Ahmad Brooks's return and a transcript from Coach Singletary
by James Brady on Sep 7, 2010 2:30 PM PDT
in San Francisco 49ers News
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PrintSo we had a full news day yesterday. Lost in the ensuing melee of cutting Nate Davis, fending off the NDWOF crowd and the relative acceptance of the Troy Smith signing was the press conference that yes, I assure you, did indeed happen. It took place before the aforementioned melee, earlier in the day, so it was easy to miss some of the things.
What caught my eye, and the eye of a few of you here, admittedly, was the bit about Ahmad Brooks and his role as an emergency inside linebacker. I've had a whole lot of talk lately about me being right in more situations than not; but I'll be the first to admit I was wrong here. I was subscribed to the line of thought that we should not at all move Brooks now that he's found his groove as a pass rusher. Still, it is a move that makes sense.
On where things stand as far as getting another inside linebacker:
"You know what, the thing that we're not going to do is get a guy, put in a body. If we have an emergency situation, Ahmad Brooks can step in. I don't want to just go get a body and bring him in and put him on our team. We find a guy, then we'll bring him in, if we don't, then we'll just keep going with what we have."
More importantly, Singletary is hesitant to give NaVorro Bowman the immediate backup duties at either position. Surely, he will be mixed in defensively, quite a bit I imagine, but in true backup situation, it seems as though Brooks is the guy. If we were using Brooks and something happened to Willis, I'd play Bowman at MIKE. If something happened to Spikes, I'd play Brooks at TED. That's just how I see it, but here's what Singletary said on the matter.
On whether LB NaVorro Bowman could come in and play ‘Ted':
"He could, but right now it's unlikely, but he could. The thing that we want to do with NaVorro Bowman is to make sure that he understands ‘Ted', and hopefully in that type of situation, you bring in one of the other guys to fill in at the ‘Mike'. Not that that's an easy task, but at that time you're almost forced that you have to go do something, but right now with the guys that we have, we're going to go with it until there is one that we like."
On a week one scenario if Willis has to leave the game and whether LB Takeo Spikes would move over and play ‘Mike' and Bowman will play ‘Ted':
"Don't know what the scenario would be right now. Hopefully we're not talking about this week."
Make the jump for the full transcript.
Head Coach Mike Singletary
Monday Press Conference - September 6, 2010
San Francisco 49ers
On how much preparation has gone into facing Seattle up to this point:
"There's been a significant amount of preparation due to the fact that you have a new coach, you have a new offense, personnel changes, things like that. So, as best we could have tried to put pieces together and we're still continuing to do that."
On whether it is more difficult to prepare when the other team has had so much turnover with their players and personnel:
"I think the thing for us is it is what it is. You just have to put in the time and look at the film. You still don't know who's going to be where, but that's why I think it's really important for us to make sure that on our part of it that we really remember that it is about us. We have to remember that we have our technique and we read our keys and we have to be on our game."
On how WR Kevin Jurovich earned a spot on the practice squad:
"He just is a hard working kid, and everything he did, he had a great effort. I thought he was a very detailed young man, very conscientious about what he was doing, taking notes, asking the right questions. So I thought he showed he had something. And the other thing he returned kickoffs and he had a chance to do that in a game and I thought he did a good job, he made good decisions, so I just thought it would be nice to see where he can go from here."
On having the phrase ‘playoffs or bust' attached to the team for the past nine months and his thoughts on that and whether that is an accurate expectation for the team:
"You know what, the only thing I'm thinking about right now is Seattle. Anything beyond that, we don't even need to talk about. The only thing I'm thinking about is Seattle."
On who will be the punt returner against Seattle:
"I don't know, it could be a couple of people. Right now we just have to get through the week and some of the alternatives that you've seen already, we'll just see what's best for this game."
On who he will turn to to fill the veteran role with the loss of RB Michael Robinson:
"I think there are a number of guys that coach is going to look at and we'll see what [Special Teams Coach] Kurt Schottenheimer feels most comfortable with."
On whether there will be special preparation for the two rookie offensive linemen and the noise that they will face in Seattle:
"Well as best we can in the noise that we provide out here, that's about as close as we can come to it. We can't create the noise that they will have. I think it's really important for us to make sure that we go up there with the thought process in mind to make sure we keep it simple and make sure we can execute the plays that we go there with, and I think we'll be OK."
On whether they will have to experience that once before they really get a feel for what that is all about:
"I think once you get there, hopefully you can get used to it at that moment and just go from there. But I really think its just important for us to really make sure that the things that we do, that we continue to do there and not try and add too much where we just really thin ourselves out, we don't really need to do that."
On how far T Anthony Davis and G Mike Iupati have come since you acquired them and whether or not they are ready:
"They better be, they better be. I think they've done a great job. I think they've continued to work their tails off. I think the combination of [Offensive Line Coach] Mike Solari and [Assistant Offensive Line Coach] Ray Brown, that's been a great combination and I think both young men are impressive in their own right. Mike Iupati definitely has a tremendous mind-set. Davis started out a little bit behind for a number of reasons, he's 20 years old, but has continued to make great strides, and I'm really excited that we have both of them. But now is not the time to ask if they're ready, ‘it's on now'."
On CB Tramaine Brock and CB Phillip Adams and how they earned a roster spot:
"I think they showed the initiative in meetings first of all. Both of those kids, they don't talk a whole lot and when they did, it was asking a question. They came in, they had a plan, they had a vision of making this team and they came out here on the field, they knew what they were doing and it wasn't too big for them. They competed, and I think that's the number one thing. Anything that they did they competed, and I think that's what's very important for us as a team. That's got to be the common denominator of every player that we have, they've got to compete. So I think first and foremost that's it, that's what they did."
On whether there is any concern over the lack of experience with the secondary due to key losses like CB Will James:
"You would always like to have experience at that position. The two positions that are the most critical on any team are the offensive line and the defensive back, and those are the two positions right now that we have a lot of youth at, but that's OK. I think it shows the depth of our coaches. It shows that their teammates will do a good job in continuing to help as much as they can, but as long as the young guys are willing to put in the time, I think we'll be OK."
On where things stand as far as getting another inside linebacker:
"You know what, the thing that we're not going to do is get a guy, put in a body. If we have an emergency situation, Ahmad Brooks can step in. I don't want to just go get a body and bring him in and put him on our team. We find a guy, then we'll bring him in, if we don't, then we'll just keep going with what we have."
On whether that means Brooks will practice this week:
"Well, that's a day to day situation, we'll see."
On whether he will practice today:
"Probably not."
On whether WR Kyle Williams will practice this week:
"Probably not."
On whether the team is behind schedule as far as the punt returner goes and whether or not it is a concern that they don't know who it is with only 6 days left until the season opener:
"The fact that we don't know who the punt returner is does not mean that we don't have them. I think last year we didn't have a punt returner consistently. This year I think we have two or three. It's just a matter of who it's going to be. So that's what that is."
On whether he would consider S Reggie Smith one of those two or three punt returners:
"Um, maybe."
On whether LB NaVorro Bowman could come in and play ‘Ted':
"He could, but right now it's unlikely, but he could. The thing that we want to do with NaVorro Bowman is to make sure that he understands ‘Ted', and hopefully in that type of situation, you bring in one of the other guys to fill in at the ‘Mike'. Not that that's an easy task, but at that time you're almost forced that you have to go do something, but right now with the guys that we have, we're going to go with it until there is one that we like."
On a week one scenario if Willis has to leave the game and whether LB Takeo Spikes would move over and play ‘Mike' and Bowman will play ‘Ted':
"Don't know what the scenario would be right now. Hopefully we're not talking about this week."
On how much Mike Robinson getting signed by Seattle complicated things for the 49ers on offense as far as changing up signals and signs:
"We're going to play our game. That's what we're going to do. We're going to go there and we're going to play our football game. We're not going to try and change things and worry about what someone knows and what we might say that might be wrong, we're going to play the football game. Anything else will have to take care of itself."
On when he expects Will James to get back on the field:
"Don't know, that's a day to day thing."
On how much of influence Head Coach Pete Carroll had on him:
"I spent a decent amount of time with him. I think the most important thing that Pete Carroll did for me was really allowed me to go there and sit in on meetings and really get an understanding of a top flight program in college football. He let me come to the practices and let me have exposure to the coaches, so I will always be thankful for him allowing me to do that because not many coaches would, but he did. He had a lot of influence early on, he had a lot of influence."
On what the timing of that was, whether it was before he was with the 49ers:
"It was when I was here, it was also when I was at when I was at Baltimore. There was about 3 or 4 times that I visited him, and each time that we made contact, he was always very open and very kind."
On what made him seek him out:
"It was the best program in the country. To me leadership is leadership and I wanted to see how he built the program. Even though it's a bit different at that time, early on I didn't know if I would be going to college as well, because I had had some conversations with Baylor, so I wanted to look at the program that he had built there, and if in fact I did end up going to college, then I needed to make sure that I had some point of reference."
On what he thought made him so successful:
"Well I think if you look at the draft, you can begin to look at his recruiting. The ability to recruit at the level that he did, that was the thing that he talked about often, and a tremendous recruiter, and I think that was the difference."
On what are the biggest question marks with this team heading into the regular season:
"I think the biggest question mark that we would have as a team, really the biggest question mark that I would have is as a team with the talent that we have, are we ready to go and I guess play to the level that we are capable of playing at. That's a good question. A question that I believe the answer is yes, but after the first game, after the first few games, I will know whether it's an emphatic yes."
On whether there is any concern about rust when they get back to work on Wednesday after having the past few days off and what the mindset is going forward this week:
"I think with the training camp that we had, the most important thing is that the hay is in the barn, that the work has been put in. In terms of rust and whatever, it's a matter of recall and that's getting out here and getting back to work on Wednesday. Until then, the film, the walk troughs, those things, that's the thing that's important that we do. But I think we're mature enough to do the things that we have to do to get those things done and get ready for September the 12th."
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OT: Is Fooch doing Lawyer things?
I would like to see Phillip Adams as the punt returner. He seems to bring more to the table at punt returner.
"Too much awesome on my feet."-Brian Wilson
"Time for the laser show, boys!"- Aubrey Huff
how about PR formation with both Williams and Adams back there? Oh wait, no, nevermind. Reverses aren’t a good idea.
I think I like Williams more, but won’t be upset with Adams either.
by Andrew Davidson on Sep 7, 2010 3:04 PM PDT up reply actions
Fooch is on vacay, I think.
Something or other about Hawaii. Back tonight.
And then God created Saturn... and he liked it, so he put a ring on it.
Twitter me and what not.
Here's the thing...
We don’t have to worry about a backup at inside linebacker because Willis and Spikes will be dishing out the pain, not receiving pain.
Touchdown Forty Niners!
With La Boy and Briggs coming on,
perhaps there is a bit of thinking about where to play Brooks. Hmm.
Nah
Brooks can be a starter at OLB. Sounds like they just want to work him in slowly, so they don’t make the injury worse.
by ZeroOneInfinity on Sep 7, 2010 4:21 PM PDT up reply actions
I'm glad Sing didn't keep Wilhelm
just to have a body at ILB
Logic merely enables one to be wrong with authority
this
I was on this bandwagon for a few weeks
The NFC West is sitting on a pedestal if only the 49ers don't trip and fall on their way to it.
Twitteraholic
It’s like he and/or Baalke read and respect some of the commentors on here (such as yourself, for good reason).
You gotta bring ass to get ass.
bwahahaha
flattering as that’d be, it’d also be pretty dumb. I only know what I think I know.
The NFC West is sitting on a pedestal if only the 49ers don't trip and fall on their way to it.
Twitteraholic
I agree...
Thought Wilhelm would be a waste all throughout preseason.
Though, it does make me wonder if McK would’ve made the team if he wasn’t injured? I doubt he has a chance of returning and making the roster next year.
by 9thevolution on Sep 8, 2010 12:26 PM PDT up reply actions
absolutely would have
I think he played with more fire and fysicality than Wilhelm and was such a ST’s stud he would have won a spot.
The NFC West is sitting on a pedestal if only the 49ers don't trip and fall on their way to it.
Twitteraholic
I still feel like the offense is clunky and inconsistent
Defense is going to have to be hitting on all cylinders to start the season
by whistlingmountain on Sep 7, 2010 5:48 PM PDT reply actions
I think Raye is going to have to get used to having more tools to work with.
He didn’t have much to work with last year with the line troubles, the lack of viable receivers, and just the overall condition of the offense. I think that with the improvements made in the passing game, Alex Smith may become more productive. The emergence of a passing game will certainly improve the running game opportunities. I think Gore will certainly benefit from a passing attack. And with the addition of Westbrook as a 3rd down change of pace type receiving back, and the Jackhammer styling of Anthony (Tony the Tiger) Dixon, the Niners will be a difficult team to stop in the run department. The fact that the three RB’s are also very capable receivers opens up the offense in another completely different dimension. There are just so many tricks in the Niners Offensive bag that Jimmy Raye is going to have to orchestrate the symphony. There are so many ways he can attack different types of defenses, he will have to select the right notes on any given Sunday afternoon. But the fact that he DOES have different ways he can go makes it VERY difficult for Defensive Coordinators to just key on any one particular area of the offense. No longer will they be able to stack 7 or 8 in the box just waiting for Gore to come out from behind an offensive lineman. Play action passes, screens of all different kinds, and intermediary and deep passes are now a possibility with the personnel the Niners have. BUT, and this is a big BUT, the Niners offense has to PROVE they have the abilities they appear to have on paper. They will need to connect on a deep pass or 2 before teams began to game plan on how to cover that possibility. Westbrook will need to prove he still has game left in those legs to force DC’s to game plan for the possibility that he can have a breakout game. Davis and Walker will have to prove they can go over the middle and punish corners and safeties that try to sneak up to stop the run. THEN they will STILL have to worry about the specter of Frank the TANK coming at them head ON. It all works together. If any one part of our offense is weak, it takes away from the overall effectiveness of the unit. It is IMPERATIVE that Smith prove early and often that he can make the passes and audibles to effect the outcome of the game. Smith MUST make PASSES. He has to make the 3RD down pass when we need it, so that the draw will actually work sometime too. Jimmy Raye is IN LOVE with running up the middle, but the Niners have speed at both the running back and lineman positions to run outside the tackles. Raye MUST be willing to experiment with his new found riches. We need to utilize ALL of the weapons and leave no weapon unused in a war. If Raye continues to run up the middle for no gain, then there would be a serious problem that Singletary would need to address immediately. I think there was little in the way of game planning in the pre season, so it looked very Vanilla. But on Sunday against the Sea Hags, I expect to see a Neapolitan Triple flavored Sundae with ALL the Toppings! There needs to be wide receiver receptions, running back flair passes, runs to all parts of the offensive line (but especially behind Iupati!) and not in a predictable pattern, but in a sequence that SURPRISES the defense and has them on their heels immediately. The Niners need to GASH the SeaHags Defense early and often, to let them know that there is no way in HECK they are even gonna slow the Niners down! Crowd Noise will not be an issue if they Sea-Buzzards are down by a coupla scores! And how nice would it be to get Smith off to a successful start to the season with a solid offensive effort! We all know our defense is the best part of the team, but the Niners wont be taken seriously until the Offense proves it can be effective. Not Spectacular, but effective at scoring TD’s in the red zone early and often.
Another year, another chance to hope for the team !!
Yo...
Just noticed why I recognized your screen name… it was cuz you called me a crybaby over on Maiocco’s blog (phoenixshredds is my handle there). What was that about? Had me P’d off. Seemed pretty uncalled for, especially since I hadn’t even been talking to you, lol. If you meant it as a joke then all good, but it didn’t seem like it..
Touchdown Forty Niners!
that was the funniest thing I have ever seen on this site
AD is my hero
by mcwagner on Sep 7, 2010 11:28 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Of course they were clunky and inconsistent...
Because none of the best offensive weapons were on the field.
I mean really.. look at it this way: We know Crabs can run routes and catch the ball… we know Vernon is explosive (if he and Alex were on the same page on that seam pattern in that Indy game we’d be talking about a 70ish yard TD pass), and look at Gore… he got 2 carries and basically couldn’t be stopped (granted, against the Raiders run D, though they may be improved this year).
These rookie offensive linemen are going to give Gore holes he hasn’t seen in years, and with Smith getting continuity… I really think this offense will look better than anything we’ve seen from this team since the Garcia/Owens/Hearst/Barlow days. I’m not so sure they’ll be that explosive, but what you saw in the preseason certainly is not what you’ll see Sunday at Seattle.
Touchdown Forty Niners!
Team is better than Garcia/Owens/Hearst
Because while each of those above named guys might be a smidgen better than the guys we have at the position now, (I think Alex will prove to be better than a prime Garcia this season, Crabs will be below T.O.‘s elite level from that year and Gore isn’t quite as good as Hearst), we also have a Top 2-3 TE and we have functional depth at WR to 5 guys, RB to 3 guys and OL to 7 or 8 guys.
This is a very good and very deep offense.
And our defense will get the ball into their hands in good field position quite often.
Gimme 1 round!
by ItBurnzWhenIP on Sep 8, 2010 12:22 AM PDT up reply actions
I appreciate your optimism
I feel a little differently, but I certainly can say I long for the 49ers to have that kind of offense. If we get that kind of production from offense… wow. This defense is better than either of the 01-02 defenses, and we also have better special teams than those Niner teams. Double digit wins and then some on the way if that happens.
However, what stood out to me was you saying Gore isn’t quite as good as Hearst. I stroooooooognly disagree. Hearst (and Barlow) had a hell of an offensive line, and while Gore alone isn’t as good as the combo, he certainly is better than either of those players alone (not Hearst before the injury, though. He was exploooosive in the 90’s). I think Gore is going to have a 2006esque season, but with the dasher (Westbrook) and china shop bull (Dixon) both giving him effective blows.
Also, I like your confidence that Alex will prove to be better than a prime Garcia… and while I would love to see that, I’m not sure I’m willing to predict that. I do think he’ll have a very good year, though (Say… 62% comp, 25/14 td/int, 3200 yards type year). I agree Crabs won’t be as good as TO, but he’ll be pretty good. 70 catches, 900 yards, give or take? VD will be great again, but I think Delanie will have a big season. Not maybe big numbers, but big for him.
Either way, I haven’t been this psyched for a 49ers season since ‘02. I’m out of my mind for the season to start, haha. Boy do I long for the 49ers to be great again.
Touchdown Forty Niners!
Lol... Anyone watch the new Joe Show?
Was funnier than I anticipated, like Eric Heitman’s “super mean scary” face.
Also lol @ Alex saying “Joe Show” with “gusto” at the end.
Touchdown Forty Niners!
haha yeah
so funny….major props to anyone if you can find that Adam Snyder pic he talks about. can’t find it but sounds hilarious.
Haha
I don’t think I’ll ever see Snyder the same… anytime he comes in I’m gonna be like “Ohhh, Fabio!” Also, I’m excited for Heitman to get back so I can picture him looking at the nose tackle with his super mean scary face, lmao.
Touchdown Forty Niners!
Go Niners!
I like everything that’s coming out of San Francisco these days. I am extremely happy for the possibilities this year. I think this is a very solid football club, Alex Smith being the wildcard. He lacks soul, a certain rhythm. I wish he could get some funk so I would feel a litttle better about him. Needs to grab his crotch a little more or something. Anyway, The running game has me excited along with the defense. Play calling on offense remains a potentially serious liability. I’m still shaking my head at a play call against the Rams last season. Fourth down in a still loseable game. They thow a bomb to Vernon Davis. It worked, but I still believe that was a terible play call. I’d like to see Singletary holding a scripted playcall list like the good old days. I don’t think they cleared that call with him.
I know they are going to be physical and simply methodically beatdown teams while taking more aggresive shots at passing for yardage on offense. YPC is the stat I will monitor. You will not want to play the niners because they plan on hitting and hurting. I am so looking forward to this season. Go Niners!
CMase3
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