Golden Nuggets: Battle of the Bay indeed

by James Brady on Aug 28, 2010 3:00 AM PDT in 49ers Links

Good morning everyone. It's gameday, and I'm pumped. We're getting set to kick the crap out of the Raiders for Bay Area (preseason) supremacy and I can't wait. One thing I wanted to note is that the game is tape delayed in certain areas. The game thread will be up at the start of the game as usual, and I hope most of you are around and able to watch it. I'm sure there will be other means to watch it once you get into the thread, who knows? Either way, be here, etc. I'm actually conflicted, I've got 49ers, UFC and Giants today so I'm going to be flipping the channels like mad. I've got some links for you today, the general gameday stuff you should expect by now among other things. Enjoy 'em.

I hope Gore is able to get his fifth straight 1000 yard season this year. Actually, I'm pretty darn confident he will. I don't see very many scenarios where he doesn't get to 1000, personally. (MercuryNews.com)

This game is a battle for jobs. Well, technically they all are, but yeah. (SFGate.com)

Sam Lam takes a look at some of the position battles going on today. I notice on the defensive line, he lists Walker and Mitchell as competing for the seventh position. My question is: is that sixth Demetric Evans or Will Tukuafu? I imagine it's Evans, much to my chagrin. (Examiner.com)

I'm glad we'll get to see some Crabtree in today's game, I just hope we don't see too much of him. I want him to be fresh and not aggravate his injury. (MercuryNews.com)

Not all the questions the team hoped to answer in training camp were, in fact, answered. (MercuryNews.com)

Ricky Jean Francois was unbreakable this offseason. That makes me happy - I felt good about him last year, and I knew he'd pay off. Somehow. (SacBee.com)

Smith finds his voice - and not only that, a little bit of poise as well. Good stuff. (PressDemocrat.com)

Apparently it's all about second-year receivers today. Forgive me if I forgot that other fella's name. (Yahoo.com)

A look back at Camp Singletary. (CSNBayArea.com)

Points Of The Game: Raiders (49ers.com)

Yesterday On Niners Nation

Golden Nuggets: Glad to have him back (Ninjames)

49ers-Vikings: Offensive Line, Defensive Line Player Reviews (smileyman)

Caption This! (howtheyscored)

49ers 2010 NFL Season: No more potential, only production? (Ninjames)

Today On Niners Nation(All times pacific and subject to change)

7:00 a.m. Projecting the San Francisco 49ers 53-man roster #2 (Fooch)

Beyond that, we have your gameday stuff. I might have something in the morning, if possible.

Other Stuff... Look for another podcast Sunday or Monday, kind of lost touch with Smileyman a bit but we're excited to get that going on a regular schedule. Also, apologies that these Nuggets felt kind of rushed, I started to feel sick, it's 2:40 a.m... I'm going to sleep.

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for anyone looking for a link...

channelsurfing dot net……… wont work until the game is on…

go niners!!!!!!!!!

"A house divided against itself cannot stand."
~Abraham Lincoln
(SUPPORT ALEX SMITH)

by Iupati_like_its_1999 on Aug 28, 2010 4:48 AM PDT reply actions

Crabtree gets a TD!

Can u c coach sing's vision? I do!......We all know PATRICK WILLIS is our future!
May 12 2010 comment of the day award winner on the nuggets!

by DreZ on Aug 28, 2010 7:28 AM PDT reply actions

Lam's column

Lam is not a particularly astute sports writer and loves to try to create controversy where none exists (my opinion, but I suspect a widely shared opinion). He hits a low spot worthy of ridicule as he discusses possible roster cuts with: “In the safety position, the team will keep an eye on Curtis Taylor and Taylor Mays and how much impact they see from them in the future with the team.” Come on—-are we really thinking of waiving a rookie 2nd round draft pick who has earned nothing but praise from the coaching staff and beat writers who understand football, weighs 230 and runs the 40 in 4.3 seconds?

by seafood lover on Aug 28, 2010 9:17 AM PDT reply actions

That's not at all what Lam meant.

What are you talking about? Whether or not Taylor is cut depends on how Mays plays, is what that is implying. You’re trying to make something of nothing. Lam is, in my opinion, one of the better beat writers.

And then God created Saturn... and he liked it, so he put a ring on it.
Twitter me and what not.

by James Brady on Aug 28, 2010 12:45 PM PDT up reply actions

With due respect to both of you. I agree that Lam's wording was not very good. He left that part open.

I did enjoy reading his article, but had to think about what he meant a few times.

"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, either way, YOU'RE RIGHT !"

by Eastbayjim on Aug 28, 2010 4:18 PM PDT up reply actions

Dan Brown's column

Interesting analysis, and I disagree with his answers to #2 and #3.
2. Will the special teams improve?

No. The 49ers head into the Raiders game still trying to figure this one out. Sixth-round pick Kyle Williams looked promising as a punt returner before suffering a sprained toe. He’s out indefinitely, and there’s no obvious replacement.

For those of us who watched all of the games last year, I would argue that having the sure-handed Dominique Ziegler fair catch all of the punts would be a dramatic improvement over last year—-remember Arnez Battle? And we know he can run fairly fast in a straight line, so should be able to run an average punt back for 5-6 yards, which would triple our return yardage from last year. And Williams should be back sometime between now and 17 games from now!

3. Is Alex Smith a playoff-caliber quarterback?

No.

That is indeed the question….and I think we should reserve judgment on the answer based on what we have seen (and been shown) thus far in 2 games with a notable lack of plays called for the WR to be the primary target. Maybe we will get a better look at a slightly less vanilla offense tonight?

by seafood lover on Aug 28, 2010 9:29 AM PDT reply actions