zombieslayer;202881No.
I noticed it too.

A lot of folks think we need a rusher opposite of CM3 to take some pressure off CM3.
I actually think we need one from the DL; someone to replace C Jenkins.
Looking back, I think losing C Jenkins is probably the top factor to why our D went from elite last year to mediocre this year.
Yes, the Collins injury is a factor as well.
But nobody from the DL this year was generating enough pressure.
C Jenkins did last year.

At this point I would be happy with another OLB who can occasionally get pressure but will be reliable in coverage and vs the run.
It was pathetic that we were rotating 4 guys in at OLB in a playoff game because we didn't find anyone reliable for the position the previous 17 weeks + preseason.


Walden was a bad pass rusher most of the year and a horrible run defender all of the year yet they waited until week 16 to start giving someone else an opportunity?
Come on.

Heh.
I would be happy if we just had another solid tackler.
We got CM3 and Bishop and who else? Woody used to be the best tackler on the team.
He's not even a solid tackler any more which is weird because he dropped significantly in tackling skills in only 1 year.

zombieslayer;202893Heh.
I would be happy if we just had another solid tackler.
We got CM3 and Bishop and who else? Woody used to be the best tackler on the team.
He's not even a solid tackler any more which is weird because he dropped significantly in tackling skills in only 1 year.

We need good tacklers I agree. That can stop the big plays but first and foremost we need to not allow team to move the ball and make easy completions on us game in, game out. Pass Rush

Rios39;202894We need good tacklers I agree. That can stop the big plays but first and foremost we need to not allow team to move the ball and make easy completions on us game in, game out. Pass Rush

I agree to a fault...our tacking has been suspect for too long and it is basic fundamental football that kills us time and time again. Watching the Niners d hit.. wrap up and drive people to the turf sure made me realize how weak we are in one of the first things taught in pee wee football. I don't know if they have a stat for yards after contact but i bet the Packers D would rate close to the top.

1.
The 49ers are still playing with a lower-tier quarterback.
(Despite the media know-nothings in awe over the last five minutes, Alex Smith looked bloody awful.)
2.
The Packers are out despite having the single best quarterback in the league.
(Despite the ongoing salivating over Brees and Brady, I don't even think it's that close.)

What's different?
"The defense" is the easy answer.
And wrong.

The difference is that SF is fundamentally sound.
I can't remember the last time I've seen even the so-called "good" defenses in the NFL (Baltimore, Pittsburgh, NYG, whoever) be as fundamentally sound as SF was against NO.


That is the kind of defense the Packers need.
Not flash and finesse, which fails to come up when it is most needed (i.e., when the offense keeps effing things up), but which virtually always performs in a quality way.

Fundamentals.
If SF had an average quarterback -- heck if SF had a Joe Flacco or TJ Yates -- they'd run away with this thing.

zombieslayer;202893Heh.
I would be happy if we just had another solid tackler.
We got CM3 and Bishop and who else? Woody used to be the best tackler on the team.
He's not even a solid tackler any more which is weird because he dropped significantly in tackling skills in only 1 year.

I wonder if the Super Bowl injury has led to some of Woodson's decline in his tackling skills.

RedSoxExcel;202874If it's 3 or 4, who is your #4 QB in the league, if not Manning. He has a SB, plays outdoors, puts up awesome numbers, has beat Favre, Rodgers and Brady in the playoffs (including Favre and Rodgers on the road).

Since when is this baseball?
Eli Manning didn't beat Favre, Rodgers, and Brady -- the New York Giants beat the Packers and the Patriots.
Besides, both times the Giants have beat the Packers in the playoffs, the Packers just played lousy.
Favre had several men wide open and threw to the one man who was double covered.
The Packers gave away the ball how many times yesterday?
As I said before, the Giants played exceptionally well yesterday, but to give Eli Manning all the credit for that would be silly.

When we are talking about elite quarterbacks, I was talking about this year.
Statistically speaking, Eli Manning was a top-10 quarterback this year.
However, several quarterbacks -- including Tony Romo -- threw for more yards, more touchdowns, and fewer interceptions, not to mention had a higher passer rating, than Eli Manning this year.
In terms of win/loss record, the team was mediocre, barely squeaking into the playoffs in a thoroughly underperforming division.
Obviously, part of that was their defensive woes through the first half of the season, coupled with an abysmal running game; but Aaron Rodgers faced similar obstacles and still put up six more victories this year.
In terms of individual performance, then, I would say my top 4 quarterbacks were Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, and Matthew Stafford.
Eli Manning would be ranked somewhere around No. 7 or 8 -- top 25 percent, certainly, but not elite.

RedSoxExcel;202874It's difficult to win without a superstar D but its not impossible by any means.
The Saints won two years ago with a D that gave up 350+ yards I am pretty sure.

I find it endlessly amusing that the only other exception people can point to is the Saints -- the same exception I have already admitted.
Two exceptions (assuming the Patriots make the Super Bowl this year) don't invalidate a correlation.
Occasional outliers are always to be expected.
Until a trend of high-powered offenses coupled with porous defenses starts making the Super Bowl with regularity, we can safely assume it is not a trustworthy formula for championship success.

Nonstopdrivel;202911Since when is this baseball?
Eli Manning didn't beat Favre, Rodgers, and Brady -- the New York Giants beat the Packers and the Patriots.
Besides, both times the Giants have beat the Packers in the playoffs, the Packers just played lousy.
Favre had several men wide open and threw to the one man who was double covered.
The Packers gave away the ball how many times yesterday?
As I said before, the Giants played exceptionally well yesterday, but to give Eli Manning all the credit for that would be silly.

When we are talking about elite quarterbacks, I was talking about this year.
Statistically speaking, Eli Manning was a top-10 quarterback this year.
However, several quarterbacks -- including Tony Romo -- threw for more yards, more touchdowns, and fewer interceptions, not to mention had a higher passer rating, than Eli Manning this year.
In terms of win/loss record, the team was mediocre, barely squeaking into the playoffs in a thoroughly underperforming division.
Obviously, part of that was their defensive woes through the first half of the season, coupled with an abysmal running game; but Aaron Rodgers faced similar obstacles and still put up six more victories this year.
In terms of individual performance, then, I would say my top 4 quarterbacks were Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, and Matthew Stafford.
Eli Manning would be ranked somewhere around No. 7 or 8 -- top 25 percent, certainly, but not elite.


I find it endlessly amusing that the only other exception people can point to is the Saints -- the same exception I have already admitted.
Two exceptions (assuming the Patriots make the Super Bowl this year) don't invalidate a correlation.
Occasional outliers are always to be expected.
Until a trend of high-powered offenses coupled with porous defenses starts making the Super Bowl with regularity, we can safely assume it is not a trustworthy formula for championship success.

The Colts of 2006 could also be considered somewhat poor. Odd similar to the Giants they kind of picked it up during the playoffs.. However on the Colts run they never really faced many good teams in the playoffs offensively aside from the Pats who scored 26 points. They faced the Bears in the SB who had a great D...The Bears also beat the Saints that year in the NFC championship round, and the Saints had a great offense but a poor D??. Arizona went to the SB with iffy defense in 2008 but lost to a great defense in the steelers.

Last year it was the number 1 and number 2 scoring D in the league that went to the dance..

The Giants at no point had what you would call a "great d" in full cirlce either this year 2007 or any year. They just seemed to get hot in the playoffs and there abouts, for whatever reason.

Nonstopdrivel;202911Since when is this baseball?
Eli Manning didn't beat Favre, Rodgers, and Brady -- the New York Giants beat the Packers and the Patriots.
Besides, both times the Giants have beat the Packers in the playoffs, the Packers just played lousy.
Favre had several men wide open and threw to the one man who was double covered.
The Packers gave away the ball how many times yesterday?
As I said before, the Giants played exceptionally well yesterday, but to give Eli Manning all the credit for that would be silly.

When we are talking about elite quarterbacks, I was talking about this year.
Statistically speaking, Eli Manning was a top-10 quarterback this year.
However, several quarterbacks -- including Tony Romo -- threw for more yards, more touchdowns, and fewer interceptions, not to mention had a higher passer rating, than Eli Manning this year.
In terms of win/loss record, the team was mediocre, barely squeaking into the playoffs in a thoroughly underperforming division.
Obviously, part of that was their defensive woes through the first half of the season, coupled with an abysmal running game; but Aaron Rodgers faced similar obstacles and still put up six more victories this year.
In terms of individual performance, then, I would say my top 4 quarterbacks were Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, and Matthew Stafford.
Eli Manning would be ranked somewhere around No. 7 or 8 -- top 25 percent, certainly, but not elite.


I find it endlessly amusing that the only other exception people can point to is the Saints -- the same exception I have already admitted.
Two exceptions (assuming the Patriots make the Super Bowl this year) don't invalidate a correlation.
Occasional outliers are always to be expected.
Until a trend of high-powered offenses coupled with porous defenses starts making the Super Bowl with regularity, we can safely assume it is not a trustworthy formula for championship success.

Ok we are talking about two completely different things then, never mind.
I am taking into account the QBs career, whereas, you seem to be taking into account only this season and have a particular focus on only the regular season. We're talking about apples versus oranges, so I can't really debate you on this one.

And I am not giving Eli Manning all the credit but he outplayed Favre in 2007, he outplayed Brady in 2007 and he outplayed Rodgers in 2011.
I still think its stupid but that's the NFL, your judged on wins and losses as a QB - ask Marino all about that.
Eli was the better QB in those games.
And I think you cherry pick your arguments, now your saying that Eli is just part of a machine but you always seem to focus on Favre to blame losses on.
Pick a side, either the QB has a huge impact or he doesn't, he can't have a huge impact when you say so and not have one when you say so.
Did Favre lose them the Super Bowl against the Broncos?

If the Pats win, that would be 2 out of the last 3 years, in whatever statistical analysis you are conducting that seems pretty significant to me, that would signal some kind of shift in the NFL.
With the way the offense is favored by the NFL rules and officiating, it would not surprise me at all if this becomes the norm.
You don't think you can't take a lot of stock into the D's that have won in the past when you have multiple guys throwing for over 5,000 yards and 40+ TDs.
This 49ers D that you seem to prefer gave up 472 yards.
Yes, 472 yards.
And 32 points at home.
And it took a miracle, less than 2 minute drive to win the game.
If the 49ers Offense does not pull out the drive, your talking about a probably Saints v. Pats Super Bowl as no one is beating the Saints at home.
Because of one drive by the 49ers Offense, this some how proves that you can't win with a poor D in this year's NFL?
Sorry, not buying it, I fail to see how a drive by Alex Smith and Vernon Davis after the best D in the league gives up an 80 yard drive (twice) proves that D still dominates in this NFL era.

Our O sucked, the Giants D figured us out or we were rusty or we're not built for the January weather, either way if the O played better, I highly doubt our D gives up 37 points when you take into account 3 fumbles (including one to the 3 yard line), 2 missed onside kicks and a 4th and 5 miss.