Earlier today I asked you to rank Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Cam Newton and Colin Kaepernick in order of which QB you would most want to build an NFL team around. Here’s my ranking.
- Colin Kaepernick – Of these four quarterbacks, Kaepernick has the strongest arm. He’s not quite as athletic as Griffin, but Kaepernick is more athletic than Luck and Newton. Kaepernick can throw from the pocket or rolling to his right or left. He’s big and fast enough to carry the ball at least 10 times a game – not just scrambling, but running draws, sweeps and zone reads. He might be the most physically gifted quarterback I’ve ever seen. He’s a combination of Brett Favre’s arm and Terrell Owens’ body.
- Robert Griffin III – Griffin has a cannon and a quick release, and he’s the fastest quarterback in this group, but he’s also the smallest. He runs a lot of zone reads right now from the pistol formations, but he’s already sustained one concussion. He may not be big enough to consistently carry the football and take hits, as opposed to Kaepernick.
- Andrew Luck – Luck already plays like a 10-year veteran, and he’ going to get better, but he doesn’t have a rocket arm like Kaepernick and Griffin. I think those two quarterbacks will eventually pass Luck.
- Cam Newton – Compared to Luck, Newton is a little more elusive, and his passes have slightly more zip. But Newton has not been well coached, and that could hold him back from becoming an all-time great quarterback.
I’m not denigrating any of these quarterbacks. They’re all premier prospects.
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Arm strength is overrated. Look at Marino vs. Montana. One had a rocket arm and one won Superbowls.
That said, I only flip Luck and Griffin in your rankings. RGIII is Vick 2.0 and Newton is a more talented Ryan Leaf.
If Marino had been on the 49ers in the 80s, he would have won multiple Super Bowls.
Absolutely possible. More data points: Jim Druckenmiller, Akili Smith, Jay Cutler, Matthew Stafford, Joe Flacco, Michael Vick all had/have amazing arms. How many Superbowls combined? Peyton Manning, Joe Montana, Troy Aikman, even Eli… none had/has incredible laser-style arms, but how many Superbowls?
And yes, I get you can cite Brett Favre and John Elway as counter-examples. My point is that arm-strength alone is overrated. I agree with you on Kaep having the greatest potential. You put arm strength as the primary reason for your affection, I think his athleticism, instincts and intelligence are all far more important to success. Is there a threshold you have to meet to be successful? Absolutely, but once you’ve passed it, other items I think should take priority in rating potential.
If my cat had been the QB on those teams, he would have won Super Bowls.
no he wouldn’t have. Walsh’s WCO required his QB’s to have nimble feet. People forget that Montana was a decently mobile QB, especially in his early years. But that gets overshadowed because Young came along…who was basically a running back that could pass the ball and eventually learned to play QB.
Marino was a pocket deep ball passer. I think that had he played for Don Coryell in San Diego, Marino’s Hall of Fame career would have been truly epic but that was a little past his time…another possibility was a Coryell disciple in Joe Gibbs in Washington. But Marino was a statue with concrete feet, not sure his timing would have been there for Walsh’s offense.
Not to sound snarky, but did you watch Marino play in the 80′s back when he used to throw to the Mark(s) brothers (Duper & Clayton)? Marino had a decent defense at times (remember John Offerdahl at Middle Linebacker and later Bryan Cox?). He never had a great running game except maybe Sammie Smith briefly in the late 80′s.
Grant,
That is what DS said about Alex Smith, you are correct and he or she has no clue.
more than Joe??Are you so sure about that?
Yes Randy, she said that AS would win muliple super Bowls, if AS had the Niners teams in the 80′s, is that 2 or 4, you can use your own interpetation.
I disagree, Grant ..
are you old enough to remember the Stanford Super Bowl ?
Final was 38-16 …
Marino feasted on the yummy Stanford turf all day ! ..
(and cried about it all day, too !)
There’s no way Bill Walsh would have put up with him…
Marino was nothing without Dupree and the other guy .. check out how good he was when either one didn’t play..
your answer ? …
“Not very” !
Chad Pennington agrees.
Lol kap over all of them? Really grant really smh
judging these 4 qbs right now, especially Kaep with only 2 starts, is premature – its like judging a 400 mm race after the first 20 meters. sure, a true expert at track and field – eg a track coach – might see something, or have a gut reaction, that is noteworthy, but almost everyone else will find it difficult to do anything other than wild a$$ guess. but the nice thing is that Kaep is in the same conversation with these guys, who have all exhibited some real talent/upside as you note, Grant.
Roll Tide.
Roll tide y’all roll tide
GALAXY!! Thanks, Becks. Great day.
PS. i think i mangled my initial comment – not the first time! – so will try to clarify a bit: i think its hard to rate Montana versus Marino or Bradshaw even after a full career of work (altho clearly Joe was #1!), so comparing Kaep to Luck or RGIII is hard to me right now. BUT, having said that, clearly all 4 exhibit elite ability and should/could be stars for the next several years, barring injury and assuming decent coaching and a reasonable supporting cast. And even after limited sampling, it seems clear that Kaep and the others are clearly more talented than the average qb. In fact, if I had to bet on it, i’d put money on the fact that Kaep is the most talented QB we’ve had since Steve Young. Knock on wood…and Roll Tide.
Luck has done so much with so little. A crappy team, a new coach who then has to leave for treatment, followed by a temp coach, and add in a team that should be another two years away from even thinking of the playoffs. I severely underrated him.
RGIII walks on to a team with more talent than it shows and has the benefit of being coached by Shanahan, who brought Steve and Elway to their zeniths. He has tremendous talent.
Never sold on Newton, I’d put Dalton ahead of him.
CK7 has the skills, legs, and arm…the most exciting of all of them. He’s brought new fans to the team.
2 starts and your saying Kaep is better than all of them? I’m a big Kaep fan and think he COULD be special but slow down Grant! Sound like some reactionary fan. Talk about setting him up to fail with ridiculous expectations.
How about you say he has played very well in his limited opportunity and has potential to be one of the better QBs in the league?
You have a bad reputation for overreacting and coming to definitive conclusions very prematurely (ie Josh Johnson will beat out Kaep and possibly Smith becaue he looked better in warmups)
Luck will prove to be better than Griffin. What he might lack in arm strength he makes up for with smarts/anticipation.
Griffin is going to give you the brilliant game, ie Cowboys on Thanksgiving, but Luck will give you the consistency.
You think Griffin will prove to be an inconsistent player?
From what I have seen so far, yes.
RG lll might not be in games consistently because of his size. A QB who runs as much as him will take many hits and his size makes it almost certain that he will be constantly injured,if he doesn’t become more of a pocket passer.
I’m keeping CK out of this conversation until after the conclusion of this season in order to keep it fair. Luck is easily the top choice here. Not only has he shown leadership and athleticism, but he has filled in admirably the position vacated by Peyton Manning ( which is no small task. RG3 is a close second for his leadership and athleticism which speaks for itself and doesn’t need my assistance. Newton is a distant third due to his maturity.
Mid,
Well said. ALuck reminds me of EManning but stronger and with more movement in the pocket. He will be the most successful of those listed if they can continue to build the team around him.
http://ninerchatter.blogspot.com/2012/12/5-burning-questions-and-week-13.html
1. Luck
2. Kaepernick
3. RG lll
4. Newton
Kap has a very high ceiling, but this is all a bit silly. Five years down the road, we’ll talk.
And it is not about arm strength, in the final analysis. More about mental toughness, ability to read defenses and leadership intangibles. Kap’s athleticism provides that high ceiling, but without any guarantees. We shall see.
Don’t have to wait for 5 years about Kaep especially if we win a couple of Super bowls by then. We are not on the AS plan.
I agree Grumpy,no guarantees on Kap.
But having said that,with him being the first to show up every day to the training facility and the last to leave(everyone says he is as hard a worker as anyone ),and with him being very intelligent(wonderlick of 38,with the average QB being 19,Alex was 40), and with his abilty to run and to avoid the pass rush ,while still keeping his eyes down field to make plays out of nothing,and his very good character and leadership abilities,etc etc etc,along with that rocket arm and quick ,accurate delievery,he has a great chance to be one of the best QB’s in the League for many years.
But of course,no guarantees,it’s only been about 2 1/2 games of very good play so far to judge by. But it looks good judging by that small sample ! I hope in the years to come he proves himself beyond doubt !
But he will certainly have his ups and downs,like any new starter in the NFL. Hopefully ,like in the last 3 games,his ups will continue to VASTLY overshadow the few downs .
nit: avg. score for a QB is 24. Avg. score for all players in 19.
Hof:Kaps arm is as strong or better than all 3 you mentioned.
Gfan11:
My mistake,you are correct,the ave. NFL prospect’s ave Wonderlick is 19.
But my point was that we know Alex is very intelligent and Kap is right there with him.
As we have seen a rocket arm guarantees nothing in the NFL and intelligence guarantees you nothing in the NFL ,but having both,along with the other many attributes Kap has,gives him a very good chance indeed to be something special in the NFL.
But no guarantees of course. Even being drafted first overall and being very intelligent did not help Alex to become special without the several other attributes he does not have that Kap does have.
Kap is proving himself right now and doing a great job so far,but he certainly has a long ways to go to show he can consistently do it over time. I am glad he has all the tools to make it through,now it is up to him to do it..
Tim, it may be, I’m just quoting GCosell.
Good to see you back. Where’s you icon?
*avatar*
TIM: don’t disagree, why I prefaced my comment with the “nit” tag.
Hof:
I don’t know what happened to my icon pic. I can’t seem to get into my account profile to see what happened? Any suggestions on how to access my profile,I don’t see a link anywhere on the page ?
“There are guys in this league who have very good arms – Joe Flacco, Jay Cutler, Matthew Stafford – these guys have big arms. I’m not sure I can say Kaepernick’s right there”
According to GCosell in quotes above, those three guys have the strongest arms. None of them have proven to be perennial winners yet.
RGIII, Newton, and Luck have not been thrown into the burden of a superbowl or bust situation by their head coach. Here is hoping that this does not impede his development.
Flaco should of been in the Super Bowl, missing a easy TD pass and the field goal doomed them, according to JH, we got a upgrade, CK gives us the best chance to win, now you Smithers will pick upart CK wins and successes but that is your make up
The switch was not because it gives us a better chance to win regular season games, it was to give us a better chance to win it all.
That’s a huge expectation that comes with a lot of pressure on a 2nd year player with 2 career starts.
The switch may bot have been made to help us win reg season games but to have a better chance in the playoffs,but it sure worked out that it gave us a better chance to win against the Bears great defense and against a tough team at home in N.O.’s ! (and even in the Rams game Kap put us in position to win byt the usually easy for Akers FG was missed.).
Tim
The NO at home isn’t the NO at home from last year. Not even close.
The Redskins and Chiefs beat the Saints at home. Both are below 0.500. Last year beating the Saints in NO was a big deal. This year…it’s ho-hum.
Neal
R u serious with your “the smithers will pick apart CK wins that’s their makeup”? U either have the shortest memory on record or r just plain hypocritical. Unlike the haters most people dont feel the need to bash a player on our team even when he is playing well or not playing at all. IMO its too early to crown CK king of young QB’s because the sample size is just so small. And yes if CK has a poor game but the team wins isn’t it our right as fans to question his performance as you do to AS constantly?
Luck has resurrected Indi from an abysmal situation. One could argue that to be more of a burden than CK taking over from AS.
BOS,
You have not seen the board since AS has been put on the bench? The Smithers are outraged.
Care to document any of this “outrage” Neal?
Any vows from “Smithers” that the Niners are no longer their team?
Ribico,
Not going to do a research paper on it, look at the blogs from Wed on, when it was announce that JH picked the better QB to lead us on.
Outrage? O_o
“Hof the King of the Smithers” is still at it with you’re subliminal hate towards Kap, even right before game time. lmao.. you are a joke man! So Kap’s arm strength is a weakness now? Just like his scrambling ability too huh? lol
Grant
I’m 10 years older than you, just 10 years more Niners viewing years. I stopped reading after your review of Colin. Didn’t need to read anymore. Couldn’t have said it any better!
“He’s a combination of Brett Favre’s arm and Terrell Owens’ body”. The body of t.o? I think you ate to many beignets down in new Orleans grant.
How are they different?
body of TO with the legs of Ochocinco
You probably need to take another look at TO he looks more like Vernon Davis than Colin lol
Grant,
The accuracy of your list, five years down the road, will be determined by the strength of the organization that each quarterback is playing for.
You’re premature so often with your posts that it just caused me to wonder if you were born ahead of schedule.
Grant,
if CK generates enough points that the Niners are up by 4 scores in the 3rd, do you think JH puts Smith in for mop up?
I think so, yes.
After the NO games, did JH say he planned to play both QB’s?
Prime you moron. You still believe what Harbaugh says????
Shut up Bay, question was for Grant.
Nope,he said he had two starters. When Alex was the starter he would bring in Kap to do some of the things he does better than Alex and also to get Kap some experience to get him ready as quickly as possible. But with Kap being THE starter,there is no reason to bring Alex into a game unless the starter is injured.(IMHO)
Prime you moron. Are you going through menopause? Never seen u so sensitive.
23 hater said that after the game JH said he planned to use both QB’s. Did he or did he not say that?
Jimmy stop talking, I need an answer and not from you. Go fill out a practice plan or something for your #3 ranked little sluggers.
Prime/Welch he did use both QB’s. One to play and one to hold a clip board.
More of that tomorrow too.
Stalker, moron, and now a funny man.
Prime: As far as I remember JH never said he was going to use both QB’s . He was asked if Alex was possibly going to play anymore this season and he answered that anything was possible,or something like that exchange.
Prime this is the quote from the wednesday press conference where Jim said they would go with Colin and go with Alex whatever he means by that your guess is as good as mine or any one elses
“Well, the rationale is you’ve got two quarterbacks that we feel great about as the starting quarterback. Both have earned it. Both deserve it. And [QB] Alex [Smith] over a long period of time. Colin by virtue of the last three games. What tips the scale, is Colin, we believe, has the hot hand and we’ll go with Colin. And we’ll go with Alex. They’re both our guys.”
Yep Ninersince71,he will go with Kap and go with Alex and go with Tolzien,in that order. He is going forward with all 3 still on the team. If Kap gets hurt or stinks up the place a few games in a row,he will go with Alex,like any HC would put in their 2nd string QB when their starter gets hurt or stinks for too long.
Bay: I would think that Kap needs all the experience he can get,so I wouldn’t take him out if it is a blowout.I would call plays that help him learn by doing. Nothing like real game experience.
oh thank you Tim I was really having a hard time figuring all that complicated stuff about second and third strings
You are very welcome ! ;)
So Grant, if I have this straight your saying that our Gm and Coach are so much better than everyone else in the league that we managed to get a QB in the second round that after 2 games is better than all the other QBs taken in the last 2 years.
Now if that is true why is it you and your dad second guess every draft choice,game plan or pretty much anything else they do.
But just supposing you are right and Kap after 2 games is Joe Montana , Steve Young with a dash of Dan Marino all rolled into 1 then with our defense there is no reason for us to lose another game until Kap retires after all with a bust like Alex we have only lost 5 games in the last 2 regular seasons.
One word of caution though Matt Flynn had a game that was arguably better than anything we have seen from Kap,so ther is that.
Grant throws chum every day and there is a feeding frenzy… Hasn’t anyone seen thru his MO yet?
Hof:
I don’t know what happened to my avatar pic. I can’t seem to get into my account profile to see what happened? Any suggestions on how to access my profile,I don’t see a link anywhere on the page ?
Yeah, what about the kid up in Seattle? You prejedised agin’ short folks???
Short people got… no reason
Short people got… no reason
They got, little hands, little eyes, they walk around tellin’ great big lies
Don’t want no short people ’round
Don’t want no short people ’round
Don’t want no short people ’round here!
That munchkin can throw the ball!
Grant, with all due respect, if you think that Kaepernick is a better quarterback than Andrew Luck, then you need to have your forms-football-opinions-for-a-living membership revoked.
It’s hard to even take this sort of an opinion seriously.
Brady:
The question was…which of these QB’s would you build your team around ?The answer to that question would be a long term answer. I don’t believe Grant said that Kap is necessarily better than Luck right now,just that in the long run Kap has a chance to be better.
Luck had a huge head start over Kap in that he played in a pro type offense at Stanford,while Kap hardly ever even took snaps from under center in college. Luck should be better and more polished than Kap right now,and even that is debatable after what we have seen from Kap lately.
I personally agree that Luck is slightly better right now,but that was not the question.
Tim –
that is true, but it is still an outrageous claim for a non-fan to make. I guarantee you that if you asked all NFL GMs and coaches whether they would rather build around Luck or Kaepernick, all 32 coaches and all 32 GMs would choose Luck (and yes, that includes Harbaugh and Baalke).
“Suck for Luck” was a legitimate NFL storyline for two seasons, whereas Kaep’s sole storyline is this: created a QB controversy by replacing a man generally perceived to be average.
Grant has a history of making hyperbolic snap judgements, and, quite frankly, I think it’s unprofessional to form an opinion that strongly goes against the grain of the coaches, GMs, and best analysts, unless you have an incredible defense for your choice.
“Has a strong arm” and “creates plays with his legs” aren’t very good defenses when you look at the fact that the top QBs are Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, and Peyton Manning.
If A Smith goes to Arizona it could be an issue
Yep,if he goes to any team in the division he will bring a detailed knowlege of our playbook and the players. But on the other hand,we would get to play against him twice a year if he were starting !!! ;)
Tim
Marcus Allen.
He was dumped by the Raiders when he was in his prime, went to the Chiefs and beat the Raiders every year.
The advantage goes to the pissed off guy. AZ needs an OL and a suitable RB in additon. Then they are a legit team. Not just a fearsome D.
But DS,Marcus Aleen was a star who got in the doghouse of Al Davis .Davis was very vindictive and forced Allen to sit on the bench and wither away to punish him. Davis was also punishing his team by not playing allen. After Davis was satisfied that Allen had been put in his place (according to the demented Davis point of view),he gave Allen his wish and let him go.
The situation with the niners is not even in the same catagory imho. Alex is a decent QB,not a star as Allen was and JH is benching Alex to help his team get better,while Davis benched Allen for his own selfish reasons to feed his own ego,to the detriment of his team.
Tim
19-5 seems like the prime of his life. But if you don’t like the Allen comparison, try our own Michael Robinson. The ST ace who pretended to be a RB.
When he was here, he did squat rushing the ball. Much worse of a RB than AS is a QB.
Then we opened up the 2010 season in Seattle (where he went after we dumped him) and he suddenly chose that game in several key moments to have some decent runs. We lost that game and the season followed.
Point being you don’t want to lose even average players to divisional teams. When they play you, they get great. And yes. Allen was great before and after the Raiders.
So DS,you are saying Alex is a mediocre player like Robinson ? ;)
Yes Tim. Got me there. Smarty-pants.
Funny thing about Robinson, he was a QB at Penn St.
It will be tough for Willis and Bowman to handle those 2 yard passes on 3rd and 8.
But will they be able to stop the run and defend against all those long passes downfield?
I don’t know…..might be tough for the 49ers defense to handle twice a year.
(sarcasm)
Personally, I would love to see Alex stay in the division.
49er girl,
If AS stays in our divinsion or another one, it will be temporary because their will always be a guy behind him, perhaps a better player, or a QB of the future, I can see him starting maybe a year or two tops before a better QB takes his place.
I’d rather see him leave Neal and 49erGirl. Look at the numbers Fitzgerald has been able to put off with the likes of Matt Linehart and other horrible QBs ( Warner not included). Smith is better than most of those guys even if he’s classified as average. Having him in this division could actually be a bad thing, especially if Arizona can shore up their OL.
MW, I said on earlier post that I would rathet see on the outside.On a side note,what happen to Brees, playing like crap last two games.
Considering that offensive line and his Alex’s penchant for taking sacks, it would be an issue for his health insurance carrier.
Yes, you most certainly are degenerating all of these QB’s by choosing them ahead of Kaepernick. Not only only have you showed how much of a homer you are by making this choice, you have also lost any credibility you might have gained over the years except maybe with the 10-13 year old kids as a journalist. If fact, only a 13 year old kid would even make an argument from the basis of being so naive and biased. Think about this tonight and a little more in the morning and when you have come to your senses – rewrite the article.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_mDTLphIVY
Right now, you can throw Luck into any QB system you want to run and he would do well. Kaep is much more physically gifted (as is Newton), but required intense coaching before he could be trusted to run your offense. Harbaugh obviously feels that now is the time to hand Kaep the team. In contrast, Newton was given the offense much too soon and has regressed. Based on what I’ve seen from all three, I agree with Grant and would take Kaep. I haven’t watched RGIII enough to formulate an opinion, but I’m anxious to see how he will do against the Giants. One thing is certain, all four of the QBs listed in Grant’s post are way ahead of Alex Smith. You do not want to build a team around Alex Smith.
Everyone says that the NFL is a business. That is true. Changes are made to ensure success and revenue upside. I have to congratulate AS. He seems to be a very astute business man. AS has made $39M, not including the $8M for this year – $47M total. It also seems he will be traded or released at the end of the season. As a top available QB in 2013, he may receive another $30-40M in salary before he retires. Yes, the NFL is a business and AS deserves congratulations for being a top business man. Well done. LOL
And Hof,Alex was smart enough to stay and learn under JH and Roman and Geep Cryst,so that when Kap finally took over,as he knew would happen sooner or later,he would have a better resume and would be able to say he was the QB of a winning team.
If other teams GM’s who need a QB just look at Al;ex’s numbers and don’t study the actual film of his actual play,then he will have some suitors in the off season for his services and he will continue to make a great paycheck ! Good for him and good luck to him wherever he goes,except when he plays the Niners that is :) .
…And who knows,Alex’s Wife tweeted Matt Barrows the other day to bet him that Alex WILL still be a Niner for the start of the 2013 season(Matt had a poll that said otherwise). So I guess it’s possible that he decides to stay and take another pay cut to remain a Niner’s backup ? He would be a great backup,so I sort of hope he stays.
Tim, CK signed a 4 yr $5.1M contract. Let’s hope if he continues to play well he will get rewarded similar to NBowman with his recent early contract upgrade. CK is signed through 2015. I’m sure they will upgrade his salary before it expires as the lowest paid starting QB.
IF he keeps playing well he will get a HUGE upgrade over his current rookie contract,just like all rookies do when it’s time for their 2nd contract,if they deserve it.
*through 2014* 4 years
Some people say Alex is going to end up with the NY Jets. The media will have a field day on him. But if he does well, he could have the last laugh in terms of endorsements and popularity. He is the ultimate redemption story. And he will be in Eli Manning’s backyard!
The NY fans can be tough, but they are knowledgable and not so fair-weather like the fans here.
Can you imagine if Tebow stays there too? 2 of urban meyer’s guys together!
77:
Boy,I hope he doesn’t wind up in NY,for alex’s sake.They would tear him up. The Bay Area media and fans are marshmallows compared to the NY media and fans.
His next team he might not even be a starter, at best he will be a stopgate for a year or two for another QB of the future. Don’t see him getting a $12 million a season for 3 years. He also will be at a disadvantage as it will take him a while to learn the new playbook.
Tim,
I lived in NYC and I think the media will be tough, but the fans are way more blue-collar and could respect Alex, provided he does well. And I’m sure half the bloggers will say he sucks won’t start blah blah blah.
Alex may not be an elite QB but there are way WORSE QBs out there.
DS
I agree that HS players could hide their injuries. But there is nothing that can be done about that. Puting AS back in the starting lineup would send this message to the kids. AS got a concussion and here he is playing again 2 weeks after the fact so you billy/timmy/joey could also play 2 weeks after your concussion because AS is playing 2 weeks after his.
And as u said since there is no stanford doctors on the sideline some kid is gona get crippled trying to be a tough guy like AS playing with a concussion that he suffered weeks prior
One last shot at the Smithers who are making a fuss about benching him for Kaep. You all act like this is the first time this has happened! Alex Smith has been benched for Shaun Hill, Troy Smith, and the gawd awful J.T. O’Sullivan. And yes, he will start and then get benched on his next team.
Sure he was benched before because he wasn’t playing well. This is the first time that an Offensive Player of the Week was benched from a concussion. Hate all you want. The dude at least worked hard and never gave up.
They make a reality show on all the people who either hate or love AS. You guys are all so catty, and you know who you are.
I for one think Alex is a great team mate and a very hard worker and a class guy and has been for years !
He played the best he could and tried to do everything JH and Roman asked of him. (not to mention Nolan and Sing etc).
I don’t really feel sorry for him as some do because he has a great life and just because he has been demoted in one aspect of his life(football),he still has a great wife and Family and a ton of Money in the bank and the respect of all those he works with and his family and most fans respect him personally,even if they don’t think he performed all that well on the field of play.
Sometimes some fans mistake hating the way a player plays the game with actually hating the person. Two different things totally in my book,at least they should be !
Thing is Tim, AS was getting better. He had the same number of TD’s as EM, led the franchise record in total yards, most passes without an Int, and NFC player of the Week. Just this year. Last year he led the team to its largest margin of victory since JM and equalled JM’s record for comebacks.
His last pass was a TD and the guy couldn’t even see right.
There is a larger issue here that has nothing to do with AS. JH replaced a player who was top 5 in his position because he told the HC he has a concussion. Had AS never thought of the team and was a greedy SOB, he doesn’t tell anybody.
From this point on, every Niner player will have this in the back of their mind when they feel “woozy”. There are legal, health issues to be concerned with about what hapened. Regardless of what you think of AS/CK/JH/Niners/football.
Everything that happened here was poorly thought out, and that isn’t good.
DS: Alex was never a top 5 QB.not even near a top 10 QB imho. He had some stats that were top 5 but stats don’t tell the story. His benching by a QB saavy head coach does tell the story.
Alex ,although improved over the old Alex still has many weak point to his game that JH and Roman and Geep Cryst simply could not get him to improve on. They could continue to game plan around his short commimgs and have a weaker team or they could move forward with Kap and hope Kap’s much better skill set will outweigh his lack of experience,which was the only advantage Alex had over Kap .
…and to say the move was not well thought out is wrong imho. JH knew he wanted Kap as his starter when he drafted him. He only knew that Kap was ready when he saw him play in a couple real games against good teams. As soon as he knew he was as ready as he is ,he made the move he was always going to make sooner or later.
Every team in the League and every player in the League need to deal with the new concussion protocols,not just the Niners.
sorry Tim
JH screwed this whole thing up.
1. “Play the hot hand” That means that if CK loses, he won’t start? Way to show confidence in the guy. If he still starts, how is he still hot? That would be JH a liar.
2. Why not flat out say “CK is the starting QB barring injury the rest of the year.” That ends any speculation and shows the team/CK/AS the situation. No wishy-washy BS.
And here is something about the concussion thing I was talking about.
http://blog.sfgate.com/49ers/2012/11/26/could-alex-smith-have-hiden-his-concussion-symptoms/
“Why not flat out say “CK is the starting QB barring injury the rest of the year.” That ends any speculation and shows the team/CK/AS the situation. No wishy-washy BS.”
How do you know that isn’t how it was told to the team?
Jack
They why wuss out to the media? This whole thing was done horribly. Only 1 good way this can end. Infitiy -1 that it can’t end well.
Eactly Jack,JH told the team and specifically Alex and Kap exactly how it was.He then told the media his usual nothing by calling every player on the team a starter and a great player who are all pro bowl caliber,lol.
If you saw Alex’s face the next day in his interview you know Alex knows for sure this is Kap’s team now and into the future. Of course any backup QB hopes to get in the game somehow,so if Kap sucks for a couple games in a row or is injured,Alex will get his chance again. But no matter what happens,Kap is JH’s guy for the long term and Alex knows he has 0 chance to earn a long term starting job here,0.
You could see it in his face ,even though he was playing as well as he ever could have dreamed he could play,it was never going to be good enough here,not with Kap also being here.
DS,
He doesn’t say anything to the media. It’s like a congressional filibuster when he is up there.
Jack
Then JH has some things he needs to work on. I hear all the time that the NFL is a business. Well, guess what? Businesses have to deal with people at least adequately. Those that don’t, even if their product is good will fail.
That is a fact. Listen to Charlie Rose when he speaks to CEO’s of top companies. They will almost always tell you that. To stay in business and be successful, you need to treat your people (employees and customers) well.
DS,
By all accounts Harbaugh treats his “employees”, the assistant coaches and players with nothing but respect and honesty.
As for his “customers”, the fans, I could not wish for a better coach. In am quite fine with the job he has done to this point, and what I am sure he will do in the future. You should be as well.
Jack
Every ex-player who I’ve heard has said that an injury should not cost you your job. I seriously doubt they were all Smithers.
Just a guess, but I bet all NFL players feel that way too. They may not say it for obvious reasons. This whole thing couldn’t have been done any worse. AS was 26 for 28 and 4 TD’s in his last 5 quarters. Posting a near perfect QBR. Was named offensive player of the week.
I guarantee you that the Niners players are thinking about how things went down and aren’t all gung-ho about it. Whether they liked AS or not means nothing. A player shouldn’t lose his job. Especially if he was only out for 2 weeks. Was 19-5 the past 2 years, NFC player ofthe week of the last full game he played and led a TD drive while being unable to see straight for the last40 or so yards of it. Much of it thru the air including a Red zone TD pass to MC being his last play.
Any FA coming in will be thinking of this. I assure you. What if they are top 5 in their position, get hurt for a few weeks and then don’t get their job back? D that encourage people to join your company or not? That isn’t what I’d call treating your employees right.
Harbaugh was hired to win football games and put the best players on the field to do make that happen.
You may not like the move, but that doesn’t make it wrong.
Jack
1 How is it right in the age where the NFL and Players Union are so concerned about concussions to do what he did? This is a serious issue. Hide your head in the sand all you want. That storm is coming no matter what.
2. Why didn’t CK sub in for AS after the 1st half of the Seattle game? The last time Alex actually struggled? Did CK seriously learn that much in the past month where making the move then would be bad, but now it is good? I’m guessing JH is going off his emotions with this move. Because CK didn’t learn the offense that much more (he didn’t even play after that Seattle game). This makes no sense at all when it happened. CK now is more or less the same CK who would hav replaced AS in the 2nd half of the Seattle game. I don’t think he is any better now than he would have been then.
DS,
Had Smith not been hurt Kaepernick would not have been given a chance. Smith was playing well.
Unfortunately for Smith, he got hurt and Kaepernick made the most of the opportunity, and won the job. You don’t like it.
Do you still say, “In Harbaugh I Trust.”
Tim
Jack
You lost my point. NFL Ex-players said you should not lose your job to injury. They don’t like it.
And yes I do still believe. But if CK doesn’t do it all by himself (no AS help) then I won’t anymore because I won’t trust him (JH) anymore. He is still a great coach, but that magic will be gone forever.
Putting it at its simplest, JH just wants to win. Doesn’t care how, just win. If he thought Alex gave him the best chance to win – and noting that he’s now got a very good sample size to make that call – Alex would be the starter now that he’s concussion symptom free.
Instead he chose Kap. The guy that has won the only 2 games he’s started, and brought the team back from a deficit to tie when filling in for the injured starter.
This should tell you all you need to know. JH might think he can win games with Alex, but he believes he can get better at the QB position than Alex. And he believes Kap is that guy, or is at least willing to find out.
JH has had success with every QB he has hand picked. I’m going to trust him on this one as well.
DS,
I take your point about not losing your job because of an injury. As Alex says – it sucks. I understand your concern about the message it sends regarding reporting concussion symptoms too.
I do think you are missing the other side of the coin though. The other message. “If you work hard and take your chance, you will be rewarded.” This is in fact the message JH has always maintained, ever since he started at the 49ers. Work hard, get better, improve every day, and good things will happen.
Imagine the impact this has on all the young guys on the team – the future of this team – that are seeing Kap being given this opportunity after working his butt off every day and playing well when he got the chance. If I was AJ Jenkins or LMJ I’d be seeing this as JH practising what he preaches, and motivation to keep working hard and waiting for that opportunity to come.
DS,
The last two posts from Scooter speak to my view on the situation as well.
Good posts Scooter.
Thanks Jack :-)
DS,
You won’t trust Harbaugh anymore? Did you really trust him when he said he was evaluating Manning? You said you did. Did you really trust him when Smith got a series of one year deals? You said you did. You have always spoken in absolutes with regards to Smith, and you have always used Harbaugh’s words as your ammo. You always said “Do you know more about football then Jim Harbaugh” and “Are you all in?” I simply said, “actions speak louder than words.”
DS on October 29th
“JH kept AS in to prove a point, and end any stupid speculation once and for all. AS is the QB. He was to start the year, and he will be to end the year.
Even with a 24, 21 point lead, CK didn’t take a single snap. That means it is over. CK may get some more playing time next game after we make the opponent submit, but make no mistake. AS is the starter. And JH is 19-5 with him as the starter.”
Actions DO speak louder than words….Harbaugh speaking to the media is simply food for the funk-jive turkey gobblers…..
Scooter/Jack
Should the Niners lose draft picks for this? The NFL is in trouble here. Football is. Parents aren’t allowing kids to play due to the perception that the game looks down on those without a visual obvious injury like an ACL.
As somebody who could consider having kids, I’m paying attention here. And if this is ok, then the NFL isn’t serious about protecting players, then I won’t allow my kids to play. And there are a lot of others who feel the same. That means the game will lose athletes and won’t be as good in 10-15 years as it is now.
A penalty must be implemented, or all that talk was BS. This extends well beyond AS/CK/JH/fairness. I hope you both see that.
Scooter,
Good stuff brother.
DS,
The NFL will always have a healthy pipeline of players that are more than willing to sacrifice their health for the glory and money that comes with a pro football career. It will never end. Never. A few more rich kids might get sheltered from it, but that is about it. You don’t realize how popular the sport is in other areas of the country, from Pee Wee on up. Google ‘largest high school football stadium’ and look at the images. The sport is so much bigger than most people realize. Smith’s situation has happened a million times before and it will happen another million times.
“Should the Niners lose draft picks for this?”
“A penalty must be implemented, or all that talk was BS. This extends well beyond AS/CK/JH/fairness.”
A penalty must be implemented? Are you serious? You invested so heavily in Smith that you are trying to justify your past comments, even if it means hurting the team. You have shown your true colors, and they aren’t red and gold.
DS – What??? You are worried about your kids (that you don’t have) playing in the NFL, because of their injury policies?
Were you pro or almost pro at ANY sport? Are you that athletic?…. Have you been drinking…..I need proof that you were a stud athlete if you’re going to make comments like that.
What???
“Should the Niners lose draft picks for this?”
No. Injuries are part of the game, and there is no rule stating that you can’t lose your job to injury. If you disagree call Drew Bledsoe and Tommy Maddox.
Unfortunately for Smith he was injured and that opened the door for Kaepernick who took full advantage.
If you won’t let your future children play as a result that is your decision. If my boys decide they want to play, my oldest is wanting to, I will let them without hesitation. I will also make sure they have the proper gear and proper coaching to keep them as safe as possible.
DS,
Why would the 49ers lose draft picks? What did they do wrong? They followed all the procedures in place which are designed to protect the safety of players.
Are you saying you believe JH replaced Alex because he reported the concussion? That he now believes Alex isn’t tough enough? I see no reason to believe that is the case.
Are you suggesting they should implement a rule that players can never be replaced due to injury? That would instigate its own set of issues. If you start playing poorly, report a concussion so you don’t get benched later on.
When is it ok in your book to replace a player after they’ve been injured? Only when they are struggling? Does that mean Montana should never have been replaced by Young until Montana called it quits?
Crab,
It is what it is. She will never admit to being flat out wrong about Smith. Now she is concerned about the health of today’s youth and wants the Niners docked draft picks. This must really be painful for her, especially since she loved to use Jim Mora’s “You may think you know, but you don’t know. And you never will.” quote with regards to Smith being the QB.
“You may think you know, but you don’t know. And you never will.” Ouch…..
BigP – What up Dawg? I’m going to take the high road until I get a response from DS. ;-)
One thing is true, DS is not boring.
What are your plans for game tomorrow bro? Anything special?
DS
You are wrong on this one buddy.
You are the one saying that concussions should be treated differently that other injuries. S.Spencer started for our team for 4 years then he pulled a hammy was out 2 weeks and never saw the field again. Where was ur outrage? Why should concussions be different?
In fact if u r so concerned about AS’s wellbeing then why are u clamoring for him to subject himself to more injury. C.Owusu had 3 concussions in 1 year and that caused him to not be drafted. AS had a concussion vs the cowboys and then a year later vs the rams thats 2 concussions in 13 months. If I had kids id want a coach like JH who errs on the side of safety and doesnt subject my kid to more severe concussions by throwing him out there less than a month after he suffered his first one.
If safety is your main concern then u should be pleading with AS to retire because as long as he is on the field his health is in imminent danger
bos
FRONTLINE, a legit source had an episode about concussions. When I get the chance, I’ll try to find a link for your viewing.
Concussions are different. Really different from another injury. They involve the brain. And the brain involves everything else. Young retired due to fears of concussions. If you’ve been a Niners fan long enough to remember him, you know his heart was as big as they come and he was no wuss. That was the canary in the coal mine.
And unlike every other injury, a player may be able to fool the team into thinking he doesn’t have one. This incident is all that needs to happen to convince players (many of whom say they are cool with the risk) to not speak up. And that is a medical problem.
That FRONTLINE, episode had a former Raider who suffered concussions and he lost his ability to speak, move, go to the bathroom due to concussions. So yeah. Concussions should be treated differently. The brain doesn’t recover like your skin/muscle. But it contols everything.
DS
You are making my point for me: Concussions are serious. Serious enough that I would worry if someone who just seffered one would be forced back to action too soon. here in BOS we had Marc Savard and Nathan Horton of the bruins who had to miss significant time due to head trauma. I dont want Alex stumbling around like a cripple because he took one too many hits to the head. Thats why I said IF U CARE ABOUT AS’ HEALTH beg him to retire and not take any more head shots.
What I said was If its ok for a player to loose his spot to an ankle or a hamstring injury (S.Spencer) then it should be double ok for a player to loose his spot to a concussion (which we both agree is far more serious injury than an ankle)
We both agree that concussions are serious buisness. and its a FACT that ur at a higher risk for concussions if u’ve recently had one (like AS) so my question is Why are u so adamant that AS get back in there and risk further injury?
C15
It extends beyond the NFL. High School players are now as big as the NFL players in the 80′s. Only they don’t have Stanford doctors on the sidelines of every game. So these kids are bashing their heads in to play high school ball. They don’t care about concussions. One guy said he only has a few years tio play the game and the rest of his life to deal with the reprocussions. That is a real issue. Much larger than should AS be the starter.
But kids are going to see what happened here. And if it happens in the NFL, I can do it. If I tell coach, I’ll lose my spot. So I better not tell him. And remember that high school doesn’t have Stanford doctors on the sidelines to detect that the kid is lying.
And the KNBR radio host between noon and 3 says he won’t allow his kids to play because of concussions.
DS – I will get back to you tomorrow on that subject, it’s game time. Go Niners!!
DS
My reply went to the wrong spot. the 9:48 coment is for you about the HS kids
DS,
Their are two things you know nothing about, one is QB’s and the other appears to be High School Football, how many high school football games have you gone too? Probably none, I went to 16 games this season, watching my youngest son play and then watching Varsity team play, I have seen several kids this season getting pulled from the games because they had concussions,they have trainers their that do tests on the sidelines, and if they don’t pass, they don’t play, my youngest son actually had a concussion in a scrimage and was pulled from the next game they had. Damn you are really in the clouds in many issues.
Bos
If AS doesn’t tell JH, he remains in the game. If this is what happens by telling your coach how many players at all levels will tell their coach? The NFL sets the bar.
AS was 19-5 and off an NFC Offensive playrr award. If that doesn’t protect you, nothing will. So if I value my job, I best not tell coach.
That is the take away lesson here. And the NFL is full of more crap than md/bay/23 if they don’t take action here. They talked about the importance of it, but if somebody loses their job because they followed protocol how likely is it others will follow protocol? That protocol is useless if one has to fear losing ones job. That makes the NFL useless in dealing with this issue which impacts a lot more than just NFL players.
Neal
Try watching something that is informative once in your life instead of ESPN. I it is on FRONTLINE it is a legit issue. Not made up in blog land.
Ok,
If you want to find a pattern, look at this one.
AS took the job back. Work on your pattern identification skills. Only Hill (who got screwed by MS in much the same way AS is now) is even in the NFL now.
If that happens now, it means our team is in the dumps and this glorious season is over. That sucks.
Thankgoodness DS you see AS in a totally different light then JH does, I trust the coach, stop being a hater.
And here is loud mouth Neal again…is’nt it past your bedtime?
Randy stop being a hater , embrace life.
Really Neal?Tried looking in the mirror lately?I await your highly educated response….HAHAHAHA
Randy,Neal,DS,me,we all want the Niner’s to win every game and for every player on the team to play great ,right ?
No need to attack each other,let’s save that for Raiders or Cowpies fans ,lol.
Interresting Tim…because the way I see it,neal is one of the worst offenders on the blog..from his attacks on me flipping fries(!!??!!?)to his constant belittling of anybody on this blog who heaven forbid disagrees with him..he is’nt about the 49ers winning…he is about trying to be a tough guy hiding behind a computer screen..but if he needs you to defend him…
If you’re looking for a behavior pattern try this one:
JH drafts his hand-picked QB early in the second round.
JH brings in two more capable bu QB’s for try outs.
JH “evaluates” Peyton Manning.
JH has several “WildKaep” plays inserted into several games early in the season to see how far he’s progressed (similar to how Walsh brought JM in several times when he was being groomed to take over for Deberg).
JH gives Kaep the starting job at NO even though AS is medically cleared. (If that didn’t tell you something, ask yourself if Belichick or McCarthy would have stuck with their back-up QB if Brady or Rogers was the “injured” starter)
JH gives Kaep the outright starting job….presumably for the rest of the season
CK is not Troy Smith, Tim Rattay, Cody Pickett, Ken Dorsey, or JT O’Sullivan. CK’s the guy who was hand picked by the biggest QB guru HC in the NFL. That should tell you all you need to know about CK.
Randy: I was calling you both out,not defending anyone.We have all been there,when we feel we were attacked personally.Sometimes we have all attacked others without really thinking what we were doing.
My point was simply this…We should stick to football opinions and not opinions about other fans character ,etc.
If you have an opinion that contradicts someone elses opinion.,then attack the other opinion and shoot it down with your opinion,don’t attack and try to shoot down the other fan personally.
Attacking the other fan personally tends to make it look like you have lost the battle of opinions and are stooping to the last resort of those who have lost the arguement,attack the winner personally.
Tim,
Discussing QB’s with DS , is like getting financial advise from Bernie Madoff. DS, Randy and others are AS fans first and Niner fans second, I have given AS his due when he played well, but the fact is AS sucked against 4 teams this year, Vikings, Giants, Jets and Seahawks and even AS said this sedason he was playing great football, what a load of crap,
Exactly 49erGirl ! Good post !
Neal: Yep,I fully agree,Alex has played poorly in several games this season and actually has played poorly at several times ,even in his best games,save one.
That is all you needed to say because that is your football opinion and counters the opinion of those others you mentioned. So,there is no need to call names from either side ,right ?
When I read an opinion that I believe is ill informed,I know it without someone posting that so and so who wrote the opinion is this or that etc. Let their ill informed opinion stand or fall on it’s on merit and help it fall more quickly by posting your opinion and facts that shoot it down. Not by shooting THEM down.
Neal
Try this then
Don’t discuss QB’s with me. If you’re getting upset about it, then don’t do something that gets you upset. Not that hard a concept for me to grasp. It should’t be for you.
And CK has had 1 great game in 3. 17 points against NO, and tying a Rams team which had lost it’s last 3, I wouldn’t call that good.
DS: You fought the good fight and lost.Maybe now is the time to jump on the Kap bandwagon and move forward with YOUR team? If you continue to tear down everything about Kap to try to make Alex look better,you will wind up being the same type of fan you always called “hater”.
Tim
I never defined hater as somebody who doubted the skills of a player.
Take yourself for instance. When did I ever call you a hater? A hater is somebody who hates. Not questions or doubts.
And sorry. My observations are what they are. Needing Lady Luck to tie the Rams who hadn’t won in a month in SF. Then a great game against the Bears whose D looked like they didn’t show up (see our D in the Vikings game) Then scoring only 17 against the worse D in the NFL in the Saints. If not for 2 Pick 6′s, we likely lose that game. We were behind the Saints and our D was kicking their butts. A. Brooks made the play of the game, but nobody is talking about it because, as always, we focus on the QB.
I would like some stories on T. Brown who I think is being overlooked completely on this defense. Culliver has gotten a lot press, and has looked very poor at times. CR is getting knocked for not being as good as last year. And in the meantime, if a QB doesn’t throw a perfect pass, or the WR make a great catch, you’re wasting your time throwing his way. How about that 4th down defensed pass in the 4th quarter? Not a single post subject on it at all. Just pathetic man.
DS: Your “facts” don’t jive with my facts.
Kap entered the Rams game I believe 10 points behind. He had the game won with a couple of comeback drives that tied the game and then had Akers in position to win it with a usually easy 41 yard FG.Akers let Kap down,when he always won it for alex last year.
Then when Kap actually got the 1st team snaps in some of the practices the next week(it was said he only got them in 1 practice and one walkthrough,because they expected alex back),he performed like a 10 year veteran against what was said to be the best defense in all of football ,the Bears.He was magnificent to say the least!
Then against the hot Saints ,on the road in that loud dome,he played very well indeed. You say he olny accounted for 17 points but remember that we got ahead early in the 3rd quarter and held that lead because of a couple great drives led by his passing. Sionce we were ahead(two pick sixes by the defense) Kap and the offense were only asked by the conservative JH and Roman to hold the lead and run out the clock. I am sure that if we were behind that Kap would have led several more drives for points,if JH had put it on his arm to win the game in the 2nd half. But JH didn’t need that since we were ahead and we were holding the ball on offense and getting 1st downs and running the clock,remember that 9 1/2 minute drive ? It was magnificent indeed !
I don’t expect Kap to be Joe Montana in every game all game long(even Joe wasn’t great all the time). But he is playing better than alex and has a high ceiling and is growing and learing ,while still playing vgreat in the now ! What more do you want ?
Tim
1. CK entered the Rams game 7 points down. The D had given up 2 straight TD drives to start the game to put the offense in the hole. Not at all any QB’s fault. Then AS drove for a TD drive with fuzzy vision and cut the score in half. Then CK came in.
2. Akers did suck that game. But if you want to call him out, you have to call out CK for being unabe to get us a TD after the poor punt. We started that drive on the 35 or so, and got nothing. CK missed a wide open VD for an easy 20y ard gain skipping the ball to him. Had he done that, we would have taken control of the game and the momentum and we likely could have gone conservative the rest of the way and win. That failure was huge in us getting a tie and not a win. By the way, the Rams had the best chance to win the game in OT. Their kicker actually made it, but the clock expired. Lucky for us.
3. The Saints were luke warm. Their D still sucked. They had given up 400 yards and a ton of points in evrey game this year. Our D would hold the Saints offense down. I had hope of that. CK made 2 TD drives. And the only reason he had that lead was due to the 14 points supplied by the defense. The Saints TEAM scored 21 (would have been 14 if not for Ginn’s fumble). If our offense had scored nothing and our ST not fumbled, it would have been an OT game. Even so, all a QB had to do was score 8 offensive points (14+8=22 vs. 21 of NO to win the game). The stinking Chiefs scored more than 8 points, vs. the Saints and they are horribly offensively. So, no. CK managing those 8 necessary points is asking a great deal.
4. CK didn’t produce any better than AS had the past two games in the redzone. The area where supposedly he is better than AS. He got 2 TD’s, but failed to put up a TD on the big, AS like dominant drive in the 2nd half. Then failed to put it into the endzone again in the 4th quarter.
Tim
The Chiefs scored 27 against NO in the Dome. The Chiefs offense really does suck. And only 4 fewer points than we did. Our offense doesn’t suck.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_New_Orleans_Saints_season#Game_summaries
9erGirl – Tremendous as usual babe.
Post of the day was by Big P. when he slapped bs with its quotes and egotistical chatter from earlier this year about smith being the starter from start to finish and Harbuagh said so, so bs trusted what Harbaugh said and did, and now bs doubts the man. Because he benched him for being outplayed by a second year rocket launching stud of a qb. That’s all! GO NINERS!!!
Forty miner girls take about deberg, Walsh jm and now as, ck and jh is right on. I have been talking about this with my friends! Very well put 49er girl!
Sorry,I am not a real mediator,I just play one on the internet from time to time. lol.
Ignore my ramblings and longwinded whining. Sorry to preach .
If you read all of my posts Tim,you will find that NOT once did I state that I was a Smith fan..NOT ONCE..however,disagree with people like Neal,and you are labeled a “Smither”..people like Neal are hard to debate with,because they hate FACTS…
Grant,
This entire post is quite immature. You really come across as a sniveling little homer with a mancrush on CK. Having said that, I’ll play along. With the little we know about all of the guys on your list the ranking is very clearly as follows.
1. Andrew Luck – Absolute HOF talent. Freaking great arm despite what you say with the calm of Joe Montana and the mind of Peyton Manning. This young man has it all.
2. Colin Kaepernick – Blessed with great physical tools and the luck to be coached by Jim Harbaugh along with a great supporting cast.
3. Cam Newton – A freakish athlete with amazing God given ability. His surrounding cast and poor coaching will be his downfall.
4. RGIII – Very fluid player with a great feel for the position. His poise and pocket awareness is really amazing to watch. He is frail and will miss significant time due to injury. His downfall won’t be lack of ability but it will be lack of availability.
Houston, curious…do you live in Houston?
Houston,
Sniveling little homer? Making friends, again, I see.
And why in the world would you want to “play along” with a sniveling little homer?
So Grant, why don’t you rank the following QB’s. Rank these 5 QB’s in terms of who you’d want to lead the 49ers for the next 5 years?
Andrew Luck, Colin Kaepernick, Cam Newton, Alex Smith, RGIII
The game manager doesn’t really belong in that group. They’re all 1st or 2nd year players. They didn’t fail spectacularly for 6 years.
I thought he already did that and said it was Kap and then RGlll and then Luck and then Cam?
Where does Smith rank amongst those guys?
Houston,
IMO, Smith comes after CK, AL, RG, but ahead of Cam Newton.
I hope I didn’t come off as a sniveling little homer.
I agree with exgolfer,Smith is probably a bit better than Cam right now because Alex is steady and Cam is a had case when things don’t do right. Some decent coaching and some maturing and Cam would easily be much better than alex,as will all the rest of that list,imho.
Soprry,I meant “head case”
I never could type ,lol
Smith couldn’t operate the offense that Newton runs in Carolina.
http://blog.sfgate.com/49ers/2012/12/01/why-harbaugh-is-going-with-kaepernick/
This thread highlights something that has been whitewashed by many on this blog.
Alex Smith didn’t get replaced by Colin Kaepernick because Smith is no good. Smith was replaced by Kaepernick because Kaepernick is so special.
I can’t sort out the young QB’s in question. With one exception, Cam Newton is a distant fourth. That kid needs to grow up. There is no “I” in team, Cam.
An appreciation for their teammates is an important quality that CK, RG and AL seem to share.
I do think Kaepernick has the most upside of the three. It may sound crazy, but he could be a better Aaron Rodgers. He’s bigger, faster, more ellusive, has a stronger arm, and can throw moving both left and right.
Rogers’ comments on Smith’s situation on KNBR were interesting [that guy is a must listen, btw, great interview, every week with Tolbert]. What he said about a lot of guys not getting the chances Smith received is definitely true. But you have to remember that he also said, “The game don’t love you back the way you think it do”.
What I believe he was saying is not that Smith sucks, but that the game doesn’t care what circumstances you’re enduring, it will chew you up and spit you out. The fact that Smith did get chances when other players wouldn’t, might speak to his ability.
I don’t think JH would’ve signed AS as a free agent, if Smith was the garbage that some of you claimed he was.
All the “I told you so’s” make me laugh. Every one of the veteran “I told you so” crowd, were “telling us so” [wrongly] for so long, the 49ers finally found a QB that could end up being the best QB in the NFL. Maybe I’m nuts, but I don’t think there’s any shame in being replaced by a player as talented as Colin Kaepernick.
A great post exgolfer
“There is no “I” in team”, but there is in Tim, and my friend Jose calls him “Team”.
“There is no “I” in team”
Neither is there an “us” or “we”. I hate that expression. It is self-defeating.
XG
my sentiments also
Thanks, Randy.
Thanks, Oregon.
There is an i in TEAM.
http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Ftablet%2Fs%3Fei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Dthe%2Bi%2Bin%2Bteam&w=500&h=507&imgurl=funnyanimalpicturescat.com%2Fpictures%2FFind-The-I-In-Team.jpg&size=17KB&name=Find-The-I-In-Team.jpg&rcurl=http%3A%2F%2Ffunnyanimalpicturescat.com%2Fstories%2F457%2FFind-The-I-In-Team.html&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Ffunnyanimalpicturescat.com%2Fstories%2F457%2FFind-The-I-In-Team.html&p=the+i+in+team&type=&no=1&tt=115&oid=b265078057f7c0ca5b36932d9587bbaa&tit=…+-animal-pictures+261+days+ago+%28via+pictures%2FFind-The-I-In-Team.jpg&sigr=125pfgn5v&sigi=11qqsgobu&sigb=11p06l9o1&fr=ipad
That’s funny, Jack.
Are you saying, for your friend Jose, there’s no “I” in Tim, either?
Jack: LOL !!! I don’t know if anyone else got it but I have been called “team” by hundreds of my latino friends over the years .
Jack,
I noticed the “I” is hiding in the “A-hole”. If the shoe fits, Cam, wear it.
BRILLIANT ! exgolfer !!! lol
to be fair that joke is on the next slide of the link
Great post ex golfer, now golf is a sport that will make you pull your hair out and go insane! The best comparison of all this stuf is the be erg Montana play, deberg has said it was Walsh that helped him stay in the league for a long time even after sf. Smith may be mad now but it was jh that believed in him when no one else did. As is productive, great guy, cares about people in his community but is not an elite ab.
Reb,
Thanks.
I agree with you, the coaching up Smith has gotten from Harbaugh is going to stand Smith in good stead, going forward.
1. Andrew Luck
2. Robert Griffin
3. Colin Kaepernick
12. Came Newtown
Ok maybe not 12th, but there are a handful of other players I would take over Newton. Andy Dalton, Russell Wilson, Josh Freeman, etc. Never cared much for Newton, and even with his skill set never believed he would be a great NFL quarterback.
I like the Kaep attack but honestly I would have reather had him on our team, if Harbaugh had him from the get go Alex Smith wouldn’t have even started this year at QB.
Andrew Luck*
Just watched Saints/Niners one last time before deleting.
Ahmad Brooks performed one of the best Ray Lewis impersonations that I’ve ever seen. He’s in far better shape than he was last year, he doesn’t get tired.
Not enough blog topics on our D here by Grant at all. AB/TB/AS/JS/DW all were absolute studs. No attention to TB at all.
TB got smoked by j Morgan (#13) and then by Moore. He has been getting smoked more often then id like to see from my starting corners but it was a nice play to break up that 4th down pass Although his hand did appear on the shoulder of the WR before the ball got there but oh well it wasnt called
Exgolfer makes a great point! It makes sense that Alex would be upset and he did nothing wrong. He was quite good, but ultimately he was replaced by someone perceived to be better, in certain areas at least.
As to who’s the best of the young prospects, I agree Cam seems to be at the bottom, but it’s way too early to tell which of the other three is the best.
Crown Kaep after 2.5 games? Seriously? Lest we forget about his slower throwing motion and line drive darts as two of his flaws. Granted his touch has improved, but we’ve not seen enough yet.
Another big flaw not many are talking about is his loose handling of the ball. It was less evident in the last game, but I doubt that habit is gone yet. Plus, on all three of our “top prospects” there’s not been enough film for teams to prepared for them, so we don’t know how any of them, especially Kaep will respond.
Your bias is coming through. How would Alex rate on that list?
Nick, what bias is that pray tell?
I am actually a Kaep fan, so if you thought otherwise, you’re wrong. I just think it’s too early to say he’s the next coming.
Andrew Luck
Andy Dalton
RG3
Kaep attack
Christian Ponder
Russel Wilson
Cam Newton
Until I see more from the Kaep attack he will be ranked 4th, I do feel its unfair that Dalton who has been prolific and consistent isnt included on the list. Some of the other guys are going to be flashes on the pan really, I do not think RG3 will be as good next year.
http://blogs.sacbee.com/49ers/archives/2012/12/throw-away-story-a-profile-of-colin-kaepernick.html
Good write up.
I’d take Luck as he seems to be more of a pocket passer but still has athleticism.
Not enough of Kaep to make a judgement on him but so far so good.
I’m not a fan of RG3 or Newton as they seem to wanna run too much, not to mention Newtons leadership qualities or lack thereof.
Here are the QBs selected ahead of CK in the 2011 draft:
Cam Newton
Jake Locker
Blaine Gabbert
Christian Ponder
Andy Dalton
It’s safe to say that CK has the biggest upside of this group. Under JH’s tutelage, I’d expect him to continue improving and turn into a perennial all-pro.
Great day for Niner football. Today or defense will dominate. Kaep will continue his growth on the field. Vernon will get off! And DS will continue to act like this is general hospital, upset that her favorite character was written off.
Very childish.
Thank you
Time for live pre-game blog Grant?
Let’s get this party started!
CK – dynamite
Luck – substance
RGIII – polish
Newton – vanity