The Alex Smith Thread

[BarneyGumble]

Just curious of any of you fans miss this guy yet? Seems to me the only real leadership your team had walked right out the door with Smith when he was traded. Now the 2-14 Chiefs are 3-0 and the Super Bowl contender 49ers are getting drummed at home with horrible performances from Kaep and the defense.....

Anyone miss Smith yet?

[TNBT]

I still feel the same way I did before the trade, and after - Smith is a really good QB and I would have loved it if we could have afforded to keep him. However, I wanted him as a backup to Kap, and the fact was that he was too good and too expensive to keep as a backup only. I would much rather have him out there than Colt McCoy, but like I said, he's starter quality and getting starter money, so he needed to go elsewhere. You can't have starter-quality guys starting AND in backup positions too.

I wish Smith the best, and I'm glad to see that he's having success. People seem to forget that this Niners team has had its share of injuries so far this year. We're 2-2 now without Crabtree and Manningham at WR, a position that has long been considered to be our weakest point offensively. We've also had Willis miss some time as well, and I've heard that Davis and Gore have been banged up as well. Now we also have Staley injured as well, but I haven't heard anything on his official status yet. When this team gets fully healthy and gets to gel together, this team is going to scare A LOT of people in the NFL.

[and1GS]

lol no.

Smith is good as a final piece to a stacked and potent team. As Andy Reid has started to find out, he is extremely limited and your offense is handicapped by these limitations. Just ask the $40m man, D-Bowe.

[SalemStoner]

No, I'm happy we're watching him increase the value of the pick we're acquiring from KC.

I like Alex Smith, but he's not the QB for our system at all, and his arm is probably too weak to actually win a Superbowl.

[gswhoops]

Obvious troll is obvious.

[oaktownwarriors87]

I loved it when they drafted Kaep. I watched him at Nevada and knew he had loads of potential because of his size, athleticism, and freak arm. But he was inaccurate, had a weird throwing motion, and was prone to making poor decisions under pressure.

He fixed his arm, but I am yet to see anything that suggest he's a champion level decision maker. He has never displayed full control of the offense and Has difficulties reading the defense.

I love Alex Smiths style of football. But that's just style and that's just my preference. What makes him a better QB is the control, focus, and poise he displays. He can read a defense, he can go through his progressions, and he has better control of his players.

Kaep needs to take notes. Watch Peyton Manning. A successful QB needs to have absolut focuse and control. He can't be laughing on the sidelines or telling Crabtree it's his fault. This is the year he needs to turn his game around and become a real QB.

[dr3am]

I love Alex Smiths style of football. But that's just style and that's just my preference. What makes him such a better QB is the control, focus, and poise he displays. He can read a defense, he can go through his progressions, and he has better control of his players.

Alex Smiths game management has always been underrated as far as league wide. What was great about Alex was that if he knew something wasn't there in the offense then he wouldn't take risks. Kaep takes a lot of risks which goes 50/50...sometimes it works and sometimes it ends up costing the team. I'm still in shock and have a headache from that last possession..The Niners had 2 timeouts left and 20 seconds on the clock but instead Kaep goes for the home run to Crabs and basically, we know the rest

I feel like Kaep will improve next year and with Greg Roman out, hopefully the Niners offense in the red zone gets better

[gswhoops]

I love Alex Smiths style of football. But that's just style and that's just my preference. What makes him such a better QB is the control, focus, and poise he displays. He can read a defense, he can go through his progressions, and he has better control of his players.

Alex Smiths game management has always been underrated as far as league wide. What was great about Alex was that if he knew something wasn't there in the offense then he wouldn't take risks. Kaep takes a lot of risks which goes 50/50...sometimes it works and sometimes it ends up costing the team. I'm still in shock and have a headache from that last possession..The Niners had 2 timeouts left and 20 seconds on the clock but instead Kaep goes for the home run to Crabs and basically, we know the rest

I feel like Kaep will improve next year and with Greg Roman out, hopefully the Niners offense in the red zone gets better

That's something that will come with time and coaching. Sometimes people (even I) forget that Kap has less than two full seasons worth of starting experience under his belt, less than the 2012 rookie QBs like Luck, RG3 and Wilson.

I think it's in his nature to be a bit of a gunner/gambler, but with experience and development I'm confident he'll get better at picking his spots, when to go for it and when to take the checkdown.

I certainly don't regret sticking with Kap and trading Alex though. And that's nothing against Alex - he's a good veteran QB who will keep defenses honest and not make mistakes. But there's no way we're even in that game at the end without Kap's playmaking ability and cannon arm.

[oaktownwarriors87]

That's something that will come with time and coaching. Sometimes people (even I) forget that Kap has less than two full seasons worth of starting experience under his belt, less than the 2012 rookie QBs like Luck, RG3 and Wilson.

I think it's in his nature to be a bit of a gunner/gambler, but with experience and development I'm confident he'll get better at picking his spots, when to go for it and when to take the checkdown.

I certainly don't regret sticking with Kap and trading Alex though. And that's nothing against Alex - he's a good veteran QB who will keep defenses honest and not make mistakes. But there's no way we're even in that game at the end without Kap's playmaking ability and cannon arm.

So we should be easy on Kaep because he's young and Smith wouldn't have won anyways?

Smith is only 3 years older. Smith is 4-0 in his last 4 against Seattle. Statistically, he is the best playoff QB in the NFL (9 TD, 0 INT, almost 300 YPG). The 49ers were Super Bowl favorites when Smith was the QB. He is statistically superior to Kaep and the team was statistically better with Smtih.

I agree that Kaep is to young. He is a poor decision maker and he relies to heavily on his raw talent. IMO the 49ers would have at least 1 Super Bowl ring had Smith stayed, probably 2.

[thesack12]

So we should be easy on Kaep because he's young and Smith wouldn't have won anyways?

Smith is only 3 years older. Smith is 4-0 in his last 4 against Seattle. Statistically, he is the best playoff QB in the NFL (9 TD, 0 INT, almost 300 YPG). The 49ers were Super Bowl favorites when Smith was the QB. He is statistically superior to Kaep and the team was statistically better with Smtih.

I agree that Kaep is to young. He is a poor decision maker and he relies to heavily on his raw talent. IMO the 49ers would have at least 1 Super Bowl ring had Smith stayed, probably 2.

Please, son!!!

Sure seems as though you didnt watch much KC ball this season. Their 2013 record has a direct correllation, to their 2012 record. Having the wost record in 2012, led to a straight up cupcake schedule for 2013. Of KC's 11 wins, all of 1 came against a winning team. And that was Philly in the third game of the season, while Vick was still at the helm and before they got fully acclimated to Kelly's system. KC were the biggest frauds in the NFL last season.

As for stats...

Kaep: 243/416 (7.69 yards attempt), 3197 yards /21 tds
Alex: 308/508 (6.52 yars attempt), 3313 yards /23 tds

So Alex only managed 116 more yards and 2 more td's than Kaep despite having 92 more attempts.

Kaep: 68.6 total QBR (7th in NFL) and 91.6 rating (10th in NFL)
Alex: 49.4 total QBR (22nd in NFL) and 89.1 rating (14 th in NFL)

Only thing you can clearly say about Alex is his completion % was slightly better, 60.6 to Kaep's 58.4. However when you consider Alex flat out unwillingness to throw the ball downfield basically at all + Kaep's ridiculously bad receiving corps for most the season (Kyle Williams, Marlon Moore starting and playing significant snaps, Bruce Miller, the freaking fullback, being the 3rd leading receiver when he went down in week 14... seriously???), the disparity in those percentages isn't nearly wide enough to give Alex any kind of plus factors. The ferocious defenses Kaep had to face regularly has to be considered as well. Alex didnt face nearly the same caliber of competition on the other side of the field.

I also, point you to the YAC (yards after catch) stat. Jamaal Charles had 70 catches for 693 yards with 7 receiving td's, but of those 693 yards 630 were of the YAC variety. That equates to those 70 passes traveling a grand total of 63 yards downfield COMBINED. Thats less than 1 yard per pass. When coupling these stats, to Alex's numbers, that equates to 70 of Alex's 308 completions (22.7%), 630 of Alex's 3313 yards (19%), and 7 of Alex's 23 td passes (30.4%) all being compiled on passes he threw an average of less than 1 yard downfield. That defines stats being skewed/inflated. It only ges to further prove that Alex is incapable/unwilling to throw the ball downfield/make plays. Every SF fan should have been well aware of this fact by now. Alex doesn't take any chances, so he won't lose you too many games, but he damn sure isnt going to win you any either.

Alex has hit his apex and is the epitome of an game managing QB, and overall the definition of average.

Yes, Kaep has work to do. But that kid has special skills, tools, and talent. Some people are calling him a loser, among other things. Well last time I checked the kid is carrying a 4-2 playoff record (and only 1 of those 6 playoff games were in Frisco). Yes, all of us 49er fans are heartbroken at how the last 3 seasons have ended. But don't fool yourself, Frisco doesnt stand a remote chance of making a 2nd half comeback in last season's Super Bowl without Kaep. They also, arent even in the game without Kaep at the helm in the NFC championship At Seattle no less. Hawks absolutely embarrassed Peyton and Denver's elite receiving corps on a neutral field. Alex Smith would have stood no chance against that defense, none.

Kaep was the obviousy better choice long term QB for thr 49ers the second Harbaugh handpicked him. Getting two 2nd round draft picks for Alex, just makes it even more of a slam dunk situation.

[gswhoops]

So we should be easy on Kaep because he's young and Smith wouldn't have won anyways?

Smith is only 3 years older. Smith is 4-0 in his last 4 against Seattle. Statistically, he is the best playoff QB in the NFL (9 TD, 0 INT, almost 300 YPG). The 49ers were Super Bowl favorites when Smith was the QB. He is statistically superior to Kaep and the team was statistically better with Smtih.

I agree that Kaep is to young. He is a poor decision maker and he relies to heavily on his raw talent. IMO the 49ers would have at least 1 Super Bowl ring had Smith stayed, probably 2.

Please, son!!!

Sure seems as though you didnt watch much KC ball this season. Their 2013 record has a direct correllation, to their 2012 record. Having the wost record in 2012, led to a straight up cupcake schedule for 2013. Of KC's 11 wins, all of 1 came against a winning team. And that was Philly in the third game of the season, while Vick was still at the helm and before they got fully acclimated to Kelly's system. KC were the biggest frauds in the NFL last season.

As for stats...

Kaep: 243/416 (7.69 yards attempt), 3197 yards /21 tds
Alex: 308/508 (6.52 yars attempt), 3313 yards /23 tds

So Alex only managed 116 more yards and 2 more td's than Kaep despite having 92 more attempts.

Kaep: 68.6 total QBR (7th in NFL) and 91.6 rating (10th in NFL)
Alex: 49.4 total QBR (22nd in NFL) and 89.1 rating (14 th in NFL)

Only thing you can clearly say about Alex is his completion % was slightly better, 60.6 to Kaep's 58.4. However when you consider Alex flat out unwillingness to throw the ball downfield basically at all + Kaep's ridiculously bad receiving corps for most the season (Kyle Williams, Marlon Moore starting and playing significant snaps, Bruce Miller, the freaking fullback, being the 3rd leading receiver when he went down in week 14... seriously???), the disparity in those percentages isn't nearly wide enough to give Alex any kind of plus factors. The ferocious defenses Kaep had to face regularly has to be considered as well. Alex didnt face nearly the same caliber of competition on the other side of the field.

I also, point you to the YAC (yards after catch) stat. Jamaal Charles had 70 catches for 693 yards with 7 receiving td's, but of those 693 yards 630 were of the YAC variety. That equates to those 70 passes traveling a grand total of 63 yards downfield COMBINED. Thats less than 1 yard per pass. When coupling these stats, to Alex's numbers, that equates to 70 of Alex's 308 completions (22.7%), 630 of Alex's 3313 yards (19%), and 7 of Alex's 23 td passes (30.4%) all being compiled on passes he threw an average of less than 1 yard downfield. That defines stats being skewed/inflated. It only ges to further prove that Alex is incapable/unwilling to throw the ball downfield/make plays. Every SF fan should have been well aware of this fact by now. Alex doesn't take any chances, so he won't lose you too many games, but he damn sure isnt going to win you any either.

Alex has hit his apex and is the epitome of an game managing QB, and overall the definition of average.

Yes, Kaep has work to do. But that kid has special skills, tools, and talent. Some people are calling him a loser, among other things. Well last time I checked the kid is carrying a 4-2 playoff record (and only 1 of those 6 playoff games were in Frisco). Yes, all of us 49er fans are heartbroken at how the last 3 seasons have ended. But don't fool yourself, Frisco doesnt stand a remote chance of making a 2nd half comeback in last season's Super Bowl without Kaep. They also, arent even in the game without Kaep at the helm in the NFC championship At Seattle no less. Hawks absolutely embarrassed Peyton and Denver's elite receiving corps on a neutral field. Alex Smith would have stood no chance against that defense, none.

Kaep was the obviousy better choice long term QB for thr 49ers the second Harbaugh handpicked him. Getting two 2nd round draft picks for Alex, just makes it even more of a slam dunk situation.

To piggyback on this, feel free to check out this website: http://wp.advancednflstats.com/airYardsStats.php

This tracks a stat called Air Yards, which is Total Passing Yards minus YAC - a rough metric of how much a QB is throwing down the field versus depending on his receivers to make plays after the catch.

Out of 40 QBs, Kap is 5th in the league in Air Yards per Attempt - ahead of Rodgers, Manning, Rivers, Brees, Newton, Brady, etc. etc. Alex Smith comes in at 39th, ahead of only Chad Henne. Smith also had the 3rd highest percentage of his total yards come from YAC, behind only Henne and Sam Bradford (Kap comes in 31st in %YAC). Kap has 321 more Air Yards than Smith, despite attempting 92 fewer passes.

Here's some more numbers that make the same point: http://regressing.deadspin.com/charts-w ... 1469917039

Those charts are tracking passes that travel 20+ yards in the air. Kap is third in the league, throwing those passes on 15% of his attempts. Smith is 31st, throwing 20 or more yards downfield on only 9% of his attempts. The second chart proves that Kap isn't just gunning it downfield, either - he's the second most accurate downfield passer in the league. Smith actually isn't bad here, coming in 9th. But his reluctance to throw downfield makes me think this is more of a selection result than a statement about his downfield accuracy - i.e. he's only throwing downfield when there's an obvious open target.

All these numbers back up thesack's main thesis, that Smith is a game manager who is unwilling to throw the ball downfield. Which is not to say he's a bad QB. He makes good decisions and takes care of the ball. But he's not a dynamic passer and he's not going to win you games with his arm. Kap can and does win games with his arm. There's simply isn't a good argument otherwise.

And all of this without even touching on the fact that Kap's running threat completely changes the way defenses play the Niners.

[thesack12]

^^^

Awesome, Awesome post. Also, thanks for those links. Been very curios/interested to see those exact type of numbers.

Those charts/stats concretely prove what the naked eye sees. And yes sir, Kaep's truly special ability to run the ball/create more time only makes him even more dangerous to defenses.

Kaep has massive potential. Ron Jaworski is on record saying that Kaep has MVP caliber upside. It remains to be seen if he can attain that level. But the kid has already shown so much, and only has 1.5 seasons or so as a starting QB under his belt. He is only going to get better. With an improved receiving corps (hopefully) and a more dynamic backfield (Lattimore, maybe?), Kaep very well could catapult into the top of the QB ranks very, very soon. I think that Roman holds him back, quite a bit actually.

Kaep is worlds better than Alex Smith both today, and going forward. Its really not even close.

[oaktownwarriors87]

So we should be easy on Kaep because he's young and Smith wouldn't have won anyways?

Smith is only 3 years older. Smith is 4-0 in his last 4 against Seattle. Statistically, he is the best playoff QB in the NFL (9 TD, 0 INT, almost 300 YPG). The 49ers were Super Bowl favorites when Smith was the QB. He is statistically superior to Kaep and the team was statistically better with Smtih.

I agree that Kaep is to young. He is a poor decision maker and he relies to heavily on his raw talent. IMO the 49ers would have at least 1 Super Bowl ring had Smith stayed, probably 2.

Please, son!!!

Sure seems as though you didnt watch much KC ball this season. Their 2013 record has a direct correllation, to their 2012 record. Having the wost record in 2012, led to a straight up cupcake schedule for 2013. Of KC's 11 wins, all of 1 came against a winning team. And that was Philly in the third game of the season, while Vick was still at the helm and before they got fully acclimated to Kelly's system. KC were the biggest frauds in the NFL last season.

As for stats...

Kaep: 243/416 (7.69 yards attempt), 3197 yards /21 tds
Alex: 308/508 (6.52 yars attempt), 3313 yards /23 tds

So Alex only managed 116 more yards and 2 more td's than Kaep despite having 92 more attempts.

Kaep: 68.6 total QBR (7th in NFL) and 91.6 rating (10th in NFL)
Alex: 49.4 total QBR (22nd in NFL) and 89.1 rating (14 th in NFL)

Only thing you can clearly say about Alex is his completion % was slightly better, 60.6 to Kaep's 58.4. However when you consider Alex flat out unwillingness to throw the ball downfield basically at all + Kaep's ridiculously bad receiving corps for most the season (Kyle Williams, Marlon Moore starting and playing significant snaps, Bruce Miller, the freaking fullback, being the 3rd leading receiver when he went down in week 14... seriously???), the disparity in those percentages isn't nearly wide enough to give Alex any kind of plus factors. The ferocious defenses Kaep had to face regularly has to be considered as well. Alex didnt face nearly the same caliber of competition on the other side of the field.

I also, point you to the YAC (yards after catch) stat. Jamaal Charles had 70 catches for 693 yards with 7 receiving td's, but of those 693 yards 630 were of the YAC variety. That equates to those 70 passes traveling a grand total of 63 yards downfield COMBINED. Thats less than 1 yard per pass. When coupling these stats, to Alex's numbers, that equates to 70 of Alex's 308 completions (22.7%), 630 of Alex's 3313 yards (19%), and 7 of Alex's 23 td passes (30.4%) all being compiled on passes he threw an average of less than 1 yard downfield. That defines stats being skewed/inflated. It only ges to further prove that Alex is incapable/unwilling to throw the ball downfield/make plays. Every SF fan should have been well aware of this fact by now. Alex doesn't take any chances, so he won't lose you too many games, but he damn sure isnt going to win you any either.

Alex has hit his apex and is the epitome of an game managing QB, and overall the definition of average.

Yes, Kaep has work to do. But that kid has special skills, tools, and talent. Some people are calling him a loser, among other things. Well last time I checked the kid is carrying a 4-2 playoff record (and only 1 of those 6 playoff games were in Frisco). Yes, all of us 49er fans are heartbroken at how the last 3 seasons have ended. But don't fool yourself, Frisco doesnt stand a remote chance of making a 2nd half comeback in last season's Super Bowl without Kaep. They also, arent even in the game without Kaep at the helm in the NFC championship At Seattle no less. Hawks absolutely embarrassed Peyton and Denver's elite receiving corps on a neutral field. Alex Smith would have stood no chance against that defense, none.

Kaep was the obviousy better choice long term QB for thr 49ers the second Harbaugh handpicked him. Getting two 2nd round draft picks for Alex, just makes it even more of a slam dunk situation.

YAC? Smith sets him up. As Niners fans we watched Montana do the exact same thing. Smith proved that he didn't need Charles when he went down in the playoffs and they still managed to score over 40 points.

Smith lead the NFL in 4th quarter comebacks. Meanwhile, Kaep threw 3 INT's on his last 3 possessions.

In the playoffs Alex has 9TD's, 0 INT''s and averaged 300 yards a game. Statistically he's the best playoff QB in all of football, he even beat Drew Brees in a shoot out. It took an epic melt down by his defense to lose last year, and it took two late special teams turnover for him to lose with the 49ers.

The guy is a game manager, but he steps it up when he has to. That's exactly what you want with a loaded team.

Best defense
Bet offensive line
Best TE
Top 5 RB
Top 5 WR core

How on earth you chose a guy that can't even pass out of the pocket over Alex Smith, one of the 3 best decision makers in football, is beyond me. He was a perfect fit for this team. By trading Smith the 9ers were robbed of two Super Bowls.

I pray that Kaep matures and learns to play the right way.

[oaktownwarriors87]

P.S.

I watched all but two KC games.

[GS Warriors 1]

The trade didn't rob us of 2 SB's, please. That is a bunch of crap.

[thesack12]

YAC? Smith sets him up. As Niners fans we watched Montana do the exact same thing. Smith proved that he didn't need Charles when he went down in the playoffs and they still managed to score over 40 points.

Smith lead the NFL in 4th quarter comebacks. Meanwhile, Kaep threw 3 INT's on his last 3 possessions.

In the playoffs Alex has 9TD's, 0 INT''s and averaged 300 yards a game. Statistically he's the best playoff QB in all of football, he even beat Drew Brees in a shoot out. It took an epic melt down by his defense to lose last year, and it took two late special teams turnover for him to lose with the 49ers.

The guy is a game manager, but he steps it up when he has to. That's exactly what you want with a loaded team.

Best defense
Bet offensive line
Best TE
Top 5 RB
Top 5 WR core

How on earth you chose a guy that can't even pass out of the pocket over Alex Smith, one of the 3 best decision makers in football, is beyond me. He was a perfect fit for this team. By trading Smith the 9ers were robbed of two Super Bowls.

I pray that Kaep matures and learns to play the right way.

First off, I like how you completely ignore and dimiss all of the compelling numbers, stats, figures that both I and GSW hoops shared that clearly show Kaep is superior.

Sorry dude, but when the overwhelming majority of Smith's passes to Charles travel less than 1 yard downfield through the air (many of which actually don't even cross the line of scrimmage), I seriously fail to see how that qualifies as Alex "setting up" Charles.

You are also completing dicounting the caliber of Defenses Kaep was against in the playoffs. You are seriously trying to make a point based off Smith facing the sad sap Indy D while Kaep opposed Green Bay @ Lambeau, Carolina on the road, and Seattle on the road. Not to mention Kaep having to play 6 NFC west games, in which everybody in the division has top defenses. And in case you didn't notice, that Seattle D absolutely OWNED and embarassed the Broncos on a neutral field in the Super Bowl. Thats the same Broncos team, that set many all time NFL offensive records. Yet Kaep and Frisco were one play away from beating them on the road in the NFC championship.

And if you want to talk epic meltdowns costing Frisco playoff games, how bout be bring up the 2012 Super Bowl. In case you didn't notice the 9er defense couldn't stop throwing up all over themselves that game. The secondary was getting straight up roasted on the regular, and the front seven wasn't getting any push to help compensate. Thanks to the defense being horrible Frisco dug themselves into a very deep hole in the first half. The horrific special teams that allowed Jones to run back the 2nd half kick off for a TD basically untouched, just made the hole all the more deeper. Yet despite all that Kaep and crew fought back and was within ten yards of an epic comeback victory.

Best Defense? Nope, Seattle and Carolina say hello. The secondary has been shaky for awhile now, case in point the entire 2012 playoffs.

Best offensive line? Perhaps, you could make a case. However, there are pass protection concerns

Best TE? Absolutely not. Have you never heard of Jimmy Graham or Rob Gronkowski?

Top 5 RB? Maybe 5 years ago. Frank is still solid but not near the top anymore

Top 5 WR corps? LMAO, you are seriously trying to make that claim when a 32 year old Anquan Boldin was the only WR who could even catch a pass most last season. Even when Crab came back after missing 11 games, he was obviously not 100%. In 2011 the main two guys were Crab and a 34 year old Randy Moss who was pretty much just a decoy. The claim that Frisco has had a top 5 WR corps is donwright laughable bro. The fact of the matter is WR has been one of the biggest weaknesses on the team for a couple years running.

And as for your Alex being "one of 3 best decision makers in football" and "a perfect fit for this team", I think I will just defer to Jim Harbaugh's view on Kaep vs. Alex. Its quite obvious who Harbs thinks is clearly better. Also, as for the trade "robbing' Frisco of 2 super bowl, you do realize that Alex has never been to a super bowl, and Kaep has right???

[oaktownwarriors87]

YAC? Smith sets him up. As Niners fans we watched Montana do the exact same thing. Smith proved that he didn't need Charles when he went down in the playoffs and they still managed to score over 40 points.

Smith lead the NFL in 4th quarter comebacks. Meanwhile, Kaep threw 3 INT's on his last 3 possessions.

In the playoffs Alex has 9TD's, 0 INT''s and averaged 300 yards a game. Statistically he's the best playoff QB in all of football, he even beat Drew Brees in a shoot out. It took an epic melt down by his defense to lose last year, and it took two late special teams turnover for him to lose with the 49ers.

The guy is a game manager, but he steps it up when he has to. That's exactly what you want with a loaded team.

Best defense
Bet offensive line
Best TE
Top 5 RB
Top 5 WR core

How on earth you chose a guy that can't even pass out of the pocket over Alex Smith, one of the 3 best decision makers in football, is beyond me. He was a perfect fit for this team. By trading Smith the 9ers were robbed of two Super Bowls.

I pray that Kaep matures and learns to play the right way.

First off, I like how you completely ignore and dimiss all of the compelling numbers, stats, figures that both I and GSW hoops shared that clearly show Kaep is superior.

Sorry dude, but when the overwhelming majority of Smith's passes to Charles travel less than 1 yard downfield through the air (many of which actually don't even cross the line of scrimmage), I seriously fail to see how that qualifies as Alex "setting up" Charles.

You are also completing dicounting the caliber of Defenses Kaep was against in the playoffs. You are seriously trying to make a point based off Smith facing the sad sap Indy D while Kaep opposed Green Bay @ Lambeau, Carolina on the road, and Seattle on the road. Not to mention Kaep having to play 6 NFC west games, in which everybody in the division has top defenses. And in case you didn't notice, that Seattle D absolutely OWNED and embarassed the Broncos on a neutral field in the Super Bowl. Thats the same Broncos team, that set many all time NFL offensive records. Yet Kaep and Frisco were one play away from beating them on the road in the NFC championship.

And if you want to talk epic meltdowns costing Frisco playoff games, how bout be bring up the 2012 Super Bowl. In case you didn't notice the 9er defense couldn't stop throwing up all over themselves that game. The secondary was getting straight up roasted on the regular, and the front seven wasn't getting any push to help compensate. Thanks to the defense being horrible Frisco dug themselves into a very deep hole in the first half. The horrific special teams that allowed Jones to run back the 2nd half kick off for a TD basically untouched, just made the hole all the more deeper. Yet despite all that Kaep and crew fought back and was within ten yards of an epic comeback victory.

Best Defense? Nope, Seattle and Carolina say hello. The secondary has been shaky for awhile now, case in point the entire 2012 playoffs.

Best offensive line? Perhaps, you could make a case. However, there are pass protection concerns

Best TE? Absolutely not. Have you never heard of Jimmy Graham or Rob Gronkowski?

Top 5 RB? Maybe 5 years ago. Frank is still solid but not near the top anymore

Top 5 WR corps? LMAO, you are seriously trying to make that claim when a 32 year old Anquan Boldin was the only WR who could even catch a pass most last season. Even when Crab came back after missing 11 games, he was obviously not 100%. In 2011 the main two guys were Crab and a 34 year old Randy Moss who was pretty much just a decoy. The claim that Frisco has had a top 5 WR corps is donwright laughable bro. The fact of the matter is WR has been one of the biggest weaknesses on the team for a couple years running.

And as for your Alex being "one of 3 best decision makers in football" and "a perfect fit for this team", I think I will just defer to Jim Harbaugh's view on Kaep vs. Alex. Its quite obvious who Harbs thinks is clearly better. Also, as for the trade "robbing' Frisco of 2 super bowl, you do realize that Alex has never been to a super bowl, and Kaep has right???

-Compelling stats? Smith was statistically the best QB in football when he was benched... better than Kaep. How's that for "compelling" statistics.

Let's not forget that Smith is statistically the best playoff QB in the NFL and in his last full season with the Niners he lead the NFL in 4th quarter comebacks. Didn't Kaepernick throw 3 INT's on his last 3 possession in the playoffs?

Smith is 4-0 in his last 4 games against Seattle. Wish we had that guy.

-Boldin and Crabtree are AMAZING. Throw in an old Moss and lienup David at WR? This team is STACKED. WR isn't a weakness, it's a scapegoat for Kaepernick apologist.

http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2014/6/18/5 ... s-rankings
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap200000 ... ad-the-way
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2091 ... ts/page/32

-There are no pass protection concerns, there are "Kaepernick can't keep his cool in the pocket" concerns. He scrambles when he should step it up and pass. More Kaepernick appologist trash.

-Frank gore was top 5... maybe 5 years ago? Frank Gore has been selected to the last 3 pro bowl teams and 4 of the last 5. Prior to that he only made it once in 2006.

-Davis is a FREAK and hands down the best TE in football. Not even close.

-Seattle has the best defense at home, 49ers have the best defense.

-Baltimore got 3 early TD's because we opened the game by losing yards and then handing them the ball at the 50 yard line. After that they turned the ball over twice. That goes on Kaeps head and the rest of the offense. Once again, more Kaepernick apologist BULL ****.

Oh, and have you ever heard of a thing called the west coast offense? Us Niner fans have, Monta made horizontal passes to his running/full backs all the time. That's why Roger Craig usually had more receptions than Jerry Rice. That's exactly what Smith has been doing in KC and he even did it when Charles was hurt and posted 40+ points.

[GS Warriors 1]

4-0 in his last 4 games against Seattle is deceiving. I'd say only 1 of those was against "the good" Seattle('12 at the Stick) and he struggled a bit in that game, which has been par for the course for all QB's against their pass defense the last 2 seasons. And we do not have the better defense. I think the front 7's are pretty even but where Seattle takes it is their secondary. Physical players in Chancellor, Sherman, and Maxwell and a " centerfielder" in Thomas that can make big plays. Right now, the 49ers secondary is a big question mark but so far from reports, it might look good. We'll have to see it in actual games.

Boldin and Crabtree can be amazing but we only saw parts of it because of Crab's injury. The team really took off when he returned, only losing the NFC title game. I think that is something people should be excited about, we finally have depth at WR(Johnson, continued development of Patton) and 2 high quality starters who are healthy plus Vernon Davis. The amount of talent we have at WR entering this year compared to the previous 3 seasons is not really all that close. Johnson/Patton are superior players/talents to the likes of Kyle Williams.

[oaktownwarriors87]

Pretty amazing how close their numbers were last season

Code: Select all

passing yards a game  199.8  220.9
yards per attempt       7.8    6.5
rushing yards a game   32.8   28.7
yards per rush          5.7    5.7
touch downs            21     23
interceptions           8      7
completion %           58.4   60.6
games                  16     15


[thesack12]

-Compelling stats? Smith was statistically the best QB in football when he was benched... better than Kaep. How's that for "compelling" statistics.

Let's not forget that Smith is statistically the best playoff QB in the NFL and in his last full season with the Niners he lead the NFL in 4th quarter comebacks. Didn't Kaepernick throw 3 INT's on his last 3 possession in the playoffs?

Smith is 4-0 in his last 4 games against Seattle. Wish we had that guy.

-Boldin and Crabtree are AMAZING. Throw in an old Moss and lienup David at WR? This team is STACKED. WR isn't a weakness, it's a scapegoat for Kaepernick apologist.

http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2014/6/18/5 ... s-rankings
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap200000 ... ad-the-way
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2091 ... ts/page/32

-There are no pass protection concerns, there are "Kaepernick can't keep his cool in the pocket" concerns. He scrambles when he should step it up and pass. More Kaepernick appologist trash.

-Frank gore was top 5... maybe 5 years ago? Frank Gore has been selected to the last 3 pro bowl teams and 4 of the last 5. Prior to that he only made it once in 2006.

-Davis is a FREAK and hands down the best TE in football. Not even close.

-Seattle has the best defense at home, 49ers have the best defense.

-Baltimore got 3 early TD's because we opened the game by losing yards and then handing them the ball at the 50 yard line. After that they turned the ball over twice. That goes on Kaeps head and the rest of the offense. Once again, more Kaepernick apologist BULL ****.

Oh, and have you ever heard of a thing called the west coast offense? Us Niner fans have, Monta made horizontal passes to his running/full backs all the time. That's why Roger Craig usually had more receptions than Jerry Rice. That's exactly what Smith has been doing in KC and he even did it when Charles was hurt and posted 40+ points.

Yeah, its entirely fair to compare the competition of Seattle (and the NFC west in general) from the time Smith and Kaep with respectively at the helm. Seattle has only been good the last 2 seasons, and the NFC west (although currently the best division in football) is not too far removed from being the worst division in football by a wide margin.

Here's the thing Kaep's playoff record is 4-2. That's pretty damn solid in of itself, but when you consider only 1 of those 6 games were in Frisco it makes that record downright good.

All of those links are talking about the WR corps in 2014. There is no question that the WR group is much improved going into THIS season. But that obviously has no bearing on what/who was on the field the last few seasons.

Besides, even if you choose to view the team with those extremely rosy colored glasses, the thing is Alex benefited from all those things you claim about the supporting class. So that is really a moot point you are trying to make.

Its worth mentioning that with Kaep as his QB, Boldin recorded his first 1,000 yard season since 2009, and the most yards he's had since 2006. Also, you have to go back to the 2008 season for a year when he had more TD's than last year.

Also, in 2012 both Alex and Kaep played 8 regular season games. With Alex, Crabtree gained 440 yards with 3 Td's. With Kaep he gained 665 yards with 6 TD's. Crab went on (With Kaep) to gain 285 yards with 3 TD's in three playoff games.

As for the super bowl, I guess we must have watched different games...

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/playbyplay?gameId=330203025

The first offensive drive Gore rushed twice for a total of 3 yards, and there was one incomplete pass. The second offensive drive, they gained 62 yards, in which Kaep was 2/3 for 43 yards and had 2 rushes for 16 yards. Gore had a 2 separate rushes for no gain in that possession. On the 3rd possession, Kaep hit VD for 29 yards, then hit him again for 11 yards on the next play. Next James rushes for 9, then Gore rushes for 7. The following play James commits a drive killing/momentum shifting/game changing fumble. So yeah I fail to see how Kaep was letting the team down on the first few drives. In fact, the offense was actually driving the ball down the field.

The 4th posession was Kaep's only mistake the entire game that had a big impact. Reed picked him off on the first play. However, that turnover did not lead to points for Baltimore. Just before the half the offense got the ball at their own 20 with less than 2 minutes to go, and drove 56 yards for a FG, which at the time seemed to curb Baltimore's momentum. Then the power outtage ensued, which eventually led to the crippling special teams gaffe of the 2nd half opening kickoff.

All in all Kaep was involved in 11 plays that gained 15 or more yards, 9 passes and 2 run (including a 31 yard td pass to Crab, and a 15 yard TD run). Kaep totaled 303 yards passing, and 62 yards rushing. The offense as a whole gained 484 total yards. So your claim that Kaep and the offense couldn't move the ball or make plays, is quite frankly false.

Not sure what point you are trying to make about the WC offense. During the Harbaugh/Roman era, Frisco hasn't ran that system. In fact they rarely utilize their RB's as pass catchers, and basically never run quick outs or WR screens. Yet, Alex's never expanded on his game and still flat refused to put any air under the ball.And in KC you do realize that his top two WR's were Dwayne Bowe (a go up and get it jump ball type WR) and Donnie Avery (a get vertical type WR) right? Alex did not, and could not maximize those guys' skillsets.

As for KC's playoff game and the 40+ points stuff. That was in a dome against a terrible defense. More importantly KC lost the game.

Oh and on the season KC was 1-5 against winning teams, 1-6 if you count the playoff game