Yesterday mensa put together a FanPost opening discussion about the rookie offensive linemen and the noise at Qwest Field. It hasn't gotten a ton of discussion so I wanted to move the specific topic to the front page. We'll be getting into more specific offense versus defense previews tomorrow and Saturday, but for now I wanted to focus on the 49ers offensive line.
Arguably the primary purpose of the 49ers calendar from February to now was improving the offensive line. The team added Anthony Davis and Mike Iupati through the NFL Draft and before the end of the first week of training camp both were inserted in the starting lineup. The two rookies have had their ups and downs through a month of preseason action, and will likely continue to have ups and downs as the season moves along.
While one or both of them could always flame out this year, I think both have done enough to inspire at least a little bit of confidence in their abilities. Iupati seems to inspire more confidence, but I think Davis is developing well enough as a first year player.
The first major test of the season comes right off the bat this coming Sunday. The 49ers travel to Seattle to face a Seahawks squad that has numerous question marks. However, one area where there is no question is the crowd noise at Qwest Field. This link is a bit old and this won't be a "playoff" environment per se, but it will definitely be loud. I'd imagine this will be as loud as it might get during the regular season. The 49ers and Seahawks have developed a healthy rivalry and given that it's the first game of the season, the crowd will be pumped up.
In our Ask Field Gulls FanPost somebody was inquiring about the over/under on number of false start penalties we'll see this Sunday. Would anybody really be stunned if it was more than normal? Aside from the fact that the 49ers are dealing with rookies at RT and LG, the 49ers also have a new center in David Baas. While he's not a rookie, this will be his first start at center. He's looked really solid in the preseason, but will the "captain" of the offensive line possible struggle early in his first real start?
I'm actually going up to Seattle for the game this weekend (my first 49ers road trip!) so I'll be able to get a good idea of the noise. I'm going to be up pretty high (not sure of the seat assignment yet) and I'm not sure how exactly the acoustics are as you make your way through the stadium.
How badly do you think the noise will affect the 49ers? Or will the team be able to battle through the noise level?