Niners fans already knew they would get their first look at quarterback Troy Smith on Sunday.
And based on what Mike Singletary said today, they might also get their most extended looks of the season at backup running backs Brian Westbrook and Anthony Dixon when the 49ers meet the Broncos at Wembley Stadium.
Yes, we know, Singletary and offensive coordinator Mike Johnson have delivered this line before. A lot.
And, yet, Westbrook and Dixon have remained surgically affixed to the
bench. Through seven games, Westbrook and Dixon have combined for seven
carries, or 128 fewer than Frank Gore, whose workload, the Niners keep
insisting, simply must decrease.
So when Singletary said the backups would see more action Sunday you
could almost hear the eyes roll, if such a thing was possible. Follow-up
question: Is it a priority?
“It is a priority. Yes it is,” said Singletary, who later added of
Westbrook and Dixon, “We just have to do a better job of getting them
in.”
I know, I know, fool me once … but with Smith starting at quarterback,
it’s possible the Niners might have little choice but to hand the ball
to someone besides Gore, who has touched the ball on 42 percent of their
offensive plays. Think the offensive game plan calls for Troy Smith to
sling it 30 times in possibly wet conditions? Think Gore can stay
upright if given 52 carries?
To prepare you for what you might see Sunday, here’s some information you
should know: Brian Westbrook wears No. 20. Anthony Dixon is No. 24.
• The Niners will have just two quarterbacks — Smith and David Carr —
on the 45-man roster Sunday. Singletary said “one or two guys” could
fill in an emergency situation if both Smith and Carr weren’t available
during the game. Wide receiver Dominique Zeigler, who played quarterback
as a senior in high school, might be one of those players.
Of course, Nate Davis, who remains on the practice squad, could have
been promoted to serve as the emergency quarterback Sunday. Singletary
was asked why Davis wasn’t elevated to the active roster.
“Because there are other needs that we have on the 45-man roster and
there are only so many people you can bring up,” he said. “We have one
or two guys that could step up in case of emergency and if we have to go
through two quarterbacks, hopefully our offensive line can block a
little better than that.”
• The 49ers practice field this week at The Grove has been a bit spongy
due to sporadic rains, but Singletary chose not to move practices to a
site such as Arsenal’s nearby indoor training center.
The logic behind the move was that the soggy field might perfectly mirror the field conditions Sunday.
“That’s something we discussed early on in the week knowing that the
situation that we’re going to play in is going to be very similar to
what we have out here,” Singletary said. “Rather than try and find a
bubble or something like that, let the guys out and experience what the
field is pretty much going to be like because the grass is cut just
about the same level at Wembley as it is here.”
• Vernon Davis, who suffered an ankle injury last week against Carolina,
could miss his third straight practice today. Singletary expects him to
play Sunday. UPDATE: Davis did practice today.
• How much of an NFL playbook can a quarterback digest in less than two
months? Perhaps not all of it. Singletary conceded Smith hasn’t mastered
the entire offense leading into Sunday’s game, “He’ll have enough for
us to function and get where we need to go,” he said.
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