All it took was one start for the 49ers and head coach Mike Singletary to decide that the starting QB job is now Troy Smith’s to lose. Team insiders tell Pro Football Weekly that, even when Alex Smith’s non-throwing shoulder fully heals within the next couple of weeks, he likely will be taking a backseat to Troy Smith, who at least for one game made Singletary’s decision to start him against the Broncos — a decision, Pro Football Weekly hears, that even surprised his coaches — look good. But while Troy Smith did indeed offer a genuine glimmer of hope, saving his best for last with an impressive 21-point fourth quarter in the Niners’ 24-16 victory over Denver, Pro Football Weekly's sources on the San Francisco scene told PFW that Niners Nation is hardly getting carried away. “They’re a pretty skeptical bunch right now,†one source said. “The consensus is that all the Niners really proved were that they were less demoralized than the Broncos. Source: Pro Football Weekly
The way he just stepped in and played was really fun to watch. Once the Broncos started really just focusing on Gore, Troy did something Alex couldnt...the Broncos FORCED Troy to beat them and he did. Usually Alex wouldnt be up to the task.
I have been. Im from the bay area, Niner games are ALWAYS on, at least half my friends are Niner fans...believe me, Ive probably watched more Niner ball than most of their fanbase. T Smith did look good but again its ONE GAME. Against a bad team. Ive seen single games where A Smith looked much better than that, but it seems like Niner fans feel they finally have their answer at qb after one game, and thats ridiculous. You might have a slim reason for hope but thats about it.
Yeah, we need to see more from Troy before we can see he's "the guy." And Alex may or may not be as well. But at this point Alex needs to at the least be consistent, which is the thing that holds him back most. The other thing to realize is Troy had much less pressure in his face than Alex has had. I don't know if that was a result of the o-line coming together better, or the Broncos horrible team, but if troy were to face a more quality opponent, how would he fare?
Some 49er fans like some fans from the other 31 teams are stupid and uninformed. Way too soon to crown T.Smith a winner but he is a breath of fresh air for us to at least watch the games instead of just screaming and yelling at the screen.
Funny thing to me is Watching Troy IMO was like watching Alex from a few years ago. Looked almost identical to Alex's Monday night game on opening week against AZ a few years back. Troy is lucky though, something Alex never was. I like both players equal, but don't mind seeing Troy get a chance to prove what he can do. Realistically though, based on qb play, we should have lost that game and on the flip side should have beat Atl, Car, and No.
