Bad news for the 49ers and Vernon Davis as tests have shown he does have a MCL sprain that was sustained the loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday.  It really sucks because Davis had just started to get the ball thrown his way and had four catches on Sunday.

Expect Davis to miss atleast the next two weeks and then possibly be back against the New York Giants.

Good luck in your recovery Vernon.

The SanFrancisco 49ers lost their first game of the season on Sunday as they fell to the Pittsburgh Steelers 37-16.  The game was 17-9 in favor of the Steelers going into the 4th quarter and then all hell broke lose for the niners.  Two field goals and a interception returned for a touchdown blew the game wide open for the Steelers.

The 49ers had a few chances early in the game to score touchdowns but weren’t able to get into the endzone.  After getting into the redzone on their first possession, the 49ers had to settle for a 36 yard Joe Nedney field goal.  What happened next set the tone for the day as the Steelers ran the kickoff back for a touchdown.  The 49ers were playing catchup after the kickoff return and never could get over the hump.

It was nice to see Vernon Davis get some action in the game.  Quarterback Alex Smith hit Davis with the ball for four catches and 56 yards.  Smith threw the ball to Davis in the endzone twice, but both times the passes were incomplete.

Smith had plenty of chances to put more points on the board but could never get the team into the promise land.  Smith finished the day 17-35 for 209 yards and the crucial interception in the 4th quarter.

I was dissapointed in the running game however.  It seemed that Frank Gore never really got going and continued to always try to run right up the middle.  Gore rushed 14 times for only 39 yards and you aren’t going to win a game when your starting running back only runs for 39 yards.  We know that the Steelers defense is pretty damn good and you have to establish the run to open up some throws downfield but it wasn’t working for the niners.

As for the defense, the defense played well against the Steeler receivers, but it was the tight ends that really hurt them in the passing game.  It just goes to show you how well Nate Clements is playing right now when he can shut down Hines Ward and the other receivers.  Oh, and the defense couldn’t stop the run as Willie Parker ran wild for 133 yards and Najeh Davenport ran for another 47 yards.

The 49ers will be back at home on Sunday when they face the Seattle Seahawks.  Gametime is set for 1 p.m. pacific time.  Lets hope the 49ers get back on the winning track and win another divisional game.

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Manny Lawson went down in Wednesday’s practice with a knee injury but the team didn’t think it was too bad at the time and Lawson used a stationary bike the remainder of practice, what they didn’t know though was the ACL was actually tore.

Lawson is second on the team with 14 tackles, showing impressive improvement from his rookie year. He started 11 games last season after San Francisco chose him with the 22nd overall selection, making 65 tackles and 2 1/2 sacks.

Veteran Hannibal Navies and seldom-used second-year pro Parys Haralson are the top candidates to replace Lawson.

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The San Francsico 49ers played like crap but came out of St. Louis with another divsional victory as they moved to 2-0 on the young season.  The offense looks like they have no idea what they are doing out there.  Vernon Davis is getting pissed because he isn’t getting the ball thrown his way, and 49ers fans are getting pissed all the team is doing is run, run, run, punt.

You have got to get the ball going around more through the air to be honest.  Teams are going to start stacking 8 men in the box and making Alex Smith beat them and right now I don’t think Smith can make the quick checks and get rid of the ball in the right places.

The one bright side of this 49ers team is the defense.  The defense is what has won these first two games.  Vernon Davis is a beast out there, and he is going to deliver some hard shots to opposing teams every week.  Nate Clements is playing very well in the secondary and looks like he was really worth all the money.  The defense did allow 368 yards passing but they kept points off the board and that is what really matters.

The 49ers will travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers next weekend. Expect that game not to be so pretty if the offense continues to play like they have been.

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The 49ers have released Zac Herold who was on the practice squad and signed another tight end by the name of Zac.

Zac Alcorn was originally signed by the Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He spent the first part of the season on Green Bay’s practice squad before being activated to the 53-man playing roster last November.  Alcorn played in six of the Packers’ last seven games, mostly on special teams.

Dur preseason with the Packers everyone on the Packers squad said that Alcorn had the best hands they had seen in a while.  I have to wonder why they let him go and signed two other tight ends to their practice squad though. Time will tell but, welcome to the 49er family Zac Alcorn!

We would like to send our prayers and well wishes to the Frank Gore and his family during these tough times.  It was learned this week that Frank’s mother passed away after battling kidney ailments.

Everyone out there please pray for the Gore family during this tough time.

It was an ugly game for the SanFrancisco 49ers last night but they found a way to pull out the win during the last two minutes of the ball game.  Arnaz Battle scored the winning touchdown on a end-around from one yard out with 22 seconds left in the game to give the 49ers the win.  Battle previously fumbled the ball at the one yard line after making a bigtime catch and the ball was recovered in the endzone by the niners.  Per rules, the ball must be put at the point where the fumble occured since it was recovered by the same team in the endzone. 

Another big play of the final drive was Alex Smith on a 4th and 1 when a pass play broke down and Smith scrambled down the sideline for a 25 yard gain.  Smith who finished the game 15-31 and 126 yards said that he knew he didn’t play well but he was happy with the final drive and picking up the win.

It was a ugly win yeah, but give the team credit for coming back and winning. That is all that matters is the W, not how pretty it was.

I was very impressed with the defense last night and especially Patrick Willis who looked great making his first career start.  For a rookie to fly around the field and make tackles like that, it is very impressive.

The 49ers secondary also played pretty good through the game.  They had a few penalties but you have to expect those in the first few games of the year.  Walt Harris and Nate Clements were big time signees that really helped out the team last night.  Well worth the money!

Lets hope the young team grows from this win, and learns from their mistakes.  Hopefully they come out and the offense plays a lot better against the St. Louis Rams on Sunday.

The SanFrancisco 49ers are ready to kick off the 2007 season against the Arizona Cardinals tonight on Monday Night Football.  Look for the niners to try to get Frank Gore started early in the ballgame and control the line of scrimmage.  It will be a long night for the Cardinals if Gore and company can control the line of scrimmage and move the ball on the ground.  If the the laners are open up for Gore on running plays, it will also open up the passing plays for Alex Smith and the receivers.

I expect a big night out of Smith against this Cardinals defense.  Atleast two touchdowns and 225 yards passing.  I also expect Gore to run for 90-100 yards and a touchdown on the ground and possibly one through the air.

The 49ers defense will rely on the defensive backs to cover the receiving corps of the Cardinals.  Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Bolden should get the ball thrown to them plenty of times.  As long as our secondary doesn’t bite on the play action passes I think we will be ok.

The Cardinals are going to depend on Edgerrin James to carry the load for them at the running back spot.  He will try to pound it between the tackles and that could be trouble for the niners are they are pretty small on the line and don’t have a true nose tackle for their 3-4 defense.  Patrick Willis will need to cheat towards the line to get James before he reaches the linebackers and secondary.

My prediction:  49ers 27 Cardianals 20

Taylor Jacobs currently is the #3 receiver for the 49ers going into week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals but Ashley Lelie is right behind him and pushing for playing time as well.  Coach Nolan has said that Jacobs could go in for Arnaz Battle, and Lelie in for Darrell Jackson when they run two wide out sets.

I can imagine we will see all four receivers out on the field at the same time when the 49ers need a big passing play.  It will be interesting to see what happens once Monday night comes.

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It was the dreadful day for many players on September 1st. The last day of training camp, and the day that they are either with the active team or cut and possibly resigned to the 8-man practice squad.

The 49ers waived veterans S Darnell Bing, LB Colby Bockwoldt, T Harvey Dahl, T Damane Duckett, WR Bryan Gilmore, TE Zachery Hilton, DE Sam Rayburn and S Vickiel Vaughn, first-year players FB Zak Keasey and T Tavares Washington and rookies RB Thomas Clayton, TE Zack Herold and LB Mark Washington.

Once those players were cut, some of them were re-signed to the practice squad where they will practice against players from the 53 man roster.  Players on the practice squad also make $4,700 on a weekly basis so that isn’t too shabby!

The players that were signed to the practice squad were, S Darnell Bing, RB Thomas Clayton, T Harvey Dahl, T Damane Duckett, TE Zac Herold, FB Zak Keasey, LB Mark Washington and WR Dominque Zeigler.

Also rookies Jay Moore and Joe Cohen were put on the injured reserve.