Why The 49Ers Are So Good This Year...
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Written by: Kerry J. Byrne of Sports Illustrated
49ers' turnaround thanks to league's best coaching job
Jim Harbaugh captured the wrong kind of attention with that handshake controversy. His San Francisco 49ers had just toppled the undefeated Lions, 25-19, in Week 6 when Harbaugh's postgame meet-and-greet with Detroit coach Jim Schwartz nearly descended into fisticuffs.
The ugly WWE-style incident was an unfortunate end to an otherwise great contest between two up-and-coming teams.
It was a particularly unfortunate turn of events for the winning coach. His irrational exuberance overshadowed what should be one of the big stories of the 2011 season: The 49ers, under their rookie head man, are the best-coached team in football right now.
That's right. No coach has his team playing smarter or more efficiently than Harbaugh.
Many analysts try to judge the quality of coaching with the eye test. The Cold, Hard Football Facts can quantify San Francisco's razor-sharp performances with something very tangible: We can measure the quality of coaching with the harsh, inalterable reality of raw numbers.
Quantifying Team-Wide Efficiency We track each NFL team in two key measures of efficiency. We call them Scoreability (offensive efficiency) and Bendability (defensive efficiency), which quantifies the bend-but-don't-break phenomenon. These are two of our Quality Stats, indicators that have a direct correlation to winning football games.
Each indicator takes into account a variety of factors that go into winning football, including proficiency of special teams, field position, red zone offense and defense, penalties, third-down offense and defense and turnover differential, and spits out those performances in an easy-to-understand number.
Essentially, we measure how each team performs in so-called "situational football." Put most simply, Scoreability and Bendability tell us which teams are smart and well-coached and which teams are not.
And no team right now is smarter or more well-coached than Harbaugh's 49ers:
• No. 1 in Scoreability through Week 7.• No. 1 in Bendability through Week 7.
Harbaugh's team is boldly sailing into uncharted waters of efficiency. Since we began tracking these indicators in 2004, no team has ranked No. 1 in both offensive and defensive efficiency.
Keep in mind that these measures are much more than just intellectual exercises by stat geeks far removed from the sidelines. Proficiency in these indicators is critical to team success: teams that win the Scoreability-Bendability battle of efficiency are 83-20 (.806) through Week 7, including an incredible 23-3 in the last two weeks (.885).
In other words, smart, efficient teams win football games. Dumb, inefficient teams lose football games. (We track the Correlation to Victory of these and many other stats at CHFF Insider.)
Harbaugh's 49ers are 5-1 and the surprise story of 2011 because they are the smartest, most efficient in football.
A Record Pace Of Scoring Efficiency
We measure each team's Scoreabilty through Yards Per Point Scored -- how many yards you need to score the equivalent of a single point. The lower the number, the better.
No team has scored more efficiently than the 49ers. San Francisco has produced a meager 1,815 yards of offense. But it has still managed to hang 167 points on the scoreboard. That's an incredible 10.87 Yards Per Point Scored. In other words, the 49ers are good for about one point with each first down.
Not only is that performance No. 1 here in 2011, it's on pace to approach the performance of the 2007 Patriots. That 16-0 New England team needed just 11.17 Yards Per Point Scored.
The 2011 Patriots, meanwhile, help put in perspective the incredible efficiency of Harbaugh's crew. Bill Belichick's team has generated 2,847 yards of offense this year -- 1,032 more yards than the 49ers in just six games. But the Patriots have scored just 18 points more.
The highly prolific Patriots are wasting a lot of yards, leaving a lot of points on the field and failing to generate points from units other than the offense -- especially when compared with the 49ers.
The importance of efficiency is far more dramatic if we put Scoreability in the context of touchdowns.
The 49ers need just 76.1 yards of offense to score the equivalent of 7 points. The St. Louis Rams are dead last in Scoreability: they need 225.9 yards of offense to score the equivalent of 7 points.
Wow, what a difference! There is little wasted effort out of the well-oiled San Francisco machine. The Rams, meanwhile, are riddled with poor field position, poor execution and poor situational football.
Believe it or not, 5-1 San Francisco and 0-6 St. Louis are almost dead even in total offense: 1,815 yards for the 49ers; 1,807 for the Rams. But the 49ers have scored 167 points; the Rams have scored just 56. The winless St. Louis offense spins its wheels week after week, loss after loss.
Generating yards does not win NFL games, which is why it's a waste of time for analysts to rank units by total offense or total defense. Instead, winning in the NFL is all about what you do with that output.
Smart, well-coached teams maximize their production. Harbaugh's 49ers are getting the ball in good field position, they're playing smartly in the red zone and on special teams and they're not coughing up the football in bad situations.
(Note: Scoreability counts ALL points, not just those generated by the offense. The scoreboard does not care how those points get there, only that they do. Well-coached teams score points as many ways as possible. Scoreabilty rewards teams for proficiency in all phases of the game; Bendability applies the same rules to defense.)
Football's Best "Bend But Don't Break" Defense
The same benefit of efficiency applies to defense, where San Francisco is No. 1 in Bendability. They force opponents to march a spirit-killing 20.76 Yards Per Point Allowed.
In the context of touchdowns, San Francisco's opponents need 145.3 yards of offense to put 7 points on the board. They have the best "bend-but-don't-break" defense in football. Opponents may generate a lot of yards, but they do very little with all that effort.
Now compare San Francisco's very bendable defense to the peanut-butter-brittle unit fielded by the winless Colts. Indy opponents need just 90.6 yards of offense to score the equivalent of a touchdown.
In other words, statistically speaking, almost every drive against the Colts results in a touchdown. In the case of the 62-7 loss to New Orleans on Sunday, this statistical phenomenon was on-field reality: the Saints scored on every drive but their last one.
It was a virtuoso performance of efficiency: New Orleans needed just 8.98 Yards Per Point Scored. But even then, it was only slightly more efficient than San Francisco's performance all year along (10.17 Yards Per Point Scored).
The 49ers do all the little things right to make life tough for opposing offenses: they put them in bad situations, make them march long distances, win the turnover battle, and stiffen in the red zone.
Harbaugh's 49ers are playing smart, efficient situational football in all phases of the game heading into their Week 8 visit from Cleveland. And it's this quality of play that's the biggest reason the 6-10 49ers of 2010 are 5-1 today.
Models Of Inefficiency
The 49ers may not be more talented than their opponents. But they're winning games because they're smarter than the other guys.
Conversely, the NFL each year gives us seemingly talented teams that fail to live up to expectations.
If you see a talented but under-achieving team, turn immediately to Scoreability and Bendabilty and there you will see what's wrong with said team. In almost every instance, these talented underachievers play stupid football.
Norv Turner's Chargers are a prime example of a team that consistently possesses boatloads of talent but that fails to live up to expectations.
The 2010 Chargers, for example, were No. 1 in both total offense and total defense. Yet they went 9-7 and failed to make the playoffs. The problem? The consistently dumb, inefficient Chargers ranked No. 28 in Bendability, meaning they surrendered a lot of cheap points that made it hard to win games.
The 2011 Chargers are even worse: No. 31 in Bendability. Only the winless Colts surrender more cheap points.
The Philadelphia Eagles are the poster child of a talented but dumb football team here in 2011. They seem to have all the pieces in place, including game-breakers all over the field -- to the point that they were dubbed the "Dream Team" after cleaning up in the free-agent market.
But the Eagles are just 2-4 and dead last in the tough NFC East.
The problems in Philadelphia are easy to diagnose: this talented "Dream Team" is the worst in the NFL at situational football.
The Eagles rank No. 28 in both Scoreability (18.28 Yards Per Point Scored) and Bendability (14.12 Yards Per Point Allowed).
They waste a lot of effort on offense, generating yards with little to show for it. Then they compound the problems on defense, by giving up a lot of cheap points that make it hard to win games.
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"No team has scored more efficiently than the 49ers. San Francisco has produced a meager 1,815 yards of offense. But it has still managed to hang 167 points on the scoreboard. That's an incredible 10.87 Yards Per Point Scored. In other words, the 49ers are good for about one point with each first down.
Not only is that performance No. 1 here in 2011, it's on pace to approach the performance of the 2007 Patriots. That 16-0 New England team needed just 11.17 Yards Per Point Scored."
This is where you are drinking the koolaid comparing SF to the 2007 Patriots. The Patriots scored 95% of their pts from offense alone, while you are getting about half of your points off special teams and defensive turnovers. So it really is no where near 10.87 yards per pt scored considering much of your points aren't related to your offense. That means SF is playing very strong in all 3 phases of the game and very efficiently. But it also means you don't have as good of an offense as you think you do. There is no doubt that SF will make the playoffs, but they will come back down to earth before the season is over.
I predict SF finishes 10-6 winning the NFC West and having home field advantage in the first round as a 3 or 4 seed. I wouldn't be surprised if that is all you do. It's amazing you are thinking Super Bowl with a below average QB and no real WR threats (Davis is solid as a TE but thats it). Your defense is solid and so is your special teams, but SF is not an elite team..
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First and foremost, I didn't write the article. I only posted it. Therefore no koolaid.
Secondly, Our Offense has scored 15 TDs this year. The Defense has scored 1. ST have scored 2. So no, half our TDs do not come from our D and ST. What our D and ST do is consistently give us good field position and our opponents poor field position.
The stats don't lie and were calculated in exactly the same way for the '11 Niners as the '07 Patriots.
I predict this is only the beginning and the worst the Niners will finish is 13-3. 15-1 is a distinct possibility. My only question is will they be the #1 or #2 seed in the playoffs. I'm not sure that even the Packers can beat us.
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"No team has scored more efficiently than the 49ers. San Francisco has produced a meager 1,815 yards of offense. But it has still managed to hang 167 points on the scoreboard. That's an incredible 10.87 Yards Per Point Scored. In other words, the 49ers are good for about one point with each first down.
Not only is that performance No. 1 here in 2011, it's on pace to approach the performance of the 2007 Patriots. That 16-0 New England team needed just 11.17 Yards Per Point Scored."
This is where you are drinking the koolaid comparing SF to the 2007 Patriots. The Patriots scored 95% of their pts from offense alone, while you are getting about half of your points off special teams and defensive turnovers. So it really is no where near 10.87 yards per pt scored considering much of your points aren't related to your offense. That means SF is playing very strong in all 3 phases of the game and very efficiently. But it also means you don't have as good of an offense as you think you do. There is no doubt that SF will make the playoffs, but they will come back down to earth before the season is over.
I predict SF finishes 10-6 winning the NFC West and having home field advantage in the first round as a 3 or 4 seed. I wouldn't be surprised if that is all you do. It's amazing you are thinking Super Bowl with a below average QB and no real WR threats (Davis is solid as a TE but thats it). Your defense is solid and so is your special teams, but SF is not an elite team..
"No team has scored more efficiently than the 49ers. San Francisco has produced a meager 1,815 yards of offense. But it has still managed to hang 167 points on the scoreboard. That's an incredible 10.87 Yards Per Point Scored. In other words, the 49ers are good for about one point with each first down.
Not only is that performance No. 1 here in 2011, it's on pace to approach the performance of the 2007 Patriots. That 16-0 New England team needed just 11.17 Yards Per Point Scored."
This is where you are drinking the koolaid comparing SF to the 2007 Patriots. The Patriots scored 95% of their pts from offense alone, while you are getting about half of your points off special teams and defensive turnovers. So it really is no where near 10.87 yards per pt scored considering much of your points aren't related to your offense. That means SF is playing very strong in all 3 phases of the game and very efficiently. But it also means you don't have as good of an offense as you think you do. There is no doubt that SF will make the playoffs, but they will come back down to earth before the season is over.
I predict SF finishes 10-6 winning the NFC West and having home field advantage in the first round as a 3 or 4 seed. I wouldn't be surprised if that is all you do. It's amazing you are thinking Super Bowl with a below average QB and no real WR threats (Davis is solid as a TE but thats it). Your defense is solid and so is your special teams, but SF is not an elite team..
Can you honestly say you've watched a 49er game this year? Or for the past couple years? First of all, Michael Crabtree is a threat for a wide reciever, and Ted Gin Jr. is also a threat with his speed. Second of all, Alex Smith is NOT below average. I don't care what you think about him, but this is false. Since his shoulder was broken, he has put quarterback ratings over 80 for 2 seasons, going into this year, with Mike Singletary who knows NOTHING about offense as his head coach, and Jimmy Raye, who is almost 70 and could possibly be the worse offensive coordinator ever with as long as a tenure as he has had.
You know nothing about the 49ers. You just think we are on a lucky streak because we were bad for so long. You fail to realize the talent our team has, and the horrible coaching that has plagued this team.
Think about it.
We were 6-10 last year, lost out first 6 games of the year. We head into this year with a brand new coach who has no track record in the NFL as a head coach. Theres the lock out, and the coach has VERY limited time to prepare his team for the season. What are the expectations? Bad. But how did we end up? 5-1, with one of the hardest schedules and only 1 game against a team in our division, which was an away game.
You know why this happened?
We have alot of talent noone knew about, and our QB is actually pretty decent. We have been victoms of horrible coaching for the last decade.
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Also, half of our points not scored on offense? Thats off a bit considering we've had 3 touchdowns not scored by our offense.
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10-6 means the Niners finish 5-5
In the 10 remaining games they have 5 divisional games and the West is terrible. They could, and really should win all 5. I say they win 4 of them.
Of the other 5 games they play 3 games that are very winnable. Not saying they are locks by any means, but the next 3 Browns, Skins and Giants are all games that can be won. The other 2, Ravens and Steelers are tough ass games for anyone.
If the Niners went 5-5 in the remaining 10 it would be a massive disappointment.
I think they will win 4 divisional games of the remaining 5 and 3 of the remaining games out of division.
That makes them 7-3 in the remaining games and 12-4 for the year.
I never thought I would be saying that at the beginning of the season, but they are firing on the defensive and special teams sides of the ball and they have a crazy dynamic running game.
It isnt your old school smashmouth running attack, which is why it is gashing teams.
Either way all I want is a division title and a playoff berth for a change.
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10-6 means the Niners finish 5-5
In the 10 remaining games they have 5 divisional games and the West is terrible. They could, and really should win all 5. I say they win 4 of them.
Of the other 5 games they play 3 games that are very winnable. Not saying they are locks by any means, but the next 3 Browns, Skins and Giants are all games that can be won. The other 2, Ravens and Steelers are tough ass games for anyone.
If the Niners went 5-5 in the remaining 10 it would be a massive disappointment.
I think they will win 4 divisional games of the remaining 5 and 3 of the remaining games out of division.
That makes them 7-3 in the remaining games and 12-4 for the year.
I never thought I would be saying that at the beginning of the season, but they are firing on the defensive and special teams sides of the ball and they have a crazy dynamic running game.
It isnt your old school smashmouth running attack, which is why it is gashing teams.
Either way all I want is a division title and a playoff berth for a change.
stevie said:
10-6 means the Niners finish 5-5
In the 10 remaining games they have 5 divisional games and the West is terrible. They could, and really should win all 5. I say they win 4 of them.
Of the other 5 games they play 3 games that are very winnable. Not saying they are locks by any means, but the next 3 Browns, Skins and Giants are all games that can be won. The other 2, Ravens and Steelers are tough ass games for anyone.
If the Niners went 5-5 in the remaining 10 it would be a massive disappointment.
I think they will win 4 divisional games of the remaining 5 and 3 of the remaining games out of division.
That makes them 7-3 in the remaining games and 12-4 for the year.
I never thought I would be saying that at the beginning of the season, but they are firing on the defensive and special teams sides of the ball and they have a crazy dynamic running game.
It isnt your old school smashmouth running attack, which is why it is gashing teams.
Either way all I want is a division title and a playoff berth for a change.
He knows nothing about the 49ers, he doesn't even realize we have only played 1 game in our division. He just makes this stuff up to make himself feel better about the game this week. I mean really, who wants to have a mindset going into a game that you'll be creamed. You want to make yourself feel better about it.
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First and foremost, I didn't write the article. I only posted it. Therefore no koolaid.
Secondly, Our Offense has scored 15 TDs this year. The Defense has scored 1. ST have scored 2. So no, half our TDs do not come from our D and ST. What our D and ST do is consistently give us good field position and our opponents poor field position.
The stats don't lie and were calculated in exactly the same way for the '11 Niners as the '07 Patriots.
I predict this is only the beginning and the worst the Niners will finish is 13-3. 15-1 is a distinct possibility. My only question is will they be the #1 or #2 seed in the playoffs. I'm not sure that even the Packers can beat us.
First and foremost, I didn't write the article. I only posted it. Therefore no koolaid.
Well I have yet to see someone post an article they absolutely disagree with. Fair statement?
Secondly, Our Offense has scored 15 TDs this year. The Defense has scored 1. ST have scored 2. So no, half our TDs do not come from our D and ST. What our D and ST do is consistently give us good field position and our opponents poor field position.
Yes your offense has scored 15 TD's this year but haven't had to move the ball. Your defense and special teams have given you favorable field position. There is a reason you are ranked 29th in total offense. The Patriots were 1st in total offense in 2007. Big, big difference. My point is unless your defense and special teams continues to play lights out, SF will fall off.
The stats don't lie and were calculated in exactly the same way for the '11 Niners as the '07 Patriots. With this method of rating teams, all scores are calculated(O, D & ST) because they all count.
Of course all phases of the game count. My point is your offense isn't good enough to be a contender. Your coach has made the most of what you have so far. Kudos to him. He has you guys running the ball and creating turnovers on defense. You need to do well at both to make up for having Alex Smith at QB and no breakout WRs. My point is that this type of play isn't sustainable. Teams will adjust and SF will come back down to earth. You need to be great in all three phases to be even close to the team the patriots were in 2007.
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Of course all phases of the game count. My point is your offense isn't good enough to be a contender. Your coach has made the most of what you have so far. Kudos to him. He has you guys running the ball and creating turnovers on defense. You need to do well at both to make up for having Alex Smith at QB and no breakout WRs. My point is that this type of play isn't sustainable. Teams will adjust and SF will come back down to earth. You need to be great in all three phases to be even close to the team the patriots were in 2007.
I'm sorry my friend, but you're looking at it all wrong.
You're making the common mistake of viewing a big passing game as the be all end all of having a great offense in todays pass happy NFL. Most of the so-called "good" teams like the Packers, Patriots, Saints, etc really only have two or three great playmakers, one of which is the QB, that they rely on to win their games for them. If the QB or his star receiver has a bad game, they lose. If their star QB or receiver goes down to an injury, they're done for the season. These teams are one-dimensional and are more vulnerable to a fall off in performance over the course of a season.
The Niners on the other hand are a team without an elite QB or a dominant "household name" receiver to run the score up with. Instead they have a deceptively blue collar offense that relies on everyone to contribute to the success of the offense. Same goes for our defense. Except for perhaps Patrick Willis, there are no household names, just a solid unit that plays great football together. If any single player on offense or defense has a bad day, they have their teammates to step up for them and make the play. Football is a TEAM GAME and no team in the NFL is playing as a team better than the 49ers.
Cap all that off with a new and brilliant head coach/playcaller (who's favorite hobby is walking on water
) and you have a recipe for consistent success. I would also acknowledge again that Alex Smith is not an elite QB who's not asked to do much and that he is where he is because of coaching. Because of that, I believe that IF he gets hurt, our second string QB can come in and perform at an equal level to get the job done. In Harbaugh I Trust
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Of course all phases of the game count. My point is your offense isn't good enough to be a contender. Your coach has made the most of what you have so far. Kudos to him. He has you guys running the ball and creating turnovers on defense. You need to do well at both to make up for having Alex Smith at QB and no breakout WRs. My point is that this type of play isn't sustainable. Teams will adjust and SF will come back down to earth. You need to be great in all three phases to be even close to the team the patriots were in 2007.
I'm sorry my friend, but you're looking at it all wrong.
You're making the common mistake of viewing a big passing game as the be all end all of having a great offense in todays pass happy NFL. Most of the so-called "good" teams like the Packers, Patriots, Saints, etc really only have two or three great playmakers, one of which is the QB, that they rely on to win their games for them. If the QB or his star receiver has a bad game, they lose. If their star QB or receiver goes down to an injury, they're done for the season. These teams are one-dimensional and are more vulnerable to a fall off in performance over the course of a season.
The Niners on the other hand are a team without an elite QB or a dominant "household name" receiver to run the score up with. Instead they have a deceptively blue collar offense that relies on everyone to contribute to the success of the offense. Same goes for our defense. Except for perhaps Patrick Willis, there are no household names, just a solid unit that plays great football together. If any single player on offense or defense has a bad day, they have their teammates to step up for them and make the play. Football is a TEAM GAME and no team in the NFL is playing as a team better than the 49ers.
Cap all that off with a new and brilliant head coach/playcaller (who's favorite hobby is walking on water
) and you have a recipe for consistent success. I would also acknowledge again that Alex Smith is not an elite QB who's not asked to do much and that he is where he is because of coaching. Because of that, I believe that IF he gets hurt, our second string QB can come in and perform at an equal level to get the job done. In Harbaugh I Trust
I'm sorry my friend, but you're looking at it all wrong.
You're making the common mistake of viewing a big passing game as the be all end all of having a great offense in todays pass happy NFL. Most of the so-called "good" teams like the Packers, Patriots, Saints, etc really only have two or three great playmakers, one of which is the QB, that they rely on to win their games for them. If the QB or his star receiver has a bad game, they lose. If their star QB or receiver goes down to an injury, they're done for the season. These teams are one-dimensional and are more vulnerable to a fall off in performance over the course of a season.
The Niners on the other hand are a team without an elite QB or a dominant "household name" receiver to run the score up with. Instead they have a deceptively blue collar offense that relies on everyone to contribute to the success of the offense. Same goes for our defense. Except for perhaps Patrick Willis, there are no household names, just a solid unit that plays great football together. If any single player on offense or defense has a bad day, they have their teammates to step up for them and make the play. Football is a TEAM GAME and no team in the NFL is playing as a team better than the 49ers.
Cap all that off with a new and brilliant head coach/playcaller (who's favorite hobby is walking on water
) and you have a recipe for consistent success. I would also acknowledge again that Alex Smith is not an elite QB who's not asked to do much and that he is where he is because of coaching. Because of that, I believe that IF he gets hurt, our second string QB can come in and perform at an equal level to get the job done. In Harbaugh I Trust
The 49ers have far less flaws then the top elite teams. If you shut down Rodgers or Brady they are done. If you shut down Alex Smith, he plays conservative enough to where it wont get that bad, and you still have to deal with our elite running game and defense, and best special teams in the league.
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I'm sorry my friend, but you're looking at it all wrong.
You're making the common mistake of viewing a big passing game as the be all end all of having a great offense in todays pass happy NFL. Most of the so-called "good" teams like the Packers, Patriots, Saints, etc really only have two or three great playmakers, one of which is the QB, that they rely on to win their games for them. If the QB or his star receiver has a bad game, they lose. If their star QB or receiver goes down to an injury, they're done for the season. These teams are one-dimensional and are more vulnerable to a fall off in performance over the course of a season.
The Niners on the other hand are a team without an elite QB or a dominant "household name" receiver to run the score up with. Instead they have a deceptively blue collar offense that relies on everyone to contribute to the success of the offense. Same goes for our defense. Except for perhaps Patrick Willis, there are no household names, just a solid unit that plays great football together. If any single player on offense or defense has a bad day, they have their teammates to step up for them and make the play. Football is a TEAM GAME and no team in the NFL is playing as a team better than the 49ers.
Cap all that off with a new and brilliant head coach/playcaller (who's favorite hobby is walking on water
) and you have a recipe for consistent success. I would also acknowledge again that Alex Smith is not an elite QB who's not asked to do much and that he is where he is because of coaching. Because of that, I believe that IF he gets hurt, our second string QB can come in and perform at an equal level to get the job done. In Harbaugh I Trust
The 49ers have far less flaws then the top elite teams. If you shut down Rodgers or Brady they are done. If you shut down Alex Smith, he plays conservative enough to where it wont get that bad, and you still have to deal with our elite running game and defense, and best special teams in the league.
The 49ers have far less flaws then the top elite teams. If you shut down Rodgers or Brady they are done. If you shut down Alex Smith, he plays conservative enough to where it wont get that bad, and you still have to deal with our elite running game and defense, and best special teams in the league.
Listen to yourselves! It's amazing how blind you can get after a 5-1 start! "If you shut down Rodgers or Brady they are done?!" That's a really freaking big if! Take away Alex Smith and you might still survive. Take away Frank Gore and you guys are done. But anyone who knows anything about football knows that the QB is the most important position! It is 10 times easier to shut down Frank Gore than to shut down Rodgers or Brady.
You guys are trying to outdo each other with stupidity.. You finally seem to have a decent coach and you are magically the best team in existence? You are dumber than most Steeler trolls on here..
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I dunno.
I've been a faithful follower since 1989. This team reminds of the great teams of the early 90s. They aren't THAT good, but they don't make mistakes, they force turnovers, and they take advantage of them.
In previous years (last 6-7), the 49ers would always find a way to blow a game, or not take advantage of something. I'm sure you Browns fans can relate since you've had similar seasons. But this year really is different. We aren't lucky. We really are good. Mistakes are rare. I still get the "oh no here it comes, we're gonna blow it" feeling... but it's never happened. Now with swagger and confidence, I really feel like this team can perform at an even higher level.
And the 10-6 record just isn't going to happen. That would mean we have to lose 5 more times. Pick 5:
Cleveland
@ Washington
Giants
Cardinals (Home & Away)
@ Ravens
Rams (Home & Away)
Steelers (Home, Monday Night)
@ Seahawks
@ Ravens is the best chance for a loss. If the Steelers can start playing at a higher level, that might be tough. But it's home and Monday Night, we should win that. Home against the Giants, and a win there gives us the lead for the bye week in the playoffs. 5 divisional games are all winable.
I'll even give you a loss to the Browns. Loss to the Ravens. And either a loss to the Steelers or Giants.
That's 12-4. I just don't see a 10-6 happening at this point.
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That is a good article. SFers seem like the most efficient team right now and looking at the schedule - u guys are surely playoff bound unless u guys disintegrate completely. Good for you guys.
Although i would still take the 'any given Sunday' philosophy and still hope optimistically for the Browns to win. I havent seen enough of the 49ers games nor do I know much about them to really gauge how much of a challenge it will be to overcome you guys.
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Here's my article:
Why the 49ers are Gay
Because their fan base is full of faggots.
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Slim chance of the Niners losing this weekend. Sorry but the browns are not looking good this season. By the way we have a backup quarterback who may not be ready to start but IS able to step in and play good and if not, we have another backup who is better if not as good. Gore goes down and Kendall Hunter will light it up, if he goes down we have Dixon who is good, just not elite. Hypothetical, our QB, star RB, TE and #1 Receiver all go down. We still have 2-3 receiver who play well enough to win, a great RB and good backup RB for that backup, and Delanie Walker (TE) who would probably start for most other teams as well as Kaepernick and Tolzien (I think his name is) to play QB. We would not lose any games because of our losses we would win or lose on the same track. Who else can you hold your head up and say that if they lose their starting QB, #1WR would still win, let alone first string RB and TE. Anybody who knows the 49ers can say this regardless of what team they are a fan of. This time the kool-aid is not poisoned, you can drink the crap out of it because the 49ers are real they are back and they are not going anywhere. Good luck to the Browns and go 49ers!
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Are these people trying to take over the board or what? Seriously, what are you trying to accomplish by posting an article thats so long none of us are going to read it because we DONT CARE?
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The 49ers have far less flaws then the top elite teams. If you shut down Rodgers or Brady they are done. If you shut down Alex Smith, he plays conservative enough to where it wont get that bad, and you still have to deal with our elite running game and defense, and best special teams in the league.
Listen to yourselves! It's amazing how blind you can get after a 5-1 start! "If you shut down Rodgers or Brady they are done?!" That's a really freaking big if! Take away Alex Smith and you might still survive. Take away Frank Gore and you guys are done. But anyone who knows anything about football knows that the QB is the most important position! It is 10 times easier to shut down Frank Gore than to shut down Rodgers or Brady.
You guys are trying to outdo each other with stupidity.. You finally seem to have a decent coach and you are magically the best team in existence? You are dumber than most Steeler trolls on here..
Listen to yourselves! It's amazing how blind you can get after a 5-1 start! "If you shut down Rodgers or Brady they are done?!" That's a really freaking big if! Take away Alex Smith and you might still survive. Take away Frank Gore and you guys are done. But anyone who knows anything about football knows that the QB is the most important position! It is 10 times easier to shut down Frank Gore than to shut down Rodgers or Brady.
You guys are trying to outdo each other with stupidity.. You finally seem to have a decent coach and you are magically the best team in existence? You are dumber than most Steeler trolls on here..
Damn, trying to talk football with you is an... umm... interesting task. Either you haven't read my posts or your reading comprehension is that of a 12 year old.
Maybe it's my fault though. I'm not as eloquent as I could be sometimes.
The point that I've been attempting to make is that the 49ers are less likely to have bad games and therefore are more consistent because they play as a TEAM. There are no superstars they rely on to make every single play. Everyone is involved in their success or failure on any given play/game. This is mostly due to great coaching and flexible, dynamic play calling.
Teams like the Packers and Patriots have AWESOME offenses with two or three great playmakers but are questionable in other areas. They're kinda one-dimensional. You don't necessarily have to "shut them down" because barring injury, you probably won't. Just slow them down a bit with good D, allow ST to give you good field position and let the offense go to work.
The QB IS the most important player on the field. That's football 101. Since I started watching football in the late 70's, I've believed as you do now, that you had to have an elite QB to be successful in the NFL. Watching Harbaugh and this year's Niners has changed my opinion in that department. The QB doesn't have to be a strong armed beast that evades tackles, hits ALL his receivers on every play(though that certainly helps!) and carries the team on his back. The QB only has to be efficient, read defenses well, not turn the ball over and allow his TEAM to make the plays that gets you a 1st down or TD.
Oh and uh... Frank Gore WAS shut down in our first 3 games this season. We still won 2 of those 3 games (BECAUSE WE PLAY AS A TEAM!!!!) and the one we lost, we only BARELY lost in OT.
Try watching some football, stop with the insults and lay off the kool-aid.
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Are these people trying to take over the board or what? Seriously, what are you trying to accomplish by posting an article thats so long none of us are going to read it because we DONT CARE?
Are these people trying to take over the board or what? Seriously, what are you trying to accomplish by posting an article thats so long none of us are going to read it because we DONT CARE?
Oh... pardon me. I thought there were football fans here. I do see a lot of foul mouthed vulgarities and insults so perhaps I stepped into the wrong forum. My bad.
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I just read all the posts. Clearly there is an IQ gap between the two fan bases.
Niner fans: Give in-depth, well thought out arguments as to why we'll win.
Browns fans: "You guys are gay"
.....
I rest my case
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