SANTA CLARA — Jim Harbaugh spoke in the media tent Monday afternoon. Here’s what he said about a few of his own players. Q: Frank Gore has 103 carries through seven games. Is that about what you want from him workload-wise? He’s carried the ball considerably less than he had at this point last year. HARBAUGH: No, didn’t have a number in mind. Q: Generally speaking, did you want him…
SAN FRANCISCO – I couldn’t find Brandon Jacobs in the 49ers locker room after the game. I waited until every player left. Still no Jacobs. So I walked to the Giants’ locker room. Who did I see? Jacobs. He was talking to Justin Tuck, his former teammate. Tuck was sitting on a stool. Jacobs was leaning against the locker, wearing camouflage pants and a green polo shirt. He was talking…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s the complete transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s Friday press conference minus the parts about Kevin Gilbride, courtesy of the 49ers. There are already a lot of emotions going into this game. Is there a risk of being too emotional for this team? Given what happened in the Championship Game, given what’s been said back and forth, coach to coach going into this game? “I think those…
SANTA CLARA — Here’s what Greg Roman said about Alex Smith and the 49ers offense at the Thursday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. Can you just talk a little bit about QB Alex Smith and the improvement you’ve seen in him and what may have allowed him to take what looks like a pretty big leap this year? “I think Alex is performing exactly as we hope any…
SANTA CLARA — Vic Fangio spoke in the media tent on Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the New York Giants offense, courtesy of the 49ers. Can you point to some of the major differences with the Giants offense from when you played them nine months ago? “There’s not much difference. No sense for them to change a successful formula. They have a real good offense, starting with…
SANTA CLARA – Brandon Jacobs told USA Today on Wednesday he’s very frustrated with his role on the 49ers. On Thursday in the 49ers’ locker room he clarified those comments to Bay Area reporters. JACOBS: It’s going to be a good week for me. That’s all I can tell you guys. I’ve been working hard every day. I’m in a unique situation. Most guys like me don’t ever have a…
SANTA CLARA — According to Mike Garafolo, USA Today national football writer and former New York Giants’ beat writer, Brandon Jacobs is very frustrated with his role on the 49ers. Why is Jacobs frustrated? “Because I don’t know anything,” he told Garafolo. “I don’t know what’s what.” Jacobs reportedly said he’s healthy, he doesn’t know why he didn’t play against the Bills and he would be disappointed if he didn’t get to…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s what Tom Coughlin said to Bay Area reporters about the New York Giants Wednesday morning on a conference call. Q: How much of the success of your defense is related to your abilities to get pressure on the quarterback with just four guys? COUGHLIN: That’s always been our strong point. We haven’t gotten much pressure this year comparatively. Obviously it’s something we’re trying to regenerate. Hopefully…
The 49ers play the Giants at Candlestick on Sunday. In the meantime, I’ll break down a couple of key matchups per day. The 49ers running attack vs. the Giants run defense This is a lopsided match up. The 49ers average 6.1 yards per rush – that’s No.1 in the league by almost a full yard per carry. The Giants defense allows 4.5 yards per carry – 25th best in the…
SANTA CLARA — Jim Harbaugh spoke in the media tent Friday afternoon. He talked about meeting Willie Mays, playing three home games in a row and the role of motivational speaking in coaching. Harbaugh even quoted Napoleon. Here’s the transcript, courtesy of the 49ers. We haven’t talked to you since you had your special visitor here on Wednesday, number 24 Willie Mays. How was that? “It was awesome. It…
The 49ers will dismantle the Bills on Sunday, just take them apart. The Bills defense can’t stop the run – they give up an average of 4.8 yards per attempt. I expect the following sequence to happen more than once: Frank Gore up the middle for five yards on first and ten; Kendall Hunter up the middle for four yards on second and five; Brandon Jacobs up the middle for…
SANTA CLARA — Greg Roman’s Thursday press conference transcript, courtesy of the 49ers. Opening Statement: “Good afternoon. Really proud of how our guys finished out that road trip and we’re back here working on the Bills. Got a lot of respect for what we’re seeing of the Bills. They had tough second half the other day, but really it’s just as much a credit to the team they were…
Greg Roman’s Thursday press conference transcript, courtesy of the 49ers. Opening statement: “Is it afternoon yet? Yes it is, good afternoon. If I appear unshaven I apologize, but this Jets defense forces our whole staff to stay up into the wee hours of the morning. We know [Head Coach] Rex Ryan, I worked with Rex, [Defensive Coordinator] Mike Pettine and [Defensive Backs Coach] Dennis Thruman. Some really good coaches,…
SANTA CLARA – Friday in the media tent, Jim Harbaugh compared Frank Gore to Walter Payton, evaluated Kyle Williams’ Week 1 performance and the offense’s third down production. Here’s a transcript, courtesy of the 49ers. I’m not trying to be fresh when I ask this, but how did WR Kyle Williams do? I think he had six punts in Green Bay? “Yeah, he did really well. Got to love it…
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…
Here are my preseason Week 2 grades for the 49ers’ offense. OFFENSIVE LINE: B+. They opened up big holes in the running game and played pretty well overall, but it’s important to note they didn’t have to face two of the Texans’ starting defensive linemen – Shaun Cody and J.J Watt. Alex Smith got sacked twice and took five big hits in the first quarter, but the offensive line wasn’t…
SAN FRANCISCO – Here are my preseason Week One grades for the Niners’ offense. Offensive line: A. In the running game, they completely pushed the Vikings’ defensive line around. The 49ers averaged 6.3 yards per rush because the offensive line created gaping holes all night. Rock Cartwright gained 44 yards on 8 carries. When was the last time you saw Cartwright do that? In pass protection, the offensive line looked…
SAN FRANCISCO – Alex Smith spoke at his locker after the 49ers 17-6 preseason victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Friday night. Smith gave big praise to Brandon Jacobs, Brett Swain and the offensive line. Here’s the transcript of the interview, courtesy of the 49ers. What were your thoughts on the performance of the offense? “We ran the ball really well on the opening drive and all game. I…
SANTA CLARA – On Friday, Alex Smith discussed why the Niners defense has recently dominated the offense in practice, how the passing game has progressed what he thinks of A.J. Jenkins so far. Here’s a transcript, courtesy of the 49ers. How would you describe the last two days as far as it pertains to who has gotten the better of whom out there? “Lopsided the last couple of days….
SANTA CLARA – Friday in the media tent, Jim Harbaugh explained that his defense dominated his offense in practice. He also explained why Mike Iupati did not participate and why Alex Boone did not finish the team drills. Here’s a transcript of the press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. Opening statement: “Hello. [G] Mike Iupati was excused from practice today, expecting their first child, [his wife] Ashley and Mike…
