 Niners in this one, as offense, defense, and coaching staff bounce back, with rest/time to prepare. we can beat the Cards, and we can beat any team, but we need everyone playing at the top of their game to do so. (which would include dropping Eli on his rear end 3-4 times next time we see him).
My prediction:
Defense, running game, special teams, and solid coaching will carry Alex Smith and the Niners to victory once again.
Niners win as a team. I don’t care about the stats.
ND is a legit team. Their defense reminds me of another team with gold helmets. Hats off to the Irish. But lets keep it real. Everyone else is fighting for runner up. Because Bama is going to repeat.
Alabama looks like men playing against boys. I’ll keep rooting for the Davids against Bama’s Goliath but I don’t think I’ll see a winner this year.
If ‘Bama plays Oregon in the National Championship game, they may lose.
Bama is unstoppable because they dominate the lines on both sides of the ball. Saban builds his teams from the line out and he’s got another machine this year. Oregon would give them a fight but Bama would control the ball for most of the game and wear them down. I actually think it’s going to be KState vs. Bama in the BCS Championship and that one could be interesting as they are similar style teams.
Oregon would get destroyed by Bama. Oregon has played nobody. I think the only team that could put up a fight would be KState. They are also well balanced. And maaaaybe ND because of their defense.
What you all are forgetting is that the Ducks have a defense this year. The Ducks would play Bama tough and would be a close game. Problem is Ducks dont get to go to championship game they dont fit the computer model of being great.