O

[HMFFL]

J.T. O’Sullivan will start at quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers when the NFL regular season begins next month.

O’Sullivan clinched the job with a strong performance during Thursday night’s 37-30 exhibition victory over Chicago, and 49ers coach Mike Nolan said it was time to make O’Sullivan’s status official after a summer of uncertainty.

“J.T. O’Sullivan will be our starting quarterback going into the season and I’m expecting him to succeed,” Nolan said Friday. “I’m very confident J.T. is at the point where he’s our best man for the job right now.”

O’Sullivan, a long shot to become the starter when training camp began at the end of July, overtook veteran holdovers Alex Smith and Shaun Hill during the past two weeks. The sixth-year player, now with his eighth NFL team, has never started a regular-season game in the league.

That is about to change.

O’Sullivan was picked to start San Francisco’s preseason opener Aug. 8 against Oakland and has been practicing and playing with the first unit since. He didn’t take any snaps in 11-on-11 team drills during the first seven days of training camp as Smith and Hill got all the work.

But both players struggled to grasp new offensive coordinator Mike Martz’s complex system, and O’Sullivan was given a chance in the lead role earlier this month.

O’Sullivan worked in Martz’s system last year when both were with the Detroit Lions. He played in four games with the Lions last season and threw the first regular-season passes of his NFL career.

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[hermes]

i don't know what that says about your qb's when JT O'Sullivan is your best one

but congrats to him, he has been having a good preseason

[magicfan4life05]

He definitely earned the spot with his great play, but just remember he was with martz in detriot and had a good feeling for the offense, so it's not that unexpected.

But, the bigger thing out of this is what does this mean for alex smith? The guy was drafted FIRST overall in the draft and can't start in his FOURTH year. I know he's only 24 years old and has had many offensive coordinators with no real consistently in his time with the 49ers, but is time to use the word "bust" now ?

[CJ_18]

I disagree with this move. This move doesn't only affect their former #1 pick Alex Smith, it also affects there former #6 pick, Vernon Davis, who has really only had Smith as a consistent QB throwing him the ball. They need to let Smith stay in there and get comfortable with something, because changing coordinators and all that has probably really affected his development. He has the weapons at WR ,TE and RB, he just needs consistent reps IMO.

[NO-KG-AI]

Smith sucks, just let it go, it's time to cut their losses and just move on.

[Icness]

This move indicates just how hot a seat Mike Nolan and Co. are really on. O'Sullivan certainly gives them the best chance to win this year, but I would agree that he is not the long-term solution.

From my 49ers preview...

Somebody wise once said, “If you have a quarterback controversy, you don’t have a quarterback.” Headed into training camp, the 49ers have a 3-way QB battle between Alex Smith, Shaun Hill, and JT O’Sullivan. The team clearly wants Smith to win the battle, but he is perilously close to “bust” status and is almost the complete antithesis of a Mike Martz quarterback. To make his offense work properly, Martz demands his signal callers to stand tall in the pocket, take hits, make proper coverage reads and adjustments quickly and impeccably, and throw down the field with great accuracy. Smith has little patience in the pocket, doesn’t deliver the ball with confidence, and frequently misreads the coverage. Hill has the accuracy and stands tall in the pocket, but he has very little experience and lacks the big downfield arm. O’Sullivan probably won’t get much fanfare, but he knows the Martz system well and has demonstrated both accuracy and firepower. If he can limit the bonehead throws and curb his improvisational instincts, he is probably the best candidate for the job. Big ifs there though. At any rate, a 3-way training camp battle means all sorts of problems for any offense, much less one as complex and demanding as the one Mike Martz runs. From splitting reps with the receivers to implementing more advanced plays to getting consistency and confidence, it’s just not a situation that breeds success.

At least somebody in the Bay Area is listening to me

I can tell you this move is well-received in the locker room. I can also tell you Alex Smith is in a major funk. He lost his best friend recently and has really been struggling with grief, and he is a guy who reads the papers and feels the criticism. The best thing for Smith might be an IR stash and a trade next summer.

[VinnyTheMick]

Aren't his hands too small, too?

[Da Schwab]

Aren't his hands too small, too?

You tell us.

*rimshot*

[VinnyTheMick]

Aren't his hands too small, too?

You tell us.

*rimshot*

Blow me.

[Jake Steed]

Aren't his hands too small, too?

You tell us.

*rimshot*

Blow me.

That's my line.

[El Hardee]

Alex Smith = Kwame Brown

[Wizards2Lottery]

Alex Smith = Kwame Brown

Kwame is the greatest trade bait of all time.

Alex Smith will be lucky to get traded for Paris Hiltons underwear.