SANTA CLARA – Here’s the full transcript of Vic Fangio’s Thursday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. Fangio praised Aaron Rodgers and Marshall Newhouse, and confirmed that Perrish Cox is the No.4 cornerback. As a defensive coordinator, when you know you have more than four months to prepare for one team, the next team on the schedule, how do you approach it? “Well, me personally, we get right into it…
SANTA CLARA – Donte Whitner spoke in the media tent Thursday afternoon. He broke down what makes Aaron Rodgers so good and why he doesn’t throw many interceptions. Whitner also predicted Randy Moss would face one-on-one coverage this Sunday. Here’s a transcript. Q: Of all the aspects of the pass game that Aaron Rodgers and the Packers are good at, what jumps out to you? WHITNER: He’s a very confident…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s the transcript of Alex Smith’s Wednesday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. What are your emotions for the regular season opener? “Just to prepare myself this week. It’s the opener, everybody has a lot of emotions. Pretty jacked up, getting ready for this. But for me, just to not get ahead of yourself. Just kind of focus on the next meeting, next practice, day-to-day and putting…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s the transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s Wednesday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. You’re looking alive. Did you have enough sleep last night? Everything good? “Yes, everything’s scary good. Word’s out. Jack Jr. reported for duty yesterday at 1:27 p.m. He was 8 pounds, 8 ounces. Came 10 days early, which is to be expected. The good ones like to come in early. And also I think…
SANTA CLARA – Aaron Rodgers spoke to Bay Area reporters this afternoon on a conference call. He spoke about the Justin Smith, NaVorro Bowman, Alex Smith and the term “game manager.” Here’s a transcript. Q: What makes the 49ers’ defense stand out among the NFL’s defenses? RODGERS: They have the best players. Front the front-seven to the back end they’re solid. They don’t have any weaknesses. A lot of Pro-Bowl…
Top five questions as we head into training camp, starting Monday: Will Dashon Goldson hold out? He wanted a multi-year extension from the Niners, but the July 16 deadline passed and the Niners didn’t give him one. All he can do now is sign the one-year franchise tender. The same situation happened to former Niners nose tackle Aubrayo Franklin two seasons ago. Franklin wanted an extension and didn’t get one,…
I was reading a Greg Cosell article this morning called “The Evolving Chess Match” and I found it interesting, so I’m passing it along to you. Here’s the key excerpt from the article: “There are always exceptions, but defensively, if you expect to beat the top passing games, you must be able to stop shotgun offenses with five receivers than can align at any position. That’s the next frontier.” The…
As we examine the details of team building this offseason, let’s also look at the big picture, just for fun. How do the Niners match up against the Green Bay Packers, their first opponent next season? NINERS DEFENSE VS. PACKERS OFFENSE: Green Bay may have the best offense in the NFL, but it doesn’t match up well with the Niners defense because Green Bay’s offensive line simply isn’t good enough….
The Santa Rosa Press Democrat just posted my dad’s Tuesday column on the Super Bowl. Before the Super Bowl he asked if Tom Brady was as good as Joe Montana – the greatest quarterback of all time. Now, we know that he ain’t. So, in this column my dad asks a new question: Could Eli Manning be the closest quarterback to Joe Cool in the NFL right now? To read…
I’m not saying Alex Smith is a better quarterback than Aaron Rodgers, but which guy played better this weekend? Smith led two game-winning drives, he threw three touchdown passes and ran for one more, plus he finished with a 103.2 QB rating. Rodgers didn’t lead any game-winning drives, he threw a pick and his quarterback rating was a mere 78.5. It used to be you couldn’t mention Smith and Rodgers…
ESPN.com’s Mike Sando has unearthed two very interesting takes on Alex Smith – one is a stat and one is a scout’s opinion. First, the stat. According to an ESPN stats and information analyst, John McTigue, Alex Smith has thrown the lowest percentage of passes in 2011 which have been intercepted or defensed – 5.8%. Aaron Rodgers has the next lowest percentage. What does this mean to you? To me…
As if it wasn’t painful enough for Niners fans to watch Aaron Rodgers flourish, here comes this revelation via SI.com: Green Bay’s quarterback received important career advice three years ago from Steve Young, one of his boyhood idols when he was growing up in Chico.
Late in the second quarter of the Niners’ 34-7 loss to San Diego on Thursday night, Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers spotted the mismatch — wide receiver Vincent Jackson on linebacker Takeo Spikes — and lofted a pass to Jackson for a much-too-easy 11-yard touchdown. After the game, Spikes didn’t reveal whether he was supposed to receive help on the play. Instead, he focused on Rivers, who made the play happen….
