The results of these games lead to a renewal of one of the great NFL postseason rivalries. The 49ers and Giants have met seven times in the postseason, with the 49ers leading the series 4-3 (4-1 at home).

The first two times (1981, 1984) the 49ers and Giants met in the playoffs – the 49ers won rather comfortably on their way to Super Bowl victories. Then, 1985 and 1986 came which saw the Giants simply dominated the 49ers, as they went on to win the 1986 Super Bowl.

The next match-up was one of the most notable games in NFL postseason history. In 1990, the 49ers were coming off back-to-back Super Bowl victories when they faced the Giants. The 49ers were leading in the 4th quarter when Leonard Marshall ended Joe Montana’s career as 49er. Despite this, the 49ers still led the game with less than 3 minutes remaining and a chance to seal the win with one more first down. Roger Craig fumbled, which set-up a Giants’ last second field goal on their way to a Super Bowl victory.

In 1994, the 49ers avenged the 1990 loss by destroying the Giants 44-3 en route to another Super Bowl victory.

The most recent match-up, during the 2002 season, saw a crazy ending. The Giants were up 38-14 in the third quarter, when Jeff Garcia led the 49ers to 25 unanswered points. The Giants were able to get into field goal range, but a botched snap on the kick and an attempted saving pass cost the Giants the game. There was also a controversial no-call on pass interference because of an ineligible man down-field for the Giants.

Back to this season, the 49ers and Giants are both entering Sunday on top of their game. It’s been ten lonely years for the 49ers who haven’t made the playoffs since 2002, while the Giants have seen some success in recent years, notably winning the 2007 Super Bowl against the then undefeated New England Patriots.

This game will be a hard fought, hard hitting game that will surely be entertaining to watch. But who will win?

I’m going with the 49ers for several reasons:

• The 49ers own the league’s best turnover differential (+28), which was key in their win over the Saints (forcing 5 turnovers).
• The 49ers’ NFL best rushing defense, which held the Saints (6th best rushing offense) to only 37 yards, will be playing the NFL’s worst ranked rushing offense. Brandon Jacobs is not at his best when forced to run hard without lanes, and the Niners will not leave many lanes open.
• The 49ers’ are a run first team, and as well as the Giants’ front four have been playing over the past four weeks – they still struggle against the run at times. The Packers rushed for over 6 yards per carry (147 total yards) last week. If the Giants’ don’t play better than that, it will be tough to beat the Niners, who have a much better defense than the Packers.
• The 49ers are the home team and the game will have sloppy conditions which favors the more conservative play of the 49ers.

A 49ers win will put them in the Super Bowl for the 6th time in franchise history, and they are currently the only team in NFL history to appear in more than one Super Bowl without ever losing one. But that is for another day…

Be sure to catch the game: Sunday, January 22nd @ 6:30PM EST on FOX.

[Photo Credit: Ezra Shaw/Scott Boehm/Getty Images via ABCNewsRadioOnline.com]

He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in 1987 with the 26th overall pick. He is most noted for his play with the Indianapolis Colts. He was awarded All-Pro honors and he was a Pro-Bowler in 1995 with the Colts. He is a member of their Ring of Honor.

As a coach, he led the San Diego Toreros to two conference titles in three years and he turned the 1-11 Stanford football team to an 11-1 powerhouse in four seasons. He has great reputation in the NFL and as a head coach and this is why he is wanted by so many teams.

Currently, the teams that have been rumored to be interested in Harbaugh are the San Francisco 49ers, Denver Broncos, Michigan (college) and of course Stanford would want him to remain.

I expect him to be the next head coach of the 49ers for several reasons:

• It’s the next step: He has had tremendous success coaching at the collegiate level, and I’m sure he has some curiosity as to whether or not he could coach at the NFL level.
• It’s close to home: He wouldn’t have to move to take this job. He grew up in Palo Alto and now coaches there. Palo Alto is very close to Santa Clara, where the 49ers team headquarters is and it is close to San Francisco where the home games are.
• Money?: If Harbaugh is after money, he will definitely get more money by leaving Stanford. Every team on the list can offer more money than Stanford, and that could be a factor that plays an important part. The 49ers need a solid head coach that can particularly groom QBs. As a former QB, Harbaugh is the perfect person and the 49ers will offer a generous contract for that.

Where do you think Harbaugh will end up? Comment Below

[Photo Credit: CoachesHotSeat.com]

The 49ers fired Offensive Coordinator Jimmy Raye and then Alex Smith got injured. They skip over David Carr and start Troy Smith. The 49ers are now, 4-7, and the playoffs are looking like strong possibility. Only die-hard 49ers’ fans would have expected this type of turnaround. At only one game behind the Rams and Seahawks, the 49ers have to feel pretty good at this point, all things considered. But, wait, the 49ers have placed their best offensive player, Frank Gore, on IR. This is a major blow and it has the possibility to hurt the 49ers’ morale.

Brian Westbrook filled in extremely well against the Cardinals on Monday Night Football, but Coach Singletary said that 23 carries per game may be too much for Westbrook. The 49ers’ need to face the music and realize that they have to run the ball to continue to win. Troy Smith is doing a good enough job, but he is not a long-term passing solution. Westbrook had 10 carries all season prior to Monday Night’s game, so there is no reason why he can’t carry the ball 20 times a game for the rest of the season. Yes, he has had injury concerns in the past, but he is 100% healthy now and he has shown he still has some game left.

If the 49ers aren’t afraid to use Westbrook like the Eagles did for so many years, the 49ers might have what it takes to finish the season strong and make the playoffs. I see the regular season finishing like this:

Yes, I can see the NFL’s worst nightmare happening this season – a team with a losing record makes the playoffs while teams with nine or more wins will not make the playoffs. If my scenario plays out correctly, the 49ers will win the division since they would have beaten the Rams twice in head-to-head. The 49ers are lucky that they have three divisional games remaining and that they are in the worst division in football.

Thoughts? Do the 49ers make the playoffs this season?

[Photo Credit: TheRealTimer.com]

1. Steelers: The Steelers have played tremendous despite being without Ben Roethlisberger for the first four weeks. They are 5-1 despite playing a very tough schedule over the first seven weeks.
2. Jets: After losing the first week to the Ravens, the Jets have been smooth sailing. They have outscored opponents by 58 points and they have the league’s best turnover differential at +10.
3. Patriots: The Patriots are currently 5-1, with their only loss coming against a very good Jets team. The Patriots defense sometimes gets burnt, but the offense is more than capable of picking up the slack.
4. Titans: The Titans are one of the surprises in the NFL. They have a great team, but with all the struggles and turmoil at the QB position, it is a bit surprising to see how well they are playing. They lead the league in point differential, outscoring opponents by almost 12 points per game.
5. Colts: The Colts are expected to be in the Top 5, but this season they have struggled at times. A key to their success has been the ability to protect Peyton Manning. He has only been sacked six times this season.

Bottom Five (Best to Worst):

1. Lions: The Lions are an interesting team. They have outscored opponents and they force more turnovers than they commit, but they are still only 1-5. The Lions struggle to finish out games, but the future is looking better.
2. Cowboys: The Cowboys were predicted by many to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, but they have not played well at all. They have tremendous talent on paper, but they are being outscored and they have a negative turnover differential – not to mention the penalties.
3. 49ers: The early favorite to win the NFC West just can’t seem to get things going this season. If there is any positive news, four of their six losses came with less than one minutes to play. If they can figure out how to finish games, they still have a shot in a relatively weak division.
4. Panthers: The Panthers are a mess this season, and they are lucky to have one win. They can’t score, they turn the ball over too much and they allow too many sacks.
5. Bills: The lone win-less team, in the NFL has been horrible this season. They are losing by almost 13 points per game. On a positive note, their opponents winning percentage is 64% which is tied for the toughest schedule in the league. Also, the overtime loss against the Ravens is something to build on.

Be sure to check back next week for the Week 9 Power Rankings!

Disagree? Comment Below!

[Photo Credit: SteelersDaily.com]

Too Close for Comfort

This week’s theme must have been the close game. Of the 14 games, 9 games were decided by 7 points or less.

The Saints found themselves in a close one against the division rival Panthers. The Saints were able to win by a score of 16-14, but more concerning is the lack of offense by the Saints this season- especially at home. Pierre Thomas didn’t play with an ankle injury and Reggie Bush will be missing some significant time with a broken leg. Also, Brees hasn’t been the same this season, but the Saints are 3-1 and tied for the division lead.

The Packers found themselves in a similar situation against the Lions. The Packers survived a late surge by the Lions to win 28 to 26. The Packers basically are putting the entire offense on the shoulders of Aaron Rodgers. They have not been able to establish a running game since Ryan Grant went down with a season ending injury in week 1. The Packers were 14.5 point favorites in this game, Vegas got this one wrong- big time.

The Colts found themselves in a close one with the division rival Jaguars. The Jaguars won the game on a 59-yard game winning field goal by Josh Scobee, 31-28.

The Falcons found themselves trailing the entire game against the winless San Francisco 49ers. It took a field goal with seven seconds remaining for the Falcons to beat the 49ers, 16-14. The 49ers should have won this game. Nate Clements intercepted a pass with under two minutes remaining in the game. Instead of falling down and giving the 49ers the ball to run the clock out, he decided to attempt to run the ball back only to be stripped from behind by Roddy White. The Falcons recovered and went on to kick the game winning field goal. Highlights below:

Taylor Mays makes a tremendous catch of a blocked punt for a TD at 36 seconds, and the Clements INT is at 2:10.

The Browns were able to beat the Bengals in Cleveland by a score of 23-20, despite a 10 catch 220 yard performance by Terrell Owens. The Bengals should be worried since their offense hasn’t played particularly well this season.

In the final game without Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers saw their record drop to 3-1 with a loss to the Ravens, 17-14. It was a hard fought defensive game, like many people expected, but Flacco was able to connect with T.J. Houshmandzadeh with 32 seconds left for the winning TD. Jeff Reed missed two field goals that would cost the Steelers the game.

The Broncos were able to overcome the Titans in the fourth quarter. The game winning touchdown was set-up by pass interference in the end-zone. Should the Titans worry that Chris Johnson was held to only 53 yards on 19 carries?

The Eagles saw Michael Vick get injured on a tremendous 23 yard scramble (which was called back for holding) in the first quarter. The offense was not the same with Kevin Kolb at the helm. The Redskins won the game 17-12 in McNabb’s return to Philadelphia. Vick was diagnosed with cracked cartilage between the second and third rib. Luckily, there were no broken bones, but his status for Sunday against the 49ers is questionable.

The Texans were able to get past the Raiders in Oakland, 31-24. Bad news for Raiders’ fans- Darren McFadden went down with an injury in the first quarter, he was having a career revitalizing season over the first three weeks.

The Not So Close

In the blowout of the week, the Chargers dismantled the Cardinals, 41-10. The Derek Anderson era might have ended, as he was benched for poor performance. Max Hall looks like he will start his first career game next week.

The Monday Night game saw the second largest blow-out. The New England Patriots crushed the Dolphins 41-14. The Patriots blocked two kicks – one field goal (for a TD) and one punt – and returned a kick-off for a touchdown in the game. The Patriots shut-up the critics about their defense that allowed Buffalo to score 30 points last week.

Speaking of Buffalo, the Jets crushed the Bills, 38-14. This game shows that the Bills didn’t get any momentum from the 30 points they scored last week.

The Rams went on their first winning streak in three years after beating the Seahawks 20-3. The Seahawks should be worried that they play horribly on the road.

The Giants rebounded nicely after two poor games, by bullying the Bears 17-3. The Giants recorded 10 sacks in the dominating performance. The Bears’ loss left the Kansas City Chiefs as the only unbeaten team in the NFL. I think its safe to say no team will approach 16-0 this season.

’till next week ~ Mike

[Photo Credit: BayNews9.com]

Statement Games:

The Jets beat the Patriots 28-14. The Jets were able to muster some offense in this highly anticipated game. After a horrible performance last Monday against the Ravens, many people were wondering what was wrong with the Jets’ offense. Sanchez didn’t play well and the feature back (Shonn Greene) couldn’t hold onto the football. Well after watching this game against the Patriots, maybe the offensive struggles of the Jets in Week 1 was a testament to how good the Ravens defense is. Sanchez played tremendous throwing for 220 yards and a career high 3 TDs.

The Bengals rebounded from the beating the Patriots gave them in week 1 by edging the Ravens 15-10. The Bengals really stepped up on defense in this game and completely made Joe Flacco a non-factor. Flacco was horrible in this game completing only 17 of 36 passes with 4 INTs. The Ravens defense played another solid game by holding the Bengals to only field goals. The Ravens new high powered offense has yet to show up this season (only 20 points combined), but maybe that is because they have played two of the top defenses in the league. Still, it has to be disheartening to Ravens fans.

Michael Vick made a statement this week against the Lions during the Eagles 35-32 victory. Vick proved that he is back in form and ready to be a starting QB in this league again. He completed 21 of 34 passes for 284 yards and 2 TDs with no INTs. Coach Andy Reid might not have watched Vick last week or this week, because he has already named Kevin Kolb as the starter for next week’s game against the Jaguars. If Kolb struggles, we have a QB controversy and Eagles’ fans will let their cries be heard.

The Texans also made a statement in Week 2. They fought back from a 17 point 3rd quarter deficit to beat the Redskins 30 – 27 in overtime. This week it was the passing attack that led the way for the Texans. Matt Schaub threw for 497 yards and 3 TDs in the victory. On a positive note for the Redskins, Donovan McNabb looked much better this week. He threw for 426 yards, which made it the first time since 1994 that both teams had a QB that threw for more than 400 yards.

The Chargers rebounded strongly from their poor performance last Monday by crushing the Jaguars, 38-13. The Chargers must like the warm sunny weather better than monsoons, and I don’t blame them.

The Bills made a statement against the Packers this week. Except, it is not the statement that they wanted to make. The Bills got crushed by the Packers 34-7 and really showed that they do in fact have the best chance of going 0-16 this season.

The Colts made a statement in the 2nd ever Manning Bowl. The Colts dominated the Giants, 38-14. First rule of the NFL- never doubt a team led by Peyton Manning.

Say It Ain’t So:

The Minnesota Vikings couldn’t muster any offense for the second straight week. This time it resulted in a loss to the Miami Dolphins. Brett Favre has really not looked sharp at all this season and he is proving everyone that said there was no way he’d repeat last season’s number right. Favre threw 3 INTs and lost a fumble in the loss. The absence of Sidney Rice really seems to be affecting the Vikings, and I bet they are praying to land Vincent Jackson. On a positive note, Adrian Peterson had a great game.

The Dallas Cowboys lost their home opener against the Chicago Bears. The Cowboys have talent, but they just don’t seem to be clicking yet. The biggest concern is the Dallas running game, they haven’t been able to get that going at all this season. On the other-side, Jay Cutler seems to be clicking very well with new offensive coordinator. It doesn’t hurt when you have receivers making catches like this:

Both the Cowboys and Vikings were popular Super Bowl picks during the off-season, and now after starting 0-2 things don’t look so good. Since 1978, history has indicated that there is an 11 percent chance of making the playoffs after starting 0-2. But, that doesn’t say the Vikings and Cowboys can’t win the Super Bowl. Remember the Giants in 2008? They started 0-2 and then went on to be the perfect Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.

Surprise, Surprise:

The Chiefs are 2-0 after beating the Browns, 16-14. The Chiefs are obviously much improved and they do have a lot of young talent, but I’m not convinced that they will have a great season. Of the 37 points they have scored this season, 21 have come on defense and special teams. They still need some work on the offensive side of the ball.

The Bucs are also 2-0 after beating the Panthers, 20-7. The most impressive part of this win was the fact that it was in Carolina. The Panthers are now in some real trouble. They are 0-2 and it looks like the Jimmy Clausen era will be starting next week. Matt Moore was the starter, but was benched in the 4th quarter due to poor performance.

The Steelers have started 2-0 despite missing Ben Roethlisberger due to suspension. The offense hasn’t done much, but the defense has really stepped up big time for the Steelers, forcing the Titans into 7 turnovers. The Steelers will now also be without Dennis Dixon who suffered a knee injury and looks to be sidelined 3-5 weeks. They recently re-signed Byron Leftwich, who they cut on Saturday.

The 49ers have surprised many for two reasons this week. First, the early NFC West favorite has started the season 0-2 after losing to the Saints 25-22. Second, the 49ers surprised many people by playing a thrilling game against the Saints. It didn’t start well for the 49ers, but they stepped up big time after a poor first quarter. Alex Smith looked really good, particularly down the stretch. He executed a perfect 2 minute drill to march the Niners down the field to score the game tying TD and two-point conversion. The problem was that the drive was too perfect, leaving Brees enough time to drive down the field for the game winning field goal.

The Rest:

The Falcons rolled over the Cards, 41-7. The Raiders squeaked by the Rams, 16-14. The Broncos roughed up the Seahawks, 31-14.

That will do it for the Week 2 Recap, be sure to tune back in next week for a recap of week 3.

[Randy Moss Photo Credit: Sportsfan4.com]
[Adrian Peterson Photo Credit: SportsNewsAuthority.com]

The AFC Playoff Picture would look like this:

1. San Diego Chargers
2. Indianapolis Colts
3. Baltimore Ravens
4. New England Patriots
5. New York Jets
6. Cincinnati Bengals

Wild Card Weekend:
Ravens over Bengals
Patriots over Jets

Divisional Round:
Patriots over Colts
Chargers over Ravens

Conference Title:
Chargers over Patriots

The NFC Playoff Picture would look like this:

1. New Orleans Saints
2. Green Bay Packers
3. Dallas Cowboys
4. San Francisco 49ers
5. Minnesota Vikings
6. Philadelphia Eagles

Wild Card Weekend:
Cowboys over Eagles
Vikings over 49ers

Divisional Round:
Packers over Cowboys
Saints over Vikings

Conference Title:
Packers over Saints

Super Bowl XLV – Feb. 6th 2011 @ Cowboys Stadium
Packers over Chargers

Photo Credit: blogs.dallasobserver.com

2009 Standings:
Arizona Cardinals – 10-6 *Playoffs
San Francisco 49ers – 8-8
Seattle Seahawks – 5-11
St. Louis Rams – 1-15

2010 Preseason:
San Francisco 49ers – 4-0
St. Louis Rams – 3-1
Arizona Cardinals – 3-1
Seattle Seahawks – 1-3

2010 Regular Season Predictions:
San Francisco 49ers – 11-5
Arizona Cardinals – 6-10
St. Louis Rams – 4-12
Seattle Seahawks – 4-12

Team Breakdowns:

San Francisco 49ers:
The San Francisco 49ers are the favorites in the NFC West because they were the only team in the division to have a stable off-season. The 49ers will stick with the run first offense this season. I expect the run game to be very effective thanks to the 49ers two first round draft picks – Anthony Davis (RT) and Mike Iupati (LG). These two players should help the 49ers improve their smash mouth running game led by All-Pro Frank Gore. The passing game is much improved from a couple of seasons ago. Alex Smith looks like he will be a reliable QB, although not a great one. The receiving core is very young with 2nd year Michael Crabtree and 3rd year Josh Morgan leading the way. The Niners also have one of the best pass catching tight ends with Vernon Davis. The defense will once again be the team’s strength. They have one of the best linebacking tandems in the NFL, lead by Patrick Willis (the best LB in the league) and Takeo Spikes. The secondary can be exposed at times but with Nate Clements returning from an injury that caused him to miss 9 games last season, it will be slightly better.

Arizona Cardinals:
The Arizona Cardinals are coming off back-to-back division titles, but that streak should end with the retirement of Kurt Warner. Warner’s retirement has left a huge hole at QB for the Cards. Matt Leinhart was released by the Cards leaving Derek Anderson as the signal caller. Anderson was a Pro-Bowler in 2007, but as Browns fans will point out, that Anderson has been MIA for awhile. If Anderson does struggle, the Cards have no depth at QB. The other two QBs – Max Hall and John Skelton – are both rookies. The RB situation is also somewhat shaky. Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells are both decent, but Wells has had knee problems during the off-season. At least they still have Larry Fitzgerald, but they are missing his perfect complement after losing Anquan Boldin in the off-season. The Cardinals’ defense will be strength and should help them remain somewhat competitive in the relatively weak division. Darnell Dockett (DE), Adrian Wilson (SS) and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie (CB) will be joined by Joey Porter (LB) and Kerry Rhodes (FS) to form a solid defensive core spanning the line, linebackers and secondary.

St. Louis Rams:
The St. Louis Rams are making progress, but they suffered a major set-back at the same time. They will be starting rookie Sam Bradford in Week 1, and I still am not sure what to think about him. I still think he might be considered a bust in a few years, but he has potential to be pretty good. The set-back facing Bradford and the Rams is their best wide reciever, Donnie Avery, will miss the entire season with a torn ACL. Outside of Avery, the Rams don’t have many receiving threats. Although the recent trade for Mark Clayton is a step in the right direction. Of course no discussion of the Rams’ offense would be complete without mentioning the workhorse – Steven Jackson. Clearly the best player on the team, Jackson has come to camp in great shape and he should be ready to go after having minor off-season back surgery. The Rams defense was not good last season, and I don’t expect it to be good this season. They don’t have any player that truly stands out to me, and I expect them to be towards the bottom of the NFL in yards allowed per game and points, just like last season.

Seattle Seahawks:
The Seahawks made some splashes this off-season. They signed Pete Carroll as the head coach, they traded to get LenDale White and then cut him, they traded for Leon Washington and they cut T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Although, I think the Seahawks are making progress, I think they will need at least one more season before they contend for the division again. The offense is not the greatest with QB Matt Hasselbeck being past his prime. The wide receivers are an interesting situation. After cutting Houshmandzadeh, the Seahawks elected to name former USC stand-out Mike Williams as their #1 WR, with Deion Branch (former Super Bowl MVP) as the #2 wide-out. Will this be the year Williams finally lives up to draft day expectations? The Seahawks hope so or it could be a long season. The running-back trio of Justin Forsett, Julius Jones and Leon Washington will be fast, but they lack the bruiser change of pace option (a White-type back). The offensive line will also be weak. They drafted Russell Okung in the first round to replace the void left by Walter Jones, but Okung has an ankle injury that will force him to miss at least Week 1. On defense, the Seahawks should be slightly improved from last season, but still not great. They will have Lofa Tatupu (LB) back after he missed 11 games last season and they get Marcus Trufant back after he missed 6 games last season. They also drafted a promising safety in Earl Thomas that will get the start from the beginning.

Photo Credit: SportsForGirlFriends.wordpress.com

1. Sam Bradford – Bradford was selected first overall as most people expected, but I still do not like the pick. This year’s draft to me did not have the next Peyton Manning or Tom Brady (who actually was a 6th round pick). Bradford’s durability is a major concern to me and I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes the path of his new division rival- Alex Smith. In other-words, I think he will be a bust initially, but he may have an chance down the road to redeem himself similar to Smith now.
2. C.J. Spiller – The Bills selected Spiller with the 9th overall pick. Despite the Bills offensive line troubles, they went with the best rated RB in the draft. I like the pick because of the talent that Spiller has, but without an o-line (which they have yet to draft), even Spiller’s upside is limited. One thing is for certain, bye bye Lynch.
3. Seattle’s first round – The Seahawks addressed two of their biggest needs in the first round by picking Russell Okung (OT) and Earl Thomas (SS) with the 6th and 14th picks respectively. The left tackle was clearly the biggest need and Okung will be a solid replacement for Pro-Bowler Walter Jones. Overall, the Seahawks have had one of the best drafts so far.
4. 49er’s entire draft – When you talk about a team that understands its priorities, the 49ers will certainly come to mind. The offensive line has been horrible over the past three seasons and the secondary was constantly exposed last year. The Niners went out and addressed all those areas by drafting Anthony Davis (OT) with the 11th pick, Mike Iupati (OG) with the 17th pick, Taylor Mays (FS) with the 49th pick and Navorro Bowman (LB) with the 91st pick. Davis and Iupati will fit perfectly with the smash mouth running game that Singletary likes to use. Gore should be in store for a monster season which will in turn take some pressure off Smith. Mays was an absolute steal at 49, many people easily projected him to be a mid to late first round pick. I expect him to be a stub in the near future.
5. Dez Bryant – The Cowboys selected Bryant with the 24th pick in the draft. You can’t deny Bryant’s talent, but his off-field concerns are certainly valid and the Cowboys don’t have the track record of being able to turn players around (Terrell Owens and Pacman Jones come to mind). He could be the next best thing in the NFL or he could be out of the league in 5 years.
6. Tim Tebow – The Broncos took a gamble and selected Tebow with the 25th pick. This was one of the biggest surprises in the draft, especially since Clausen was still on the bored. With Kyle Orton and Brady Quinn already in Denver, Tebow should have some time to adjust to the pro game and he most likely will not be thrown into the NFL to quickly. I don’t think he will be a top 5 QB, but with his work ethic I can’t see him being a bust.
7. Kyle Wilson – The Jets just keep getting better and better. Wilson will be an excellent addition to a loaded secondary (Revis and Cromartie), and there will not be the pressure of a first round pick thrust upon him. A great talent in a great situation, the rest of the AFC better watch out.
8. Jimmy Clausen – The Panthers selected Clausen with the 48th pick in the draft. Clausen’s camp was probably the most disappointed in the entire draft, he took a nose dive from some people’s projected top 10 pick to middle of the second round. The situation in Carolina may be set-up for Clausen to make an immediate impact (although Matt Moore as shown he can play at a high level). I am not sold on Clausen – leadership and personality issues are a big concern and Notre Dame hasn’t had the best reputation with QBs despite their pro-style offense (hmm… Brady Quinn).
9. Terrence Cody – The Ravens selected Mt. Cody with the 25th pick in the second round (57 overall). The 6’4″ 354lb. defensive tackle paired with Haloti Ngata should give the Ravens one of the best interior defensive lines in the NFL.
10. Brandon Spikes – The Patriots selected the former Gator with the 62nd pick in the draft. One of the more underrated players in the draft due to a slow 40 time. I think Spikes will be a solid player that the Patriots can use to start rebuilding their linebacker corps. In 5 years, I can see this pick being talked about as one of the steals of the draft – that is how much potential Spikes has.
11. Colt McCoy – The Browns selected McCoy in the 3rd round with the 85th pick overall. Many people were surprised that the Browns passed on McCoy twice in the second round, but their risk paid off as they were able to get him in the 3rd round. I like McCoy in Cleveland, the system is set-up for him to have success and honestly in 15 years I can see him having had a better career than Bradford.

It will certainly be interesting to see the rest of the draft unfold. Is the next Tom Brady (6th round pick) or Tony Romo (undrafted) in this draft class? Who do you think has the best chance from the 4th through 7th rounds to be a star in the NFL?

None of this mattered to the 49ers. The 49ers, who can never be accused of not playing hard, came out in a fury against their division rivals. They forced 5 turnovers on way to a 17-0 halftime lead. The 49ers defense was attacking the ball all night long. Everytime the Cards had the ball, the 49ers aimed at the ball and they did not miss tackles. Warner was pressured all night long.

The 49ers were able to keep the momentum throughout the second half and force 7 turnovers (5 fumbles and 2 INTs) on their way to a 24-9 victory, completing the season sweep of the Cards. Frank Gore was dominant on the ground rushing for 167 yards and a TD. Alex Smith was good enough, throwing 2 TDs (one to Davis and one to Crabtree). He did throw 2 INTs, something that must be worked on. Kurt Warner was a dismal 16 for 29 for 178 yards with 2 INTs and no TDs.

The Cards now have a 2 game lead on the 49ers, but it will be hard for the 49ers to overcome the deficit. The Cards and 49ers both have similar schedules to end the season. In week 15, the 49ers travel to Philadelphia, in week 16 they host Detroit and they end it in St. Louis. The Cards travel to Detroit in week 15, then they host St. Louis in week 16 and they host Green Bay in week 17. I can see both the Cards and 49ers going 2-1 over their last 3, and unfortunately that won’t be good enough for the 49ers to make the playoffs this season. But then again, the Browns beat the Steelers and the Raiders beat the Eagles, so anything is possible.

Either way the 49ers’ faithful have to be happy with a possible 8-8 season, considering the Niners haven’t had a winning season in 6 years. Try not to think about what could have been… if Favre didn’t throw the magical pass in week 3, the halfback pass for a TD against the Colts in week 8, the last second field goal against Seattle in week 13.

The talent is there and the team is young, one or two more pieces and another year of growth and the 49ers can possibly reclaim their glory of the 80s and 90s.