things to know about Niners:
On D:
-I'm sure some of you saw it in the playoffs last year but the Niners D hits VERY HARD. Especially Willis, Bowman, Goldson, and Whitner. They have injured or knocked out alot of guys over the last couple years. Pats receivers should be careful when they go over the middle. Brady might want to be careful and not telegraph his passes in these situations.
-The linebacker corps is probly the best in the NFL. Willis and Bowman are excellent versus both the run and the pass. Aldon Smith is one of the best pass rushers in the game. Ahmad Brooks is very good. He is capable of rushing the QB if needed and is very good at tackling.
-The Niners' cornerbacks are solid overall but not elite. Although 2nd year player Chris Culliver is developing into an elite CB. Carlos Rogers is the most well-known but he is probably the least good of the top 3 CB's. Brown and Culliver are better.
On O:
- Frank Gore is a great downhill runner. He has great vision and patience. He is very strong and can break tackles alot. He has great burst when he finds a hole to run through. He is also one of the best RB's at blocking and picking up blitzes.
His weaknesses: He doesnt have great sustained sprinting speed. Also, He is getting up there in age so he is at risk of wearing down or getting injured if the Niners overuse him (which they do alot).
Look for LaMichael James to get some looks at RB. He is a very exciting player and a good change of pace from Gore. James got his first game experience last week and looked like he has some nice potential. If he gets into the open field, he has a great chance to take it all the way. The Niners are gonna start using him more because Kendall Hunter is injured.
- Niners Receivers: Michael Crabtree is the Niners' best receiver by far. He has been very good this year. He has great hands and is very good at YATC. If Crabtree played on a team with a great QB/passing game, his stats would be much higher.
Randy Moss is mostly a shadow of his former self. He still has good speed and will make the occasional catch. But he hasnt made a huge impact on the field thu far.
Vernon Davis has elite talent at Tight End. But he hasnt done much lately. Not sure why. Might be related to the playcalling or the QBs havent done good enough job finding him. But he is capable of exploding if the Niners decide to utilize him. He did it last year in the playoffs.
The Niners' other tight end Delanie Walker is also a good player and can make some big catches as well.
-The O-Line is great at run-blocking but average at pass-blocking.
