49ers Move to 5-1 With Win in Detroit

Don't look know NFL, but the 49ers have reverted back to their pre-2000 days! No, we probably can't go that far yet, but after another upset, and another road victory, they've certainly gotten the NFL's attention.

The 49ers ran for over 200 yards Sunday vs. Detroit, with Frank Gore collecting 141 of them on 15 carries. Alex Smith wasn't great, as he turned the ball over 2 times and threw for just 125 yards. On top of all of that, they were facing the undefeated powerhouse Detroit Lions in their own backyard, and they still managed to pull this one out, 25-19. Matt Stafford got his, throwing for 280 yards and 2 scores, but the 49ers were able to get in his face enough to disrupt him at key points in the game, one big one for a safety and another clincher late in the game when Detroit was making their final push. The defensive front was the subject of the day in Detroit for San Fran, as they were in Stafford's face constantly, sacking him 5 times for a net of 49 yards. Rookie Aldon Smith continues to show everyone why the 49ers chose him over a higher ranked QB, or CB, as he collected 2 big sacks and know has 6 on season which puts him right up with the leagues premiere pass rushers. The usual suspects, Justin Smith, Ahmad Brooks and Ray McDonald, all got credit for sacks as well, as the 49ers front 7 played near flawless football. Their secondary played pretty well overall, considering they were going against the prolific Lion attack. They kept Calvin Johnson out of the endzone, and although they didn't pick Stafford off, they knocked down 9 of his passes.

This win obviously puts the 49ers on the map as not only the team to beat in the NFC West, but arguably one of the best squads in the whole NFC. Right now, the only teams I see playing clearly better than SF in the league are Green Bay and New Orleans, and the only team to beat them this year, Dallas. Those teams scare me because of their premiere passing attacks, which may tempt the 49ers even more to test the waters as far as potential trade targets at cornerback with just 48 hours before Tuesday's trade deadline. Chris Culliver stepped up very nicely as he was matched up with Calvin Johnson quite a bit. He and Smith are making huge impacts as rookies early in 2011 already. Carlos Rogers also played another nice game as he's turned out to be one of the best FA signing for the 49ers so far if you ask me. Fellow corner, rookie Chris Culliver had a standout game as well, matching up with Calvin Johnson on a lot of plays and holding his own quite well. Despite Culliver's emergence, I still would really like to see the 49ers pursue another cover-man before Tuesday's trade deadline, though I don't see it happening. The 49ers have a decent team that is very well coached, but still don't have the talent offensively, especially with the injuries at wideout, to keep score with teams like New Orleans and Dallas.

The 49ers are heading into bye week, which I'm sure they wish would have came a few weeks later with the way they've been playing, and although we'll still discuss them plenty over the next two weeks, we'll be focusing more on the MLB playoffs and the Raiders, who are currently up on Cleveland at half.

Trade Deadline Targets for 49ers and Raiders

Well, here we are, entering week 6 and wouldn't you know it, both the 49ers and Raiders are not only in the thick of playoff contention, they're a couple of the better teams in the league through 5 weeks. Still, the NFL trade deadline comes on October 18th, and there are a few players on the block who could interest both San Fran and the Raiders.

Here are a few potential targets for each team, as well as what it may cost to obtain the (top priority has * with name):

49ers

QB Kyle Orton/Brady Quinn, Den.- This comes as a two headed monster, because either of these guys should be available now that Denver is putting all their cards in the Tim Tebow basket. Orton is obviously the better, more polished guy, but also would probably cost a lot more in return. Plus, he'd be a guy you'd look towards more if Smith had struggled through 5 weeks, and he's actually been a pleasant surprise. Still, they need a better backup, and Quinn could be a nice fit. As could Tampa's Josh Johnson.

CB Champ Bailey, Den- Get used to seeing Broncos, cause they're likely the team most likely to be selling. The 49ers obviously could use another hand at corner, and if they could get Bailey motivated, they could cash in on him in final 12 weeks. Problem is, his contract is undesirable and he has been declining.

*WR Brandon Lloyd, Den*: Now he's a guy who can really make an impact on this offense if the 49ers could figure out a way to get #84 back in town. Only difference between now and 6 years ago is that he's learned the game and is a dynamic play maker who can go down field while opening up the middle for Crabtree. He's a Pro-Bowl talent, and the 49ers haven't produced a pro bowl wideout since T.O. Percy Harvin would be my first choice as far as possible names who could be dealt before October 18th, but highly doubt Minny gives him up without getting back a 1st rounder or someone like Aldon Smith or Navarro Bowman. A top rate receiver who can help out Crabtree and Davis could do wonders for this offense though and Lloyd is a perfect fit! Honestly, an add like Lloyd and maybe one of these DB's listed to San Fran and you not only have the NFC West favorites, but a legit contender in an unpredictable NFC. (Remember some of the catches he'd make while with San Fran?) He's almost worth parting with a 2nd round pick, especially on the off hand you keep him around after the year. I just think he, Crabtree, Davis (and when healthy) Edwards would be a sight for sore eyes!

CB Marcus Trufant, Seattle- Doubt the Seahawks send him inside the division, but he could be a huge upgrade to this secondary if he stays healthy. On pace for pro-bowl year, and would be dynamite next to Rogers. I've always liked Trufant and would definitely consider offering up bright young safety Reggie Williams, along with a mid-round pick.

RB Reggie Bush, Mia- It's sad that NFL coaches seemingly have wasted Reggie's talent, believe it or not. Maybe he could come in and help Frank Gore on 3rd downs and provide another solid outlet for Alex Smith. I really think Harbough would know how to utilize the unique pass-catching back, and he could allow the 49ers to open up the playbook and get creative.

Raiders

*CB Antoine Winfield, Minnesota*- Either him, Bailey, or Trufant would be welcome additions to a below average secondary giving up 300 yards through the air per week. It's the one area where the Raiders are constantly getting burned, yet they do have a some solid play makers back there. Winfield is having a pro-bowl type year and the Vikings are going nowhere. Maybe the Raiders can unload a young receiver like the super talented, yet never healthy, Luis Murphy. I could really see a match here if these two teams were serious, and they should. Sticking Murphy next to Percy Harvin amplifies the Viking passing attack and Winfield only has 12 weeks left under contract.

TE Anthony Fasano, Miami- Kevin Boss has not translated well in replacing Zach Miller's aerial production, and Fasano could be one of the best receiving tight ends on the market. He'd be a huge upgrade over Boss as the starter and would allow Kevin to move into a more comfortable, blocking-oriented TE2 role. I almost selected Fasano as a potential top-target over Winfield, but the Raiders have enough options in the passing game, and although he's not great, Boss is a serviceable player.

OLB Joey Porter, Arizona- The Raiders are still reeling a bit at linebacker, as evident by their acquisition of Aaron Curry (more below). Porter hasn't had a great year in Arizona, but something tells me a move back to his home town and playing for the Raiders would ignite him. He's a perfect fit for the Raiders hard-nosed defense, and can really, really help improve that team against the run.

They Raiders could also use another wide receiving option for Jason Campbell, although Denarious Moore and Darrius Heyward-Bey are starting to come into their own, and Murphy and Chaz Schillens are more than capable. Again, a rock-solid DB could help solidify the secondary, but a plus-pass catching TE is something Campbell really needs to be at the top of his game. Maybe Boss is the guy, but it hasn't showed yet.... As for the guy they already picked up, Aaron Curry, I absolutely love it, as it's another no risk, potentialy huge reward type pickup grabbing a 23 year-old former former #4 pick. I think he had such high expectations, that people got so down on him that he doubted himself, so a change of scenery should be ideal. I think this is the perfect type of project player for the Raiders to take on and he couldn't be coming in at a better time with all the injuries on the defensive side. Another guy the Silver and Black should look into too for help with pass rush is the ancient Jayson Taylor (assuming he can pass a physical that is). The Raiders are getting burnt through the air so two things need to improve, and that's coverage by the DB's and some more pass rush up front!

Morgan Hits IR, Leaves 49ers Reeling at WR

One of the last guys this offense could afford to lose looks like he'll be down for the rest of the year after wideout Josh Morgan injured his shoulder in Sunday's game, prompting surgery and an immediate trip to the IR. This has big time impact on a Niner offense that was just starting to get it's identity.

What makes this loss even harder to swallow, is that free agent acquisition Braylon Edwards has been hobbled by injury and isn't coming around too quickly on that front. Not to mention, the one guy who is healthy enough to suit up is reeling as well. Now Michael Crabtree is having issues with both his feet and will likely take it easy at practice this week, though he should play. This team really needs to Edwards to heal quickly, because he can really soften the blow of losing Morgan for the year. He was developing decent chemistry with Alex Smith and Smith is having far and away his best season as a pro, so Edwards could be thriving if he can get heatlhy soon. Otherwise, they really will have no other choice but to bring in at least one free agent wideout. Ted Ginn and Kyle Williams are serviceable, but the 49ers are 4-1 and all the sudden have expectations, so they would at least like another proven guy lining up with Crabtree until Edwards is 100%. The name of the week has been T.J. Houshmanzadeh, as the former Steeler/Raven and Seahawk showed up at Niner camp this week for a tryout. I have just a little skepticism thinking about Edwards and Housh on the same sideline, though Edwards has appeared to be a solid leader so far (probably because they're winning).

All in all though, Housh does have talent and could immediately help this team, and he's probably the best guy out there who they could realistically get (sorry T.O. or Moss wishers). He could help out while Edwards recovers then move into the slot when Edwards returns to keep the 49ers offense full of weapons. Again, T.J. is not done, just not quite sure if the 49ers take a chance on him. Another two guys I'd give a look see at, again health permitting, are Antonio Bryant (has a rapore with Alex already). I know he's had some personal issues in the past, but I can't see why Bryant isn't employed with the talent he has unless he's hurt.

49ers Surprising the NFL With 4-1 Start

After the 49ers upset the Eagles last Sunday, I got that feeling you get when you know your watching something decent come together. It reminds me of the way I felt about the SF Giants at the end of 2009 when they had these young players come up and dominate and they looked well on their way to greatness in 2010.

After pulling out the big victory over Vick, LeSean McCoy and the "Dream Team", which is looking much more like the "In Your Dream Team" if your an Eagle fan or player, and doing so in convincing fashion, it showed me the 49ers not only can manage their way to a win, but they can go out late and take a close game. That's something I hadn't seen since Jeff Garcia was throwing to T.O. Not only did they build off that win over Philly, theyimproved on it, and laid down the biggest 49ers beating that I can remember by manhandling the then 3-1 Tampa Bay Bucs, and cruising to a 48-3 victory. It was like a top ranked national powerhouse college team taking on a Sacramento State or something like that, it must have been painful to watch if you were a Buc fan, but more importantly, a long overdue laugher for the 49ers side. If you would have thrown a Drew Brees shirt onto Alex Smith yesterday, I wouldn't have been able to tell them apart, that's how on the kid was this Sunday. He only threw for 170 yards on 11-19 passing, but tossed 3 TD's, two of which landed in the hands of his go-to guy, Vernon Davis. Smith didn't need to throw the ball 30+ times because the 49ers had control of it from the get go while Frank Gore and Kendal Hunter had no trouble at all finding running lanes. Gore (20-125/1 TD) and Hunter (9-65) combined for 190 rush yards and the 49ers could have probably ran on just about ever play after the half and would have came out just fine.

The offense was clicking on all cylinders, but once again, this underrated offense did it's thing and shined in a big way. Again, these Bucs were 3-1 coming in and had taken down some decent football teams, but they were clueless vs. Niners at Candlestick. Whatever football insider that said Carlos Rogers cannon catch footballs better be checking himself right now, cause Rogers has turned into a game-changer in the 49er secondary and is doing exactly what they paid Nate Clements so much money to fail at. Rogers is off to an all-pro start with 13 tackles and 3 picks through 5 games, including a TD and 7 PD's. He's by far been the biggest payoff off all defensive free agents the 49ers obtained this summer, and I pushed for this team to add him once Asomugha was off the market. Also continuing to improve is rookie pass-rush specialist Aldon Smith, who added another pair of sacks to raise his total to 4 in 5 weeks. He's on pace for 12.5 sacks and it's been a while since a 49er defender hit that high of a mark. Navaro Bowman and Pat Willis also locked down the middle of the field, like they've been so darn good at through 5 games. Bowman must have taken to Willis because this guy has turned into Pat Willis Jr. and and is one of the better tacklers in the league already.

Fans were questioning some of the moves this team made early on after the lockout, like letting Takeo Spikes walk, and getting started a lot slower than the rest of the NFL was in terms of player movement, but it's certainly starting to look like Trent Baalke and Jim Harbough had an idea of what they were doing after all. There's still a long, long way to go, but in this division, after taking down two solid teams like Philly and Tampa in consecutive weeks, 49er faithful can't help but have some optimism towards this 2011 bunch.

Oh by the way, Alex Smith in 2011: 104 QBrat., 66% Comp, 965 yards, 7/1 TD-INT ratio through 5 weeks. Again, who knows how long this continues, but right now, it has him ranked 3rd in the NFL behind Brady and Rogers.

DOUBLE POST ALERT...... SCROLL DOWN!

NFL Legend, Al Davis Passes Away at 82

One of the NFL's most recognizable ambassador, and long-time Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders Owner, Al Davis, has passed away at age 82.

The 49ers have always been my number one team, but I've always had very much respect for Al Davis. I didn't always agree with the choices he made, but he certainly did a lot of things right during his long tenure with the Raiders franchise. The man has been the face of this franchise for darn near 40 years, and even though the man himself has passed, his name will forever live on with the Raiders. In fact I could very easily see the Raiders new stadium dedicated to the former Raider owner, let's just hope it's in northern California like Davis wanted. Al moved the team to LA for a brief stint their in the 80's and early 90's, but quickly realized that Oakland is the spot for the Silver and Black. The 3-time Super Bowl winning owner also had success briefly as a head coach and entered the NFL Hall of Fame in 1992. If your trying to find an example of an owner who goes all out for his team and will spend the extra buck in order to try and get them over the hump, Al Davis is the poster boy. He didn't always make the best decisions (JaMarcus Russel), but he made more than a few good ones (Tim Brown, Marcus Allen, Jim Plunkett, Bo Jackson etc..). He certainly had mixed reviews on how he handled the Oakland Raiders, but those inside the organization always praised him and he was a good tremendous individual for the NFL, where his name will be immortal.

For the Raiders, I don't expect a whole lot to change on field, right away that is. I do think this team is going to step it up as much as they can to try and win the AFC West in Al's honor, and it's a great thing after being able to witness the Raiders improve to 3-2 with a big win at Houston. They'll certainly be playing with him in their hearts this season. We probably will start to see some change in philosophy until the offseason though, even if the Davis' keep the franchise in family. It looks like Mark Davis, Al's son, will take reigns of the day-to-day operations and already there are headlines in newspapers saying the Raiders now may end up making their way back to LA. Al Davis was in talks with AEG about playing in a stadium they're opening up in LA, but backed out of negotiations because AEG wanted to own stock in the franchise. I don't know Mark Davis at all, couldn't even pick him out of a picture of 5 people, so I have no idea if he'd consider something like that. I'm still hoping they decide to keep the Raiders up north. There's no doubt LA needs a football team, but the Raiders are John Madden, Al Davis, Tim Brown, the Black Hole, they're Oakland. Not to mention, they won 2 of their 3 world championships in the Bay Area too. I see the financial gain for the franchise to move south though, as they constantly fail to fill seats in Oakland and would probably be overflowing in LA. I'd like to see them stay in Norther Cali for the long haul, but LA would be more of a lucrative home for this team and there are certainly positive reasons for the franchise to retreat back to their 2nd home. If they do end up in LA, I would definitely suggest they still play a few honorary games back at the former home. It may not even be a bad marketing scheme to play a single game in LA each while still in Oakland. You know they'd sell out the Coliseum, and that would allow the Raiders hometown fans to see the Raiders play an actual home game on the tube, albeit from the LA Coliseum and not Oakland's.

49ers Deliver Upset of 2011

I have to admit, I didn't think the 49ers had a glimmer of hope in this game vs. the Eagles. Philly was coming off a rough 2-game losing streak, and Michael Vick appeared to be as determined as ever coming into this contest after getting knocked around a bit in week's 2 and 3.

Michael Vick showed up and delivered his most prolific passing day as a pro, but the 49ers came up with a key turnover, and Alex Smith actually took charge of a game rather than just trying to manage it and get by making the least mistakes possible. It was almost as if the 49ers were such underdogs, that he played with a sense of ease. Smith has always looked good when games have been out of reach, but I don't recall him ever taking charge of a game so close, against such a good team, like he did on Sunday. Smith was sharp, throwing for 291 yards, completing 21 of 33 completions and two TD's with no picks and took command of the game late. Vick countered with a whopping 416 yards through the air, two touchdowns and a pick and even added 85 yards rushing, but couldn't push the Eagles over the top. Frank Gore also stood out in this game, as he answered all the skeptics coming into the week saying he was finished or hurt, by going for a season high 127 yards and a score on just 15 carries. Michael Crabtree also contributed for the first time all season, hauling in 5 passes for 68 yards while Vernon Davis and Josh Morgan each had TD receptions. The offense was very well rounded, and effecient, while the defense did just enough to hold on for the 24-23 victory. The 49ers took the lead with only 3 minutes left in the game, but their defense held strong and kept Philly's high-powered attach off the board in those final minutes to seal the victory.

The win has put the 49ers into a position they haven't been in nearly 10 years. Through 4 weeks, this team looks like it's getting better and better, and in a weak NFC West, the 49ers may very well be the most well-rounded team. The Rams were the favorite coming into the year, but injuries have killed them early on, and Sam Bradford has looked very mediocre. The Cardinals have a potent offense, but Kevin Kolb hasn't been the 2nd coming of Kurt Warner like AZ hoped, and their defense is one of the worst in the league. Seattle, who won the division last year despite a 7-9 record, could be in worst shape of all. Their offesne showed some life last week vs. the Falcons, but like many NFL insiders have reported, Seattle is basically a glorified expansion team with all the turnover they had on their roster this summer. Tavaris Jackson hasn't really panned out, the O-line has been a mess, and Marshawn Lynch barely has 100 rushing yards on the season. Right now, things are looking very positive for San Francisco, and they're taking full advantage of their divisional foes' early season struggles. That's the one things I'm seeing that's been very different with this team under Harbough. They're still finding their offensive identity, but Harbough's team takes advantage of what teams give them. You take away jsut one Tony Romo-Miles Austin TD connection from week 2, and this team is 4-0. Opportunistic football is a perfect way to describe the 49ers play through the quarter point.

Big Weekend for Bay Area Football

The 2011 football season has started off very well for 3 of the Bay Area's, and for the first time in about 10 years, the Bay Area is looking set to produce at least one NFL playoff team, and quite possibly NCAA's top football program in the Stanford Cardinal.

We'll start off with the Cardinal, who we haven't talked a lot about this season, mostly because the Raiders and 49ers have started off so well and have been getting most of our attention. The Cardinal, however, have placed themselves squarely on the map as one of the nations best teams (ranked 6 heading into play Saturday) and could very well find themselves playing for a national championship in January if things go their way. Their prized arm and leader, Andrew Luck, has done everything that was expected of him coming into the year, and some, as he's looking like a lock to be the first player taken in next April's NFL Draft. Through 3 games so far, Luck has thrown for 786 yards with 8 TD's compared to just 1 pick and a rushing score, leading the Cardinal to a 3-0 record. Helping Luck on the offensive side of things for Stanford has been their star Junior tailback Stefan Taylor (281 rush yards, 2 TD), as well as Sophomore Tight End, Zach Ertz (3 rec. TD's) and Senior wideout Chris Owusu (227 rec. yards). Behind these talented offensive weapons and a stubborn, underrated defense, the Cardinal have cruised to a 3-0 record, and they really haven't started clicking on all cylinders quite yet. Just goes to show you how dominant this team can be, and I will be watching closely tonight as they take on UCLA down on the farm. UCLA is a mess, so I expect Stanford to put up W by a wide margin; Prediction: Cardinal 48, Bruins 19

Back to the NFL, where the Raiders and 49ers each shoot for the 3rd victory Sunday. The Raiders will have their work cut out for them, as they host the New England Patriots, but after the way they've started the season, I wouldn't count them out of this game at all. What does really hurt is they'll be without starting corner Chris Johnson, who's been the best corner for the Raiders early on in 2011 in my opinion. Oakland will just need to gear up for Tom Brady and hope to contain him. They don't really need to worry about New England's rushing attack, as they've yet to really get that going this year, so if the Raiders can keep them a one dimensional offense and get to Brady a few times like Buffalo did last week, then they'll be very much alive in this game. They're getting their offense going themselves, so they'll be a handful for New England, who have been exposed badly through the air early on. I expect them to have trouble with Darren McFadden as well, so I don't see the Raiders having trouble putting up points in this one. It's going to come down to which team can reduce turnovers and control the game clock, and the Raiders are very good in both areas, but they're facing Tom Brady, who can throw for 400 yards in his sleep these days. Prediction: Patriots 38 - Raiders 27

The 49ers will have their hands full against a hungry, yet banged up Eagles squad. The 49ers looked as if they were sitting pretty early in the week, as Michael Vick's availability for the game after breaking his non-throwing hand was very much in the air. However, Vick improved throughout the week, and appears fully ready to go Sunday, and if he does, look out 49ers secondary, because I think this guy will be determined. The 49ers barely squeaked by the Bengals last week, despite getting an exceptional defensive performance. Like their baseball brethren the Giants, the 49ers have had a wretched offensive showing so far in 2011, yet they've managed to get off to a 2-1 start. This week though, they won't have a chance to win if they score just 14 points. They'll likely need to put up at least 2.5 times that output against a hungry Vick, LeSean McCoy, Jeremy Maclin and DeSean Jackson. They have so much speed on offense that I just can't see the 49ers keeping up with all of them. I do think they'll hold McCoy in check in the run game, but I just can't help but think of the Dallas game when a broken Tony Romo came in and picked this offense apart. Unfortunately, I see Vick doing very much of the same thing. Also, the 49ers have yet to get Frank Gore going this year, and probably won't have a chance to open up the passing game against this secondary, so offensively, they'll have their hands full as well. Prediction: Eagles 31 - 49ers 16