The Quarterback 3-Way Battle, or Is It?

by 16to80endzone on Aug 13, 2008 12:00 PM PDT Comment 6 comments

First off, I have predicted that J.T. O'Sullivan will win the starting quarterback job. There are many factors that will play into it, so let me be specific:

1. The quarterback that communicates directly to Nolan and the coaches instead of through the media will be the most likely choice to be named the starting quarterback. Nolan has one pet peeve-players who communicate to him through the press.

2. Nolan wants to start strong, winning games early in the season. O'Sullivan is the most logical choice to give the 49ers the best chance to win.

3. O'Sullivan has established a great harmonious chemistry with WR Josh Morgan, who is a strong candidate to be the 3rd, even 2nd WR in the depth chart. Never mind Alex Smith's chemistry with Arnaz Battle, we know that chemistry didn't win championships for the 49ers. It just moved them down the field.

4. O'Sullivan is on the same page with another 49er newcomer, Isaac Bruce.

Let's discuss game management. While O'Sullivan has made masterful throws, his game management is not as smooth as Smith's. Game management is important, or that will leave Nolan looking like an incompetent coach. I firmly believe that as the pre-season progresses, because O'Sullivan has been getting a lot of the reps, his game management will work itself out.

Game management is all that has been going for Smith, he rebounds on days with no interceptions to throwing for four. Smith is trying not to be a conservative quarterback, but simply the decision making that aligns with the Martz offense needs to be better. He holds on to the ball too long, which indicates indecisiveness. Remember the Martz offense provides options in each play scenario, from reading what the defense is going to do, then selecting the option the Martz offense provides. There are the hot reads to improve on.

O'Sullivan might put too much into a play, such as the O'Sullivan-Foster lateral fiasco, but the greatest thing about O'Sullivan is, he won't make the same mistake twice.

Seeing all three quarterbacks struggle at times against the Niner defense shows what a potent defense they have. If I was quarterbacking against the Niner defense, I would have to be pinpointedly deadly accurate and brilliant in decision-making to high-power the offense. That is one negative about the quarterback battle, because the Niner defense is too strong for any quarterback, and it exposes the weaknesses of all three.

Playing against a weaker defensive team will make whoever is named the starter look like a genius.

And I hope O'Sullivan is that genius.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Niners Nation's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Niners Nation's writers or editors.

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by Rishi on Aug 13, 2008 1:48 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

FAIL

by methodrampage on Aug 13, 2008 2:32 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

by Rishi on Aug 13, 2008 8:02 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

We all forget one thing here…….THIS IS PRESEASON!!!!! We all know what should’ve been done a long time ago.

1. Trade for Kyle Boller. Why? Simple. He is west coast. if he was drafted by us in the first place his career may not be in such shambles.

2. If you’re not going to trade for Boller, then at least for the love of god they should’ve instilled a true vote of confidence in Alex Smith. The year that he did excell was 06 and we almost won division, albeit with a 7-9 record, but we beat the defending NFC champs that had the same roster from the super bowl twice that season.

3. How about making a play for a 3rd big play receiver? We have Bruce at least for the next 2-3 years, Battle is coming around, but we need some kind of versatility. Vernon Davis is the future. but he may end up like todd heap or shockey if we dont add another big play receiver.

4. Finally, this QB battle is ridiculous. JT? Shaun Hill? Perennial backups are called THAT for a reason. that means they’re not good enough to start but good enough to stay on the team. Because of this stress. they all looked horrible in the Raiders game. damn if you cant be cool in PRESEASON then when can you be cool?

Either go with Smith, Sign Culpepper and go with him, but damn dont throw a season away. Man these are dark days to be a niners fan…..

by jasonblaq on Aug 15, 2008 9:07 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

1: Those reasons don’t make sense. Boller was a second rate college quarterback whose draft stock only even got as high as it did because he could throw a ball 50 yards from his knees, and it’s an amazing feat that he’s been as successful as he has been in the pros, much of which likely has to do with playing in the same system for so long under the same coaches. If he’d been drafted by us, he would have gone through teh coaching ringer, and might not even be in the league at this point.

2: I do think the 49ers are being a little hyperbolic with the democratic treatment of the QB race. It would likely be far more productive to admit that one guy has an edge and to give that guy a majority of the snaps. We all assume that guy is Smith, and that’s a safe assumption.

3: There has to be a big play receiver available to make a play for one.

4: The QB battle is ridiculous, but you are reading WAY too much into last week’s game for all the wrong reasons. You say they looked bad because they weren stressed out from trying to win the battle. I say they looked bad because 1) O’Sullivan’s not that good, and 2) the other guys have had to split time practicing the system AND IT’S THE FIRST PRESEASON GAME! If they looked good, I would be worried!

5: Don’t sign Culpepper! He’s crap! Weve been over this!

My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.

by howtheyscored on Aug 15, 2008 12:35 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs