Update: Troy Vincent has signed with the Redskins.
ESPN is reporting that veteran Troy Vincent may visit the 49ers at some time. However they also mention that Vincent is looking to sign with a team that has playoff aspirations and not one rebuilding. I’m guessing if he visis it is because he has friends in the Bay Area and hasn’t seen them in a while and now is the best time to catch up.
LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for a career- high four touchdowns and Philip Rivers passed for two scores as the San Diego Chargers hammered the San Francisco 49ers, 48-19, at Monster Park.
Tomlinson had 71 rushing yards on 21 carries and Rivers was 29-of-39 passing for a career-high 334 yards in the win.
Antonio Gates added five catches for 78 yards and a score, while Vincent Jackson grabbed a 33-yard touchdown reception for San Diego (4-1), which travels to Kansas City to play the Chiefs on October 22.
Alex Smith was 20-of-31 passing 214 yards with two touchdowns and an interception for the 49ers (2-4), who will have a bye next weekend. Moran Morris and Bryan Gilmore chipped in with touchdown catches.
The Chargers got out of the gate early and often. Rivers threw a screen pass to Antonio Gates, who went the distance scoring on a 57-yard catch and run on San Diego’s first offensive possession of the contest, giving them an early 7-0 lead. Rivers was 3-of-4 passing on the six-play, 78-yard scoring drive.
Matt Maiocco of Press Democrat is reporting the 49ers are showing strong interest in safety Troy Vincent, who was recently released from the Bills. Vincent is free to sign with any team and the 49ers are prepared to offer him a two year deal. The 49ers are currently $7 million under the cap.
- Frank Gore was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his 134 yards rushing against the Raiders. He is tied for the league lead in rushing with Rams Steven Jackson
– Larry Allen practiced Wednesday but is listed as doubtful for the fifth consecutive week. Look for Allen to see the field against the Bears after the bye week. – Jonas Jennings is listed as questionable after surger on his pinky. – No new info on the rumored trade talks from yesterday.Matt Maiocco of the Press Democrat is hinting that the 49ers may be looking to make a deal for a cornerback. The 49ers are currently ranked 25th in pass defense giving up 224 yards per game. Maiocco didn’t name any names or what the 49ers would offer, but most likely one of their fourth rounders could come into play.
Coach Mike Nolan said Monday he is trying to reduce wear and tear on rookie Manny Lawson this season.
Lawson’s blocked punt in the third quarter of Sunday’s game swung momentum to the 49ers, but some observers were puzzled to see the young outside linebacker, chosen primarily for his pass-rushing skill, was mostly on the sideline when the Raiders faced third downs.
“Manny’s been a rookie who’s been getting a lot of play,” Nolan said. “And we can’t do that to him because late in the games he’s wearing down. And as a rookie, he’s already close to (the length of) that college season he went through. And he’s got a whole other season to go.”
Nolan said the primary goal this season is to teach Lawson, a defensive end at North Carolina State last season, how to play linebacker. That means having him on the field on first and second downs, a role he has played well so far. In addition to his two sacks, Lawson is sixth on the team in tackles and has excelled at keeping running plays contained.
[Sacramento Bee]
49ers vs Raiders full game. Enjoy
Well the 49ers defense finally made some noise, alright it is because the Raiders quarterbacks suck, but still they at least made the plays when the Raiders screwed up.
Frank Gore, Alex Smith, and Walt Harris shined today. Gore finished the day with another career high in rushing, but most importantly he didn’t fumble the ball. Smith continued to make good throws and finished the day with three touchdowns. Which is huge. But perhaps the best performance was that of Walt Harris who had three interceptions. The defense still gave up big plays when they shouldn’t have, but they played just well enough. A good team would have given them fits all day.
All in all it was another solid performance by the offense, which is the strength of this team. The defense needs to step it up to keep the 49ers in games, oh and they really need to work on short yardage situations. The Raiders defense owned them in that category today.
Delanie Walker’s season was interrupted before it could begin when the rookie tight end separated his shoulder in the final exhibition.
Five weeks later, Walker is poised to make his 49ers debut Sunday against the Raiders.
Walker probably will get only a handful of plays, but the 49ers are eager to see if he can replicate the productivity he showed during the exhibition season, when he had six catches for 61 yards, including five in the opener against Chicago. He also could help offset the loss of rookie tight end Vernon Davis, who remains sidelined by a fractured fibula.
``He’s got speed, not as much as Vernon’s, but very good speed,’’ Coach Mike Nolan said of Walker. ``He’s got play-making ability. Now, preseason is different from the regular season, so I’d like to see it in the regular season.’‘
[Mercury News]
LDE
Bryant Young is still here, and I love him. He’s not his former self, but IMO he is still a viable player either inside or outside. Clearly we’ll need to find a replacement STAT, but in the meantime, I think BY can hold it down for another year, maybe even 2.
The Solution: Throw every $$$ you have at the best FA you can find in 2008, or draft the top prospect at this position in the draft
NT
Isaac Sopoaga, Anthony Adams, and Ronald Fields are all pretty good players for this spot as I see it. For a 3-man rotation, I honestly think we could do A LOT worse. If Adams is gone after this season, I think replacing him with a mid-round draft choice in one of the upcoming two drafts would be fine. NT is arguably the spot we need the least help at IMO. Could we use an upgrade? Perhaps. But as Fields and Sopoaga continue to mature and learn technique, I think they both have potential.
The Solution: Stick with what you got
RDE
I think Marques Douglas does a pretty good job all told. His job isn’t to rack up numbers, but to create space for the LBs, and I personally feel that he does a good job doing that. However, I still think we could use another guy to bring in either situationally, or pushing Douglas to a more situational role.
The Solution: Sign Chad Lavalais this upcoming offseason
In the wake of a 41-0 trouncing by the Kansas City Chiefs, talk is intensifying in league circles that Niners defensive coordinator Billy Davis will be fired at the end of the season, if not sooner.Davis was hired by Mike Nolan in February 2005, after Nolan was named the 49ers’ new head coach.
Source: ProFootballTalk
49ers forget to show up in 41-0 beat down from the Chiefs.
If Damon Huard keeps playing this well, the Kansas City Chiefs won’t have a quarterback crisis while waiting for Trent Green to get back—they’ll have a quarterback controversy once he does.
Huard played almost flawlessly in a 41-0 rout of San Francisco on Sunday, hitting 13 of his first 15 passes for 152 yards and two touchdowns while Kansas City seized a 24-0 halftime lead en route to its first shutout in almost four years.
Green was on the sidelines for the first time after sustaining a severe concussion three weeks ago. Days after doctors cleared him to drive, he was cajoling his teammates and even appeared to be suggesting plays for his backup, who’d hardly done anything besides carry a clipboard for six seasons until Green was knocked unconscious in the Sept. 10 season opener.
Huard hit 18 of 23 passes for 208 yards and two touchdowns.
All the while, Green huddled with Huard and coaches after every series, sometimes even stepping onto the field with coaches as they consulted during timeouts.
Dante Hall scored Kansas City’s final touchdown on a 60-yard punt return, giving him 11 touchdown kick returns in his career.
