Posted By: Don't feed the troll (26/08/2008 5:18:20 PM)
Comment: When do you think Mike Nolan will be fired--during or after the season? Thanks. I don't know why people impersonate other posters like that, just not right.

Posted By: http:// (26/08/2008 4:40:20 PM)
Comment: Sorry I took anybody's name like that and made up stuff about 49ers Webzone. It won't happen again. I just don't like Nolan what is doing.

Posted By: http:// (26/08/2008 2:47:34 PM)
Comment: Darren is a troll. He is Guest49er at 49erswebzone.com and Sando's blog on ESPN.com. He's even getting called out on 49erswebzone about his trolling. He posted on Cohn's blog as a Raider fan. Don't feed the troll!

Posted By: StonerLab (26/08/2008 2:10:36 PM)
Comment: Grinch, Both you & Darren are twisted! But by you Grinch saying the 49ers should trade Alex (for what?) or Smith never playing a game for the 49ers again? Trust me, that WILL happen sometime this year. I will agree on the 1 point you made Grinch & that is if you're 49er fan than you root for the team regardless of who's QB period!

Posted By: Darren (26/08/2008 11:39:24 AM)
Comment: Grinch, as a 49er fan, I am supporting Alex Smith because we drafted him and he should play out his 5 years. Now, maybe as I think about it, maybe Alex will get better being benched, but he should've been on the bench in year one. Raiders let J Russell play by week 14, why couldn't we have waited with Smith?Grinch, JT cheated to win the job, but you don't care for it's your 49ers and you don't care that everytime JT wins, he is cheating to get the job done. I hope Arizona puts an end to this with JT.

Posted By: Nevyn (26/08/2008 10:28:47 AM)
Comment: Roman is starting over Goldson because Nolan likes defensive players he is sure he can trust. Players who go where they are told and do what they are told. And so until a younger player has had a chance on the field to show they are worthy of that trust, or his hand is otherwise forced, he often sides with the veteran, even if he has to sacrifice some playmaking. He is going to get Goldson into the game, and if Roman is getting burned, Goldson will get his shot to start. But Roman will need to get either hurt or embarassed out there.

Posted By: J-jack (26/08/2008 10:06:43 AM)
Comment: Jesse, Goldston is a better playmaker, but it's about making the calls and Roman is the man the Niner's feel comfortable with manning the radio. If it weren't for the radio issue I think it's a no brainer, but unfortunately Roman holds that key over Dashon. I don't totally agree with it, but I understand it. I myself would just give the radio to M. Lewis or Nate and let Goldston make plays in the secondary until he and P. Willis are ready to wear the radio next year.

Posted By: gw2 (26/08/2008 8:40:48 AM)
Comment: I can't stand to watch the 49ers ever since they ruined the promising career of Jim Druckenmiller. Bastards!

Posted By: Houston 9er (26/08/2008 8:38:42 AM)
Comment: As many have stated, I don't understand why Roman is starting over Goldson. Roman wins because he has more years in the league?? Does anyone remember Dwight Hicks and the hot licks? 9ers won the SB with 3 rookies starting in the secondary. Now that is impressive. If Nolan were the coach of that team, I wonder who would have started in the secondary. Fred Dean probably wouldn't have become a 9er either because he was 1 dimensional. I think it would be cool if all the fans sent small containers of vanilla ice cream to the teams headquarters. That would be something else Peter King could write about - and probably get wrong.

Posted By: THA GRINCH (26/08/2008 8:10:29 AM)
Comment: What the hell did Alex Smith do to some Niner fans to make people root against the Niners and their coaches?This might be the craziest thing Ive seen in 20 years of watching the Niners.People rooting for JTO to go out and nosedive so we can watch Alex go in and misfire and hold the ball to long again?Why wouldnt you want whats best for your team?Your loyalty to Alex has made you guys bitter and you need to wake up.Are you a fan of Smith or the NINERS?I hate to break it to you but Smith will never play a game in a Niner uni again!Hes to expensive and hes hurting our team money wise and bad ju-ju wise.It would be better if they trade him at the end of the season,better for Smith and better for the Niners.The Smith chapter is over and I couldnt be happier,GO NINERS!

Posted By: fsasd (26/08/2008 7:51:39 AM)
Comment: nolan is so afraid to start the younger guy....Goldson has played better than Roman and deserves to start imo. Jimmy Johnson was never afraid to go younger at a position, i wish nolan would be the same

Posted By: Byron (26/08/2008 7:50:27 AM)
Comment: Matt, you said in response to a comment that you didn't see the Yorks replacing both the HC and GM in the same time again. My question is, why wouldn't they consider it (assuming Nolan is fired) if Mike Holgren wants to come here and be both the HC & GM? It has been speculated that he is leaving Seattle b/c they stripped him of the GM role. The Yorks did give that responsibility to a rookie HC who was clearly not capable of handling the dual roles, so why not a proven winner? BTW, I do not support the HC acting as the GM. Thanks!

Posted By: StonerLab (26/08/2008 7:31:10 AM)
Comment: Better late than ever for Lelie eh?. Let's hope he does something in this last pre-season game that the 49er coaches can hang their hat on in order to keep him on the roster. Lelie I think has something that the other WR's don't have & that's the ability to stretch the field & command double teams. That being said the 49ers need to keep 6 WR's on the final roster & hopefully they can get Zieg on the practice squad without another team snatching him up. That kid has alot of upside!

Posted By: Houston 9er (26/08/2008 7:08:54 AM)
Comment: At one time I thought Peter King was a talented writer. Over the past few years he's become a lazy reporter. I believe he was predicting Shaun Hill would win the qb job and the way he phrased it he made it sound as if he had inside information. This whole "he misquoted me" episode is just another example of Nolan's muddled communication style. I just chalk this one up to 2 idiots trying to communicate without an interpreter.

Posted By: mike in MD (26/08/2008 5:54:38 AM)
Comment: Jon in SoCal..I wasn't sure if you wanted Bruce out now 'cause I think we need him with this new Offense & he's a good example & still looks real good out there. Definitely go for a youth movement if Johnson develops. That's a good core. I think these guys need only a year to get a feel for MM's Offense so yeah I could see eating Bruce's contract next year. If not, he might have to move down the depth chart if he can't hold his spot. You want someone to take that #1 & if things go well & how we want them to either Johnson or Morgan should take that #1 slot. Bruce could slide down to #2 or 3. If he goes down to #3 or 4 he might not be happy as you said but you could still keep him if he's productive & if he wants out he could also opt to retire & we wouldn't take the cap hit. This is what makes the Zeigler choice tough. If we keep 6 now & choose him over Lelie (young/durability vs deep threat/recently questionable re. injuries) & not put Zeigler at risk on the PS, that's another good addition to a good young core of wideouts. Zeigler could give you more leverage with our option of releasing Bruce next year if he drops in production too much. Plus he would also be cheaper. Hope that came out right, haven't had the coffee yet. Going for that cup right now.

Posted By: oneniner (26/08/2008 5:45:34 AM)
Comment: All my life studying football. I have never seen a Head coach so clueless when it comes to the offense. I was so naive before about rolling with nolan, I just see a guy a trying to save his job not thinking about the future of the niners......he even has his wife helping him make football decisions.....just doesnt feel right.

Posted By: oneniner (26/08/2008 5:41:17 AM)
Comment: "Oneniner u are usually very optimistic why do u think this will be a bad season?" - one word = Nolan. He his making desperate decisions in the short term, and everytime you do that the risk is huge, if not now but long term. I see A.Smith starting sometime this season and which makes this off season "unfair" QB competition a waste of time. Deep down something tells me JTO is not the answer. I really hope i am wrong.

Posted By: Jesse (26/08/2008 12:50:41 AM)
Comment: Can anyone explain to me why Goldson is not starting? It doesn't make any sense that Roman can get outplayed and still start. Thats too imporatant a position.

Posted By: Jon in SoCal (26/08/2008 12:24:16 AM)
Comment: I looked at the schedule and came to the same conclusion. The 9ers could be 0-8 going into the bye week, although I doubt it. Beat Az, maybe split with SEA. DET, close, NO probable loss, lose to NE, NYG, PHI. Anywhere from 0 wins (if unlucky) to 3-4 wins (if lucky)

Posted By: Ansel (26/08/2008 12:21:18 AM)
Comment: Nolan should be fired for this quote....Didn't he learn anything from last year? Go and tell the QB yourself...Be a man! "He's been told," Nolan said of Smith. "I didn't tell him one-on-one. Aaron brought it to my attention. I said, while I was on defense, 'Will you make sure?' Go mention to Alex the thing for me and I'll talk to him later."

Posted By: mark (26/08/2008 12:14:31 AM)
Comment: matt-love your work but i have to say it seems to me that you and the rest of the beat writers have failed to press nolan on alot of his comments this camp that seemingly having him mistate things or are otherwise not very intelligble...e.g th fair competition, dividing the practices equally, the peter king misquoted me etc....i know questions are asked but nolan's mostly non responsive answers or explanations are never really challenged? Is there a feeling that you can only press so hard...cmon how about a little bernstein and woodard

Posted By: Darren (25/08/2008 11:19:18 PM)
Comment: Kelvin, a NFL coach is hired to help the team win, not just build the team. In Nolan's first year, it was understandable he'd have problems. Year 2 was a bit better, but still not there. Year 3 was very bad. Our 8 games are stacked for us to go 1 and 7 or 2 and 6. I'm sorry that Goodell won't give us an easy schedule for then, it would not be fair to cater to us or Nolan's inability to coach us. All Nolan had to do against Giants/Eagles/Orleans/Hawks was either win or show an impresison, and he does neither one. What happened in Seattle last year was terrible. Giants, very bad. Eagles, very bad. A real coach tries to improve/win. That's why Dungy goes to a Superbowl. Coughlin went to a Superbowl. Holmgren went to a Superbowl. Ditka went to a Superbowl. part of getting there Kelvin is you beat losing teams and you beat winning teams. Did you know the 49ers used to do that? They did with Bill Walsh and Seifert. They actually did better with Mariucci, though I did not like his running calls. But right now as I shed tears for my club, I hope either Mariucci or Holmgren is our coach in 09. You got to go, Mike Nolan. We can't take this anymore. IF you want the 49ers to stay in the Bay Area, Mike Nolan just has to go.

Posted By: Niner Jan (25/08/2008 11:10:16 PM)
Comment: Matt, KELVIN posted the same thing THREE times. His computer must have been slow and he hit the return key 3x.

Posted By: The Marc (25/08/2008 11:03:06 PM)
Comment: Matt I heard from a source that Keith Lewis is going to be out a couple weeks with an undisclosed injury. This could be a bad news to a special teams unit that already has looked bad. Have you heard anything on that front?

Posted By: archie (25/08/2008 10:59:45 PM)
Comment: has anyone bothered to look at the 49ers' first half schedule? call me a pessimist but it looks like there are only 2 "winnable" games (arizona and detroit?). i can see them easily going 1-7 or 2-6 at best. the bye week is after the 8th game. IF the niners are 1-7 or 2-6, i'm thinking that would be a good time to fire nolan and promote martz to interim HC! don't get me wrong...i'm not saying i want martz as HC but anyone is better than nolan at this point. personally, i'm pulling for holmgren next season...or if not holmgren, then bring back mooch! he should've never been fired in the first place!

Posted By: Kelvin (25/08/2008 10:12:03 PM)
Comment: All the guys that write negative things about Nolan and the Niners are not true fans. Nolan has improved this team with talent that we can be excited about. Gore, Davis, Clements, Willis, Staley, Justin Smith, Walt Harris, (Josh Morgan, rookie, but you have to be exited about him) Goldson, who else? I am excited about this team. Who cares what Nolan says anymore to the media? They stir things up b/c it is their job to do so. 9ers will in the west this year b/c JT will fly under the radar like Kurt Warner did and Marc Bulger. Martz has proven what he can do with 3 QBs (Warner, Bulger, Kitna) in the NFL. THE NFL. NOT COLLEGE! 9ers will be much better this year.

Posted By: Kelvin (25/08/2008 10:10:36 PM)
Comment: All the guys that write negative things about Nolan and the Niners are not true fans. Nolan has improved this team with talent that we can be excited about. Gore, Davis, Clements, Willis, Staley, Justin Smith, Walt Harris, (Josh Morgan, rookie, but you have to be exited about him) Goldson, who else? I am excited about this team. Who cares what Nolan says anymore to the media? They stir things up b/c it is their job to do so. 9ers will in the west this year b/c JT will fly under the radar like Kurt Warner did and Marc Bulger. Martz has proven what he can do with 3 QBs (Warner, Bulger, Kitna) in the NFL. THE NFL. NOT COLLEGE! 9ers will be much better this year.

Posted By: Kelvin (25/08/2008 10:09:44 PM)
Comment: All the guys that write negative things about Nolan and the Niners are not true fans. Nolan has improved this team with talent that we can be excited about. Gore, Davis, Clements, Willis, Staley, Justin Smith, Walt Harris, (Josh Morgan, rookie, but you have to be exited about him) Goldson, who else? I am excited about this team. Who cares what Nolan says anymore to the media? They stir things up b/c it is their job to do so. 9ers will in the west this year b/c JT will fly under the radar like Kurt Warner did and Marc Bulger. Martz has proven what he can do with 3 QBs (Warner, Bulger, Kitna) in the NFL. THE NFL. NOT COLLEGE! 9ers will be much better this year.

Posted By: Rosstradamus (25/08/2008 10:09:35 PM)
Comment: 49erGenius- Are you serious? Do us all a favor and stop calling yourself a 49er fan if you're really hoping for blackouts. If you want to watch other games spring for directv and get NFL ticket...trust me its worth it.

Posted By: 49erGenius (25/08/2008 9:50:54 PM)
Comment: Hi Matt, I was wondering, are the 49ers close to a local blackout? Friends of mine are sick of coming to my house and being entertained by bad football from the 49ers. I want to see Eagles/Cowboys or Colts/Pats, any chance the 49ers and Raiders get local blackouts? Not being sarcastic with this post. Thanks, Matt and go 49ers. But I really hope to hear a Fire Mike Nolan chant, that's getting catchy from the Webzone forum that I'm on about Fire Nolan.

Posted By: Darren (25/08/2008 9:47:39 PM)
Comment: Hey oneniner old buddy, I don't blame you. I'm glad I got Madden 09, but I'm seriously going to cut JT O sullivan. He's the worse no. 3 on Madden 09, throws like he's the PUNTER for crying out loud! Just whip out the old Madden 09 and think of what could've been if Nolan was a real coach. Right now, Suit and No Win just manage our 49ers and hopefully, if York wants to win and stay in the Bay Area, he better ouster Nolan pretty fast.

Posted By: Jon in SoCal (25/08/2008 9:14:32 PM)
Comment: Mike in MD: Bruce is our best route runner right now. He signed a 2 year contract and he is a starter right now. If the WR corps develops and Bryant, Hill, Morgan and Battle continue to improve in this offense, NEXT year the consideration has to be if Bryant is signed to a longer term deal. Knowing McCloughin and Parag, they might try to sign him mid-season if he is doind well. I don't think Bruce is going to accept a pay cut or going from #1 to #4-5, so I would take the cap hit.

Posted By: shobbrobb (25/08/2008 9:07:27 PM)
Comment: Oneniner u are usually very optimistic why do u think this will be a bad season?

Posted By: oneniner (25/08/2008 8:47:50 PM)
Comment: ...so tired of the nolan b.s....can we just get this losing season started....i really hope i am wrong

Posted By: KezarMike (25/08/2008 8:46:43 PM)
Comment: Can Tim Lincecum play football?

Posted By: geary (25/08/2008 8:12:01 PM)
Comment: Matt: In my opinion, Mike Nolan is gone after the season. Any chance the 49ers replace him w/Mike Holmgren. He said himself(tonight on ESPN) that he will be gone at the end of the season and that Jim Mora will be replacing him. He would be a great hire..unless of course Martz is a candidate for the job.

Posted By: Chico John (25/08/2008 7:43:54 PM)
Comment: Matt: What bothers me is 49ers don't seem to be ready to play on opening day of the regular season. JTO will be our starter and in the last two preseason games (include this Friday) he will have only had one quarter (bears) and scheduled for one series (Chargers) Friday. Is this adequate preperation? There seems to be a lot of malingers who don't want to play pre-season and yet we are supposed to be running on all cylinders opening day. I just don't see it happening. This is nothing new for a Nolan coached team. It begins with the train camp atmosphere, its not training camp, not even home away from home. Its just a Country Club disguising itself as something else. (I know, I've been there). The 49ers are soft and it shows up on the field. If the first four games dictate NOlans future, he deserves his fate.

Posted By: SB from SF (25/08/2008 7:25:19 PM)
Comment: RealFan49 - I think that Nolan is a great coach 6 days out of the week; Problem is that 7th day is game day. I still don't think he can manage a game properly. We're still getting delay of game penalties and wasting timeout which are coaching penalties. I'd also like to remind you that down by 7 w/ 1:30 left in the game he kicked a field goal on 4th & short from about the 30 yard line. We needed a touchdown and he put us in a situation where we still needed a touchdown. Then to top it all off he didn't even go for the onside kick. Nolan has done some good things w/ the draft (minus A. Smith, B. Williams & a couple others) and has brought the team back somewhat from the depths of the Donahue/Erickson era, but he's still a crap day game coach.

Posted By: RealFan49 (25/08/2008 7:14:45 PM)
Comment: ..and he shouldn't go. He's done one hell of a job with the 49ers and is the most truthful coach in the NFL. Problem on this blog and others is that the regular posters want an immediate return to the top echelon and have decided that Nolan is the only thing that's holding the niners back. Totally ridiculous. He's taken the niners from the worst team/worst roster/worst coaching staff to having a superb set of coaches, top half talent and this year, an offense to go with a first rate ST & Def. I'd give him an contract extension in a heart beat and I'd also make Martz the highest paid co-coordinator in the league in an attempt to lock him for as long as possible. Playoffs? You bet.

Posted By: ShaneO (25/08/2008 7:12:56 PM)
Comment: Matt- can you explain why Nolan is "all about competition" but he wont give Goldston a shot over that Non-play-making starter we have now (Roman)? is there something your seeing in practice?

Posted By: Jim in Walnut Creek (25/08/2008 7:10:51 PM)
Comment: Agree that de la Puente's arm "injury" soiunds bogus. Looking to hide him for PS. Should do the same for Holmes. Like Wragge moving to LG. Snyder very close to losing his starting job? Let's see how Rachal works at RG. Expect Baas to be very rusty. Lelie is OFF this roster. He's only trying to play himself back onto it.

Posted By: ninernutt (25/08/2008 6:34:03 PM)
Comment: I am just as 'unimpressed' to this point with Nolan as the next person. But Hey, come on with the "...Nolan's gotta go" theme already. It has worn very, very thin with everyone and his brother trying to come up with a still more cutesy and inventive way to get that point across. Nolan is not going anywhere before the end of the season. I know it. He knows it. Just about everyone with a pulse knows it. So, please let it alone already. Thank you.

Posted By: MARCO from New York (25/08/2008 6:22:59 PM)
Comment: Nolan is the George W. Bush of coaches, a total incompetent who talks tough to try and hide the fact that he does not have a clue!

Posted By: PD (25/08/2008 6:14:27 PM)
Comment: Hi Matt - How did Lelie look in practice today? Did they send any bombs his way or is the practice closed to the reporters?

Response: They did send him deep. He looked OK. I have a few thoughts about Lelie's candidacy for a roster spot. I'll write about that tomorrow. --Matt M.

Posted By: Jesse (25/08/2008 5:54:26 PM)
Comment: The problem is that he does not know what he is saying. For example, he says he will welcome any player that will make the team better. Does that statement hold for head coaches?

Posted By: mike in MD (25/08/2008 5:42:20 PM)
Comment: Jon in SoCal..are you talking about now or at the end of the season? Right now I think Bruce is valuable. He runs the cleanest routes of any WR. He'll get open & be productive. Just by watching him should rub off on the other receivers. I agree, I hope Martz calls more plays for VD. Getting past the LB's while the secondary covers the other wideouts is going to be a big mismatch. That's going to be open for the taking A LOT. It will be a challenge for Martz because he wants VD for added pass pro. Hard choice between Lelie & Zeigler though. If Lelie really shows up strong this week, looks close to 100%, & not too far behind on the playbook I'd take Lelie. We need as many deep threat options as we can get. Zeigler hasn't missed any practice time & has very good hands. Definitely a tough choice.

Posted By: Jon in SoCal (25/08/2008 5:27:02 PM)
Comment: Marco: We're seeing why he slipped so much in the draft. The criticism was that he was to tall, didn't play with leverage and was inconsistant. Draftniks were also worried that he only had 1 year of production. Hopefully he'll improve to be a factor this year. While we expect #1 picks to contribute, it is nice to know we have enough talent now so that the top 3 picks don't automatically start

Posted By: mike in MD (25/08/2008 5:26:26 PM)
Comment: Steve..Jason Hill ran I believe a 4.37/40 in the combine. Matt said in one of his reports he doesn't translate that on the field. When I watch him in the games that looks totally accurate. If he can get separation that's good enough for me but he doesn't look like a breakaway type runner which you should be if you have that time. Hill looks to have good speed but not great speed. Just not that deep threat. Now Lelie, he's a real burner. If he could stay healthy he can really help this Offense. He'll get the respect & demand some double coverage.

Posted By: xl (25/08/2008 5:26:00 PM)
Comment: matt who do you see filling out the practice squad spots? what are the chances that colvin, de la puente, t clayton, holmes etc get picked up by others?

Posted By: Jon in Socal (25/08/2008 5:23:47 PM)
Comment: If Bryant does well, I would rather eat Bruce's contract and keep Bryant, Morgan, Battle and Hill. It gives us youth . In terms of vertical threats, has anyone seen VD this preseason? He outran every deep ball. The QB has to get the ball out there and let him run on to it. Anyone else thinking that de la Puente's arm "injury" is like SHill's? We can stash him on the PS while Wragge learns the left side to push Snyder.

Posted By: Marco from Stockton (25/08/2008 5:19:15 PM)
Comment: What's up with Kentwan Balmer? I heard today he has pretty much been a non factor in camp and a long ways off for a first round pick. Any thoughts?

Posted By: Greg (25/08/2008 5:12:11 PM)
Comment: Josh Morgan is for real. Arnaz Battle is the one most affected. I see Battle sharing playing time with Morgan. If Morgan plays well, the team will not resign Johnson next year.

Posted By: Randy in Santa Rosa (25/08/2008 5:05:39 PM)
Comment: Thanks Matt. How did the timing look with Lelie, Battle & O'Sullivan during practice? Hopefully Baas gets up to speed quick.

Posted By: Darth (25/08/2008 4:57:38 PM)
Comment: Yeah Roman needs to step it up because the kid (Goldson) hits harder and is always around the ball. Now if we can get Fields or Soap at nose instead of Franklin

Posted By: Steve (25/08/2008 4:55:46 PM)
Comment: Matt - Jason Hill ran the fastest 40 for any WR at the combine a couple years ago, why isn't he being used on the deep routes? Lelie seems to be so injury prone.

Posted By: Captain Obvious (25/08/2008 4:51:34 PM)
Comment: NO, Goldson is not going to start. Has Nolan not made it clear that he likes Roman, that he wants him on the field. This has been answered numerous times. Although he hasn't out played him, Roman is going to start. And it isn't just passing on the call, it is giving last minute views of the field and personel, you can talk to the player up until 15 seconds on the play clock.

Posted By: Ricky (25/08/2008 4:49:08 PM)
Comment: I'm pretty sure if you take a look at some of the past post, you can figure out which 20 are on the bubble.

Posted By: Ian M (25/08/2008 4:47:02 PM)
Comment: Matt - Is there any chance that Goldson gets a start in front of Roman. Maybe it is just pre-season play but Roman is not looking good and Goldson always seems to be around a play when it happens. Why do they want to make it seem like it is some big deal to hear a voice in your ear tell you the play and than to relay those exact words to the defense? How would doing that throw somebody off their game?

Posted By: ninerindallas (25/08/2008 4:32:58 PM)
Comment: matt, is there anyway we could get like a 20 most likly not to make the final roster cuts. it would be nice to have one early so we can compare on the people who got cut practiced in the interm. thanks for all the good info

Posted By: Ryan in Stockton (25/08/2008 4:20:12 PM)
Comment: Nolan asked the 49er's PR guy to tell Smith...what? Can Nolan not have the decency to tell his former starter for the past 3 years himself?