This Week in Niners Nation: Week 5 2012 Edition

Well, that was a good week wasn't it. Not only did we have a great game on Sunday, dominating and shutting out the New York Jets on the road, but things improved on the injury front. Isaac Sopoaga appears to be getting healthier (although Ricky Jean-Francois played well in his absence) and Brandon Jacobs looks to be ready to take his first snaps of the season. Why, one could say that we couldn't have had a better week, because, to top all of that off, the Arizona Cardinals, who were previously undefeated and looking to be a contender in the NFC West, have already lost their week 5 game against a suddenly dangerous St Louis Rams team, leaving the door open for us to regain a tie atop the division.

Week 4: 49ers 34, Jets 0

As mentioned above, we thoroughly dominated the Jets. The score was 34-0 but it could have been a lot worse had David Akers converted all of his field goals, or had Colin Kaepernick not slid at the goal line in the closing minutes instead of crossing for the touchdown. There's 13 easy points we left off of the scoreboard. Add in the fact that Alex Smith was not his sharpest and failed to complete a single pass on third down and we could have hit the 50-point mark easily. It was fun to watch, especially since the week before we were outclassed by the Vikings, allowing the tiniest seed of doubt to be planted in many of our heads. Common sense said that the Minnesota game was a blip, and we would bounce back with a fury. And boy did we ever....

A few links for you to enjoy. The first is a look at some of the statistics, streaks and notes to come out of the game. We had four turnovers, Patrick Willis played great and Aldon Smith terrorized Mark Sanchez all day long. Anthony Ly covers the game in his weekly Booth Review. Kaepernick and Aldon Smith take top honors, though Mario Manningham's play is also singled out. I've gotta think that Randy Moss is going to see less and less playing time as Manningham and Alex Smith get more comfortable with one another. Finally we have two videos for you. The first is Fooch's video recapping the victory. There's some funny bits here and some good info. Lastly, the game highlights. What a game!

49ers rout Jets: Noteworthy performances.

The booth review - 49ers vs Jets: "Kaepernick runs wild."

49ers vs Jets video recap.

Game highlights: 49ers 34 - Jets 0. (49ers.com)

Week 5: Bills at 49ers

Up next, the Buffalo Bills. Do they have a chance. The old maxim 'any given Sunday' always holds true and the Bills can put up points in a hurry. They can also give them up in a hurry. A few notes from their week 4 blowout loss to the New England Patriots give an idea of how good and bad they can be. They led 21-7 in the third quarter before giving up the next 35 points on their way to a 52-28 loss. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 350 yards and 4 touchdowns, but also threw 4 interceptions and the Bills lost 2 fumbles. How well the Bills take care of the ball will go a long way in deciding how competitive this game will be. They gave up 247 yards on the ground and that will be the other key matchup. How can the Bills and their recently purchased defensive line hold up against Frank Gore, Kendall Hunter and Co.? Honestly, I don't think it's going to be their day.

Two pieces for you to take in. Chan Gailey, head coach of the Bills has said that having to gameplan for Colin Kaepernick is a headache. He notes that there is extra stress on the defense knowing that they have a completely separate type of QB to plan for. I like it. The effects of the Kaep Attack are just beginning to be fully understood. MWAH HAHA! An article from Fooch deals with that exact topic. The other item of interest leading into the Bills game is the return of Brandon Jacobs and the impact it will have on the roster. Who's going to sit out? How secure is Anthony Dixon's roster spot. Dylan sorts out those questions and more.

Colin Kaepernick can create headaches on and off the field.

Brandon Jacobs in, Anthony Dixon out?

Hot Topics

This hot topic this week was, as one might anticipate, Colin Kaepernick. He looked so good in the victory against the Jets and provided such a dynamic skill set to the 49ers offensive attack that some have even begin to grumble about a quarterback controversy. I don't buy that in the least. But, it is nice to see his hard work pay off and finally get some time on the old gridiron. But we have no idea how well he would play for an entire game or how good he is at throwing a 5-yard slant for a crucial third down. You know who does have an idea, though? Jim Harbaugh and Trent Baalke. Given their success on the personnel front since taking over their positions within the organization I'm going to leave that decision up to them and trust in them completely. I'm a sheeple.

The first two articles deal with CK7's play in the last game and the lasting effects it has on the team psyche and come from WesHanson and Tre9er, respectively. Then there is a piece by Dylan DeSimone on players who have been quiet so far this season. Michael Crabtree is on the list and I remember a heated debate going on right before the season in the comments of a Golden Nuggets about how great or average he would be this year. His career stat line looks like a season for Calvin 'Megatron' Johnson and, aside from the Detroit game, he's had little to no impact. I'm worried. Next, Aldon Smith's stellar play to start the season is examined in more depth. He's been great at getting to the quarterback but was exposed in coverage in the Vikings game. Still, he's definitely one of the new breed of elite pass rushers and brings a dangerous element to the defense that was lacking before his arrival. Lastly, a write up of the Cardinals loss to the Rams and what it means to the division.

Resolving the Alex Smith vs Colin Kaepernick debate.

Why Colin Kaepernick getting more playing time is a win/win for 49ers.

49ers players that have been quiet through week 4.

Aldon Smith: The 49ers' outside linebacker's pursuit of success.

Rams vs Cardinals: NFC West shakeup opens the door.

FanPosts

Ah, the FanPosts. What would NN be without the fans? Nothing, really. I mean, that's what the site is...a bunch of fans writing about what they love the most, the 49ers. Or is it? This week's winning FanPost comes from an outsider. Smackdad from Gang Green Nation lost a bet and had to post on Niners Nation about how great the 49ers looked. He spoke, and you responded with recs. Here's to you, Smackdad. A stand up guy who honors bets. Next up is a post by Gold Company about Delanie Walker. Should we keep him next year? He argues yes. He's undeniably versatile (Walker, not Gold Company...j/k), and his blocking is always key to the running game. Drops this season have been our achilles heel and he's the main culprit. There may come a time, and it may be soon, that Alex stops targeting him. Let's see how the rest of the year plays out. The third, and final, entry into FanPost fame is reedkrase. His piece on Frank Gore, and how he is headed to yet another monster year is good reading for all of you Gore fans. He's been the one constant for so many bad years that it would be great to win a title with him. It'd be great to win a title with a packet of assorted lunch meats. It'd just be great to win a title.

Drew Kerr was right.

Is Delanie Walker worth keeping next year?

Frank Gore is headed for yet another elite season.

That's it, fellas. Hope this weekend is as fruitful as last.

Being a Sheep

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