Blogs

Harbaugh Confident in 49ers Youth

San Francisco’s running back reps behind Frank Gore will be a key to Sunday’s game in St. Louis. Whether Brandon Jacobs or LaMichael James becomes the featured No. 2 runner behind Gore remains to be seen.

Jim Harbaugh said the reps against the Rams would be shared “among the other backs.”

With the loss of Kendall Hunter and Kyle Williams to season-ending injuries last week in New Orleans, the 49ers coach will have to find ways of showcasing other players on the roster.

Even so, Harbaugh admitted the injured players will be tough to replace.

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Harbaugh Addresses Gilbride Comment

Jim Harbaugh heard the comments made from New York Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride Thursday morning and decided to respond.

The veteran Giants offensive play-caller said 49ers MVP Justin Smith “gets away with murder” when it comes to defensive holding.

After learning of Gilbride’s comments, Harbaugh issued the following statement through the team’s Public Relations staff:

“Kevin Gilbride’s outrageous, irrational statement regarding Justin Smith’s play is, first, an absurd analogy. Second, it is an incendiary comment targeting one of the truly exemplary players in this league. It’s obvious that the Giants coaching staff’s sole purpose is to use their high visibility to both criticize and influence officiating.”

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Morning Tailgate: Oct. 12

Alex Smith’s had a whirlwind seven-day stretch to say the least.

John Branch of the New York Times summed it up succinctly in a recent story.

“In this, the eighth chapter of The Many Lives of Alex Smith, the San Francisco quarterback leads the league in passer rating, coolly commands a high-scoring offense that sets a single-game yardage record, is deemed such a local celebrity that he tosses the ceremonial first pitch of a baseball playoff series and talks football with the president,” Branch wrote.

The week could get even better if the 49ers quarterback wins the FedEx Air Player of the Week award. And, if he beats the New York Giants this Sunday at Candlestick Park.

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Morning Tailgate: Oct. 4

The 49ers have turned the page from last week’s impressive 34-0 road victory against the New York Jets and have focused their attention to the Buffalo Bills for Week 5. Despite giving up 45 points in the second half of last week’s 52-28 loss to the Patriots, the Bills are stacked with talent at all three levels of defense. Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle described the dangerous Bills team which is looking to rebound from last week’s tough loss.

“Head coach Jim Harbaugh said the Bills were ‘statistically a very good football team’ with a ‘solid’ defense that features the ‘best defensive line’ the 49ers have faced this season,” Branch wrote. “Not to be outdone, quarterback Alex Smith insisted Buffalo was ‘extremely talented on the defensive side of the ball, across the board.’”

The rest of the today’s Morning Tailgate takes a look at Buffalo’s front four, the problem Colin Kaepernick poses the Bills, Willie Mays’ visit to team headquarters and more.

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Morning Tailgate: Oct. 3

Patrick Willis was singled out Wednesday morning as the NFC’s Defensive Player of the Week.

However, it wasn’t just Willis who played a major role in the team’s 34-0 dismantling of the New York Jets.

According to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, it was a team-wide effort that enabled San Francisco to improve to 3-1 on the season. Barrows offered his thoughts on the performance in a recent film study review.

“For the first time this season, every 49er who dressed for the game set foot in the game,” Barrows wrote. “And they just didn’t make token appearances. Everyone – from backup quarterback Colin Kaepernick to undrafted rookie Garrett Celek to dime cornerback Perrish Cox - played a role Sunday. Twelve different 49ers either had a carry or a reception on offense, and it would have been 13 if fullback Will Tukuafu hadn’t been interfered with on a late goal-line play.

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Brandon Jacobs on the Mend

Big Brandon Jacobs has been stuck on the sidelines this year as he tries to recover from a preseason injury, but the talented tailback is on the mend.

Jacobs spoke to reporters on Tuesday in the 49ers locker room and said that he’s feeling the best he’s felt since the regular season began. Jacobs practiced on a limited basis throughout last week’s trip in Youngstown, Ohio, but was inactive for Sunday’s game against the New York Jets.

“This is what I want to do,” Jacobs said. “I play ball for my career, this is my livelihood. Watching my team win and play – especially being part of a new organization, new team – I want to get out there and really be a part of it.”

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Morning Tailgate: Sept. 27

The 49ers were back on the field Wednesday afternoon as they took over Stambaugh Stadium at Youngstown State University. Perhaps the biggest news of the day was the regular season practice debut of running back Brandon Jacobs, who has returned to the field on a limited basis for the first time since being injured in Week 3 of the preseason.

Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee observed the beginning of Wednesday’s practice session and said Jacobs looked like he was moving well.

“If Jacobs is fully healthy Sunday, he likely would be worked into games as a short-yardage runner,” Barrows wrote. “Through three games, only two running backs – Gore and Kendall Hunter – have carried the ball for the 49ers. Gore has 45 carries for 264 yards, and Hunter has 18 carries for 64 yards.”

Today’s Morning Tailgate also features headlines about the rain-soaked practice, referees, Rex Ryan, Darrelle Revis and more.

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Morning Tailgate: Sept. 21

Alex Smith has led the 49ers to a 15-3 regular season record since Jim Harbaugh took over as head coach before the 2011 campaign. Much of Smith’s success has been attributed to Harbaugh, who has helped the 49ers quarterback become one of the league’s most efficient players under center.

Chase Stuart of FootballPerspective.com analyzed advanced statistics and metrics of Smith’s season along with other NFL quarterbacks of the past and concluded that Harbaugh had similar years during his NFL playing career. Stuart specifically looks at Smith’s low interception rate among other things, noting, “Since Harbaugh came to town, Smith has a 93.6 passer rating, the 7th best mark of any quarterback over that time frame.”

Today’s Morning Tailgate also features a look back to yesterday’s show of 49ers support from the San Francisco Giants and more.

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Morning Tailgate: Sept. 18

The San Francisco 49ers have moved on from a 27-19 win over the Detroit Lions to prepare for another NFC North opponent, the Minnesota Vikings.

After two wins over 2011 playoff teams to start the year, the 49ers are one of six undefeated teams left in the NFL. San Francisco (2-0) sits atop the NFC West along with the undefeated Arizona Cardinals.

The 49ers, however, stand alone in other rankings, most notably NFL power rankings posted from various sports websites. ESPN and NFL.com both have the 49ers as the No. 1 team in the NFL through two weeks.

ESPN’s Sports Nation also lets you rank the NFL teams all yourself.

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49ers Healthy for Home Opener

The San Francisco 49ers enter Sunday night’s home opener relatively healthy. Two players, wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. and running back Brandon Jacobs, were officially listed as questionable for Sunday’s matchup with the Detroit Lions.

Both players were inactive in the team’s 30-22 win over the Green Bay Packers.

Harbaugh, however, said Jacobs is “getting close” to returning to action.

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