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Episode 5 of The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly. This week they talk about the Chargers preseason game, and a preview of the upcoming season.

Ep. 5 – The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

“I sure miss Kevan Barlow”

“and I miss Ahmed Plummer”

“Did you hear Roderick Green studied rocket science in college”

“No way Sammie Davis gets burned on this play”

“The offensive play calling was more exciting under McCarthy”

“Dorsey! Dorsey! Dorsey!”

“Derek Smith is the best MLB in the game”

“It sure is nice to see Kwame Harris without any false starts”

“I sure wish the 49ers had a receiver that would go over the middle like Lloyd used to do.”

“Nedney will miss this field goal watch”

“Nolan made the wrong decision in letting Woods go”

“Did you see the performance Tim Rattay had today against Baltimore?”

“Edge sure made the right decision on signing with Arizona”

“Has Denny Green lost weight?”

“I heard Denny Green is Slim Fast’s new spokesperson”

“The Cardinals sure have cool looking uniforms. I love the white helmet”

“Warner has the best looking wife out of all NFL players”

On Wednesday, RB Maurice Hicks was still wearing No. 43, despite his temptation to switch to No. 22, his old number in high school and college.

“I kind of made my name in the NFL with No. 43,” Hicks said.

When he considered changing numbers, he also cited his respect for Terry Jackson, who had been the 49ers’ No. 22 since he was drafted in 1999. Two lockers away, RB Frank Gore voiced the opinion that Hicks should change his number.

“That’s an ugly number,” said Gore, adding that little, quick guys shouldn’t be wearing such a large, unsightly numeral.

That’s about the time that RB Michael Robinson, whose locker is situation between Hicks and Gore, entered the conversation. Robinson said he disliked No. 35, the number he wore during the exhibition season. On Wednesday, he debuted his new jersey, No. 24.

“Thirty-five is a fat dude’s number,” he said.

When I asked about good numbers for running back, they all said numbers in the 20s are preferable. Gore was No. 3 at the University of Miami. But the NFL has rules that running backs must not have single-digit numbers. He took No. 21, because 2 plus 1 equals 3, he said.

That when I interjected my thought that 29 is a pretty ugly number, I nearly got my head bit off.

“That’s Eric Dickerson!” Hicks and Gore said simultaneously. It was time to go somewhere else.

[Maiocco’s Blog]

The 49ers travel to Arizona this weekend to kick off their regular season. Everyone and their grandmother is predicting the Cardinals to christen Arizona Stadium with a win, including me. I hate to admit it but the cards – no pun intended – are not in the 49ers favor. Here is a breakdown of what to expect when each unit has the ball.

When the 49ers have the ball:
Arizona will stack eight in the box, forcing Alex Smith to beat them in the air. I expect the offense to look like it did against the Bears in the preseason opener, with more roll-outs, play action, and bootlegs. I’m not to concerned with the passing game at this time, due to the fact, that Frank Gore will find a way to get his yards. Just when you think Gore is stopped he fights for those few extra yards. Throw in rookie Michael Robinson and change of pace back Maurice Hicks and the 49ers running game will do just fine. This will open up the play action and if Smith can avoid turnovers and spread the ball around, this should keep the Cardinals defense honest. In order for the 49ers to win this game, they’ll have to win it on the ground.

[49ers Victory Not in the Cards] – 49ersNews on NFL Fanhouse

For all the complexity of professional football, there is one exceedingly simple statistic that 49ers coach Mike Nolan believes will be reflective of whether his team has a good season or a bad one.

If the 49ers run the ball six out of 10 plays when they are on offense, they’ll be doing well. If it’s a 50-50 split—or worse—they’ll be in trouble.

“I would like to think by season’s end, if things have gone correctly, we’ll be 60-40,” Nolan said Wednesday as the 49ers began preparing in earnest for Sunday’s season opener at Arizona. “If we’re 50-50, in my opinion, that means either we’ve had injury or we haven’t won as many as we’d like because then we’re having to put the ball in the air a little bit more.”

[49ers look for ground support] – Contra Costa Times