In somewhat of a surprising move the San Francisco 49ers with the 61st selection of the 2012 NFL Draft chose LaMichael James a junior out of the University of Oregon. James was considered as being one of the better backs in the draft and offers tremendous speed. James will likely be used primarily as a third down back and James provides depth as he can also return kicks for the 49ers, which is great news for the 49ers because the team now has a backup to Ted Ginn in case of injury.

James will join a running back group consisting of Frank Gore, Kendall Hunter, recently signed Brandon Jacobs and Anthony Dixon and this definitely provides competition in training camp for a spot on the active roster.

As for what James did at Oregon he produced from the moment he arrived on campus. As a freshman he carried the ball 230 times for 1,546 yards, a 6.7 yards per carry average and 14 touchdowns, sophomore year he carried the ball 294 times for 1,731 yards, a 5.9 yards per carry and 21 touchdowns and in his junior season which was his last and even after battling some injuries he carried the ball 247 times for 1,805 yards, had a 7.3 yards per carry average and 18 touchdowns.

In total he carried the ball 771 times for 5,082 yards and 53 touchdowns.

The knock on him is his size he’s 5’8″ and 194 pounds, so durability is a concern. He is a similar player to Detroit Lions running back Jahvid Best a first round pick in the 2010 draft out of the University of Calfornia. Besides those two concerns on the football field the one thing that James will need to prove that he can do is catch the football as he only averaged 17 receptions per year.

Yet, James throughout his career put up impressive numbers he had a career long of 90, eight games of three touchdowns, seven games of over 200 yards rushing with a high of 288 yards.

With the pick of James showed that the 49ers were willing to go after the best player available and it certainly will provide some entertaining battles when training camp begins.

Thank you JonathanSchmidt1 for the video

Here’s who the 49ers selected in the first round and a recent story of mine in regards to the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

The San Francisco 49ers first pick in the 2012 was at no.30 and their selection was A.J. Jenkins a wide receiver out of the University of Illinois. While the selection of a wide receiver was not surprising, the pick of Jenkins was.  At the combine according to NFL.com Jenkins had a vertical jump of 38.5″, ran a 4.37 40 and measured in at 6’0″ and 190 pounds.

He played all four seasons at Illinois with his Junior and Senior seasons being his best years. In total he caught 167 passes for 2,432 yards and 19 touchdowns. Included is the video of his career day against Northwestern in his senior year and in a come from behind victory he caught 12 passes for 268 yards and three touchdowns. The totals for his senior season he caught 90 passes for 1,276 yards and eight touchdowns and in his Junior year Jenkins caught 56 passes for 746 yards and seven touchdowns.

In the offseason the 49ers also signed Superbowl hero Mario Manningham and Randy Moss and with Jenkins it allows for the 49ers to stretch the football field. That was something that did not happen in the NFC Championship game where only one pass was completed to a wide receiver for three yards.

More importantly according to that same article is that he has quickness off the ball, he has the ability to separate from defenders and has the ability to catch the ball in the middle of the field. One weakness that really stands out for Jenkins is that he can become predicable with his go-to move which means a cornerback can knock him of his route.

For more on the 49ers offseason feel free to check out the re-signing Alex Smith and Smith also helping with a search for a missing California teenager.

On defense the 49ers re-signed cornerback Carlos Rogers and linebacker Ahmad Brooks and franchised safety Dashon Goldson. With the signings it means all 11 starters will be returning to the team for the 2012 season, a group in 2011 that was one of the best in the NFL.

Even with having one of the best defensive units in the playoffs the 49ers weakness on defense was exposed by the New Orleans Saints and to an extent the New York Giants and that was not getting enough pressure on the quarterback. Drew Brees carved up the 49ers defense for 462 yards and four touchdowns, yet quite possibly the best example, or worst example depending on how it’s looked at, is when Eli Manning found Manningham to put the Giants on top by three points. What makes the touchdown worse is that it was on a third down and 15, a stop meant the Giants would have been forced to kick a field goal.

That is why in the first round with the 30th selection in the Rant Sports 2012 NFL Mock Draft the 49ers will take Vinny Curry, defensive end out of Marshall University. In his senior year at Marshall he recorded 77 tackles with 22 tackles being for a loss, recorded 11 sacks, forced seven fumbles and blocked three kicks. His junior year was just as impressive in which he recorded 94 tackles with 18 for a loss, 12 sacks and forced two fumbles. Combined that means 171 tackles with 40 tackles for loss, 23 sacks, nine forced fumbles and three blocked kicks.

By drafting Curry it also means it gives the 49ers an opportunity to develop over the next couple of seasons the successor to defensive end to Justin Smith or if Curry impresses during training camp he could give the 49ers an ability to rest the 32-year old Smith. Another strength of Curry is that he has the athleticism to be an outside linebacker as well, so he could also give a rest to Parys Haralson.

With added depth and all 11 starters returning on defense, the 49ers defense will be even more scary in 2012 with an additional pass rusher.

One issue with Manning is that he played his home games in a dome for his entire professional career, so he did not have to deal with the elements. The 49ers home stadium, Candlestick Park has poor drainage and the wind can also be a major factor as well. Those are two things that Manning has not had to deal with while playing for the Indianapolis Colts.

According to pro-football-reference.com Manning has played four games at Candlestick Park and while his completion percentage of 64.4 percent is great, he threw for more interceptions than touchdowns.

Looking at his overall career records the best place for Manning to sign would be a team in either the AFC North or AFC South. His combined record against opponents in those two divisions is 59-13. The Tennessee Titans are one of the teams that has been rumored to be in the running for his services and are in the AFC South.

Another question mark about Manning is his ability to win in the playoffs as he has a record of just 9-10. Also, noteworthy is that seven Colts times under the direction of Manning were one-and-done.

An argument in support of Manning on why he would be able to succeed with the 49ers is that he has never played on a team with as much talent as the 49ers have on the defensive side of the football. The 49ers certainly have a talented defense anchored by defensive end Justin Smith and linebacker Patrick Willis.

The Colts did have talent on their defense and some of the names are Dwight Freeney, who is a seven-time Pro-Bowler and three time All-Pro; Robert Mathis, a three time Pro-Bowler and Bob Sanders, who was a two time Pro-Bowler, two time All-Pro and in 2007 won the Defensive Player of the Year Award.

One of Manning’s greatest attributes is his ability to read defenses and get rid of the ball quickly and is a major reason why he does not get sacked very much. In his career the most he’s ever been sacked was 29 times and that was back in 2001. With his ability to recognize defenses and being able to get the ball out quickly allowed him to thrive with a decent offensive line while with the Colts.

For the 49ers, though, the offensive line has been the team’s Achilles heel for years. Last season quarterback Alex Smith was sacked a league-high 44 times. Some of the sacks were on Smith, yet for the most part it was the offensive line failing to protect Smith and giving him very little time to get rid of the football.

Smith is mobile, so he can use his legs in attempt to avoid pass rushers and attempt to at least get back closer to the line of scrimmage. A strength of Smith is that he does not try to force the football and will take the sack rather than turning the ball over. With one of the best punters in the NFL in Andy Lee, Smith can afford to take a sack and the 49ers can play the field position game.

As for Manning, being able to scramble is not his strength. Like mentioned before, he is great at recognizing defenses and getting rid of the football before being sacked. What gives Manning the edge is that a majority of the time he is throwing the football from the shotgun position instead of being under center.

If the 49ers do attempt to accommodate Manning by having him in the shotgun formation, that will pose more issues for the 49ers’ offensive line and also there was very little success by the 49ers running the football in 2011 out of the shotgun formation. Having Manning play under center will make it more difficult to escape from pressure and blitzes.

Finally, the biggest issue regarding Manning is the four surgeries on his neck in the past 18 months. There’s no guarantee how well Manning will hold up especially if he’s hit. It is not like when Manning was showcasing his ability to throw at Duke; if he were struggling with his throw he would be retiring.

Manning is a huge risk for the 49ers to take. This is not like the signing of Randy Moss to an incentive-laden contract that provides very low risk and high rewards if he produces for the team. For the 49ers, the 2011 season was not terrible as the team went 13-3 and nearly made it to the Super Bowl. By possibly taking the risk on Manning at this point it makes very little sense for the 49ers organization and the 49ers instead should be looking at free agents to improve the offensive line.

The 35-year old wide receiver ended his retirement to sign a one-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers.

He caught passes at practice from head coach Jim Harbaugh, a former NFL quarterback. The team is expected to resign former number one overall draft pick Alex Smith.

Moss will help a depleted 49ers receiving squad that caught just one pass for three yards in an NFC championship loss to the New York Giants in January. The 49ers released Braylon Edwards in December and might lose Josh Morgan to free agency, leaving Michael Crabtree as the only adequate receiver on the team.

Moss struggled through a 2010 season that saw him play for three different teams: the New England Patriots, the Minnesota Vikings, and the Tennessee Titans. With those teams, he caught just 28 passes for 393 yards and five touchdowns.

But he has had one of the most successful careers of any wide receiver in league history. He ranks ninth all-time with 858 receptions, fifth with 14858 receiving yards, and second with 153 receiving touchdowns.

He set the single-season record with 23 touchdowns with the New England Patriots in 2007. The team won all 16 regular season games and advanced to Super Bowl XLII, where Moss caught the go-ahead score with 2:42 left.

Many say that Moss, at 35, won’t have much left. But he reportedly ran a sub 4.4 in the 40-yard dash. I could see him doing some real damage on a 49ers squad that doesn’t really have many other receiving targets.

Comeback Player of the Year anyone?

Since the San Francisco 49ers Playoff games seemingly have the colossal responsibility of being the measuring rod for NFL greatness. And because the question that’s always relevant, and asked, “first, we take a look at what the Niners have done,” before any ranking or judgment should be attempted. What else’s left to do still seems to be a good question,

As the 49er Classics continue to build; The Catch, The Stop, The Grab?, The Catch 11, The Catch 111, The Run, The Bootleg, and since these classics, with others help keep the heart-beat of the NFL alive. And since the Niners are definitely back and keeping their responsibilities —What else’s left to do doesn’t seem to want to go away?

I think Coach Harbaugh said the 9ers are ready. When asked about last week’s victory over the New Orleans Saints, and what that meant for Sunday’s match-up, he said, “…It felt like somebody locked the gates and put us in here and we got 70,000 people and a city behind us. I hope we get that this week.” I think that he thinks —the Niners are ready for the Giants.

But this is the NFL, the place where everything is possible. With all the experts, ‘holding the fort’, at every door, did they forget to bring some —Chicken Soup?

Yes, chicken soup. Since the outcome of today’s game often depends on ‘game day’ adjustments. And since people have said the names Alex Smith and Joe Montana in the same sentence —How is Alex Smith feeling today could be a very important question? Did he awake this morning with the flu?

In 1979, on an extremely cold day in Texas, a young Notre Dame quarterback who was battling the flu, and also the Houston Cougars, had to leave the game in the third quarter because of hypothermia.

That young quarterback became legendary 49er QB Joe Montana.

He ran straight to the locker room for some chicken soup. It apparently relieved all pain. He returned later and resumed his position behind center, and eclipsed a 22 fourth quarter deficit with a game-winning TD throw, ending the game, 35 – 34 or —in favor of chicken soup!

Chicken soup somehow made that special variable inside Joe Montana obvious, and later we all saw the culmination of that as he helped San Francisco with 4 Super Bowl Championships.

As the clock ticks away to kick-off time, I’m ambivalent. I wonder, did Alex Smith awake this morning with the flu?

The End

When the season started the 49ers made an effort to be team that ran the football often, which became very predictable for opposing teams. It is the reason why Frank Gore struggled to get going the first three games of the season when he carried the ball 59 times for 148 yards, 2.51 yards per carry average, and a long of 16 and scored one rushing touchdown.

As Gore became the focal point of opposing defenses to stop it also meant that Smith wasn’t able to get going throwing the football and for the 49ers the team was put in third and long situations more times than not, which resulted in additional pressure on Smith, yet even with the pressure, he did not make many mistakes with the football. He’d take the sack or throw the ball away instead of attempting to make a risky play and was the main reason why the 49ers did not turn the ball over. The pressure and sacks resulted in Smith averaging just 168 yards passing and only throwing two touchdowns.

After game three the 49ers made much more of an effort to throw the football, which made it more difficult for defenses to determine if the 49ers were going to run or throw, which also meant that Gore was able to get going on the ground and from that point on Gore’s numbers were 1,063 yards rushing, a 4.8 yards per carry average, a long of 55 and seven touchdowns. Smith in the remaining 13 games averaged 203 yards passing and threw 15 touchdowns.

Even with more success moving the football the 49ers still ranked 24th in passing touchdowns, 26th in total yards, 29th in passing yards and 31st in passing attempts. Running the football the 49ers were much better ranking third in attempts, eighth in rushing yards and 12th in rushing touchdowns.

Yet, the saving grace for the 49ers was the play of their special teams. Punter Andy Lee and kicker David Akers both made the Pro-Bowl and the 49ers coverage team on punts and kick returns were outstanding all year long, which allowed for the 49ers to win the field position battles and because of that success the 49ers didn’t need sustained long drives to get into field goal range for Akers.

The play calling in the red zone nearly cost the 49ers against the New Orleans Saints. After Dashon Goldson had made an excellent return on an interception of Drew Brees the 49ers just needed to punch the ball in from four yards out. Instead of using Gore, the 49ers went to the air. The Saints were able to get pressure on Smith forcing two straight incomplete passes and it appeared another wasted opportunity in the red zone and on the third down play the 49ers used the aggressiveness of the Saints defense to their advantage as Smith threw a quick pass to Michael Crabtree for a touchdown.

Almost immediately after the touchdown the 49ers were again in the red zone after recovering a fumble by Courtney Roby at the 13 yard line and this time the 49ers were unable to move the football and forced to settle for a field goal. By not being able to score the touchdown it was reminiscent of the 49ers loss to the Arizona Cardinals on the road where the 49ers had a number of opportunities in the red zone and managed field goals instead.

As the Saints offense got rolling it appeared that red zone trip that resulted in the field goal instead of a touchdown was going to cost the 49ers. Yet, were able to catch the Saints off-guard by being aggressive with their play calling. One play was the roll out by Smith running the ball 28 yards for the touchdown instead of just handing the ball off to Gore for better field goal position and another example of the aggressiveness was on the final drive of the game when Smith took advantage of the one-on-one coverage Vernon Davis had.

For the 49ers to beat the New York Giants today the play calling needs to be aggressive much like the ending of the Saints game, so the Giants have a hard time predicting what the 49ers are going to do.

It’s been the main topic of human discourse since the beginnings, when football players wore leather helmets. Mark Twain was also irritated about this so-called weather phenomenon, he said, “Everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it.” That’s right —nobody does a thing about it.

What could you have done to prepare an NFL team for The Fog Bowl? That was a grumpy weather pattern that obscured everything …

It was in 1988, the Chicago Bears were taking on the Philadelphia Eagles. The Fog Bowl began in the second quarter. The fog crept in to eventually rest right there on Soldier Field, barely yielding —visibility. The weather took on both teams in a single day and won, allowing each team only a short field-goal kick in the second half.

But perhaps my favorite ‘weather bowl’ was the 1976 AFC Championship between the Oakland Raiders and Pittsburg Steelers. That weather bowl was called “The Steelers Ice Bowl.”

…It’s a huge conspiracy, Coach John Madden and owner Al Davis screamed. Mark Twain would have loved this. The Raiders organization actually tried, in a sense, to blame the Pittsburgh Steelers for — weather.

John Madden came running at the grounds-keeper, accusing him of —‘Doing this on Purpose’. Apparently, yes, the field was covered with a tarp, but the moisture slid down the cracks and the next day it was solid ice along the edges, narrowing the ‘big-play’ philosophies of the Oakland Raiders. The Steelers were eventually victorious.

As we approach Sunday’s NFC Championship game in San Francisco —I will monitor the weather, personally. The outlook is: Okay. Meteorologists across our great country anticipate some showers on game day, with some winds. The chance of precipitation is around 60 percent.

The End

About Sunday’s NFC Championship battle against the San Francisco 49ers, he says “…I might be a little biased, but in our minds, we can’t be beat …”

It’s almost as if pirates’ have stolen NFL history as well. Since major web sites have boycotted the SOPA Bill with Blackouts on their sites, particularly Wikipedia, and since this is the very place where our history is stored, in some reality —all history has been erased?

Because …obviously now, he’s confused himself with another New Yorker, ex. New York Jet, “Broadway Joe.” In 1969, when Joe Namath, or, “Broadway Joe,” the QB for the New York Jets was making predictions that his opponent, the hugely favored Baltimore Colts would lose, and then, when all this came true with a 16 – 7 victory in Super Bowl 111, is nothing but classic, “Broadway Joe” …Hey …the guy is obviously cool. Especially if you consider, that about the same time he’s making these bold predictions, he’s also doing gigs with babes like Farrah Fawcett,

…With Antrel Rolle, the successful severing of every brain-nerve-ending is further documented. And the irony is —this is the very same person the SOPA Bill is trying to protect. His ‘intellectual property’ has vanished?

He says, “We’re extremely confident and we’ve given ourselves the reason to feel that way. We have to continue to give ourselves those reasons, and we will. We have no doubts. It’s right there at the tip of our tongue.”

“Blah, blah, blah.” Most of the time …Joe Namath was too busy being funny. When asked about Astroturf and grass he said, “I don’t know whether I prefer Astroturf to grass. I never smoked Astroturf.” That’s funny. When asked about pain after a game he said, “When you win, nothing hurts.” That’s not funny, but something that brings a wry smile?

Okay …Joe Namath was a snappier dresser than Antrel Rolle. When hurt, he hung out on the sidelines, dressed in furs, with beautiful women. His coaches blew gaskets. That’s also funny to watch.

But …Antrel Rolle is just a victim of the ‘falling-short’ efforts of SOPA. He case is further documented,

In week one the Washington Redskins faced Antrel Rolle’s team, the New York Giants, and they were beaten. Immediately after, Antrel Rolle said, “As a team and organization we know that the Washington Redskins are not a better team than us. We know that. Hands down. If we played them 100 times they might win five.”

What Antrel Rolle says is also funny, but not “Broadway Joe” funny. Several weeks later they again faced the Washington Redskins, only to lose again, which makes it —Antrel Rolle funny.

As the San Francisco 49ers head into this Sunday’s NFC championship, they just hope Antrel Rolle keeps on speaking …history?

The End

The shoot-out is dead —dead —dead —dead. All the participants have either died or killed each other. And it’s sad.

So now we look at the San Francisco 49ers to pick up the pieces, because being born on the frozen tundra or the un-frozen tundra is certainly a prerequisite to a Super Bowl Championship? It’s something that’s been there, always. Or …will the Patriots, the last of the Shoot-Out artists, show us a different story —complimented by six-shooters on their hips?

Now …the Dallas cowboys aren’t continuing with the Playoff run because they’re mediocre. Then …the cowboy, the American Cowboy briefly flourished, and then died. The cowboy experience lasted from around 1860 to around 1880. It was a fad to be a cowboy, and, experienced by a single generation of Americans. That’s it.

So, our mission is obvious? We’re here to differentiate whether the ‘Shoot Out’ style NFL offense is a fad or a trend?

I believe the only way to achieve this is to transcend the sports world, and make comparisons to other areas that encompass our life.

A perfect example of Fads happens quite frequently with fashion. It’s one of the three essential ingredients for survival: Food, shelter, and clothing. And more importantly —we don’t want to give the clothes off our back. Right? So we wear, ‘stretchy-pants’, bell-bottoms, skinny-jeans, acid-wash jeans, hippie-wear, disco-get-ups, raves, and then, the Fashion Police comes to blur our different worlds? Nonetheless, these are obvious Fads,

A trend is something different. A trend was Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers winning their first Super Bowl. A trend has the possibility, after time, of possibly dominating a certain industry, for example, the San Francisco 49ers, which became one of the sports franchises admired throughout the entire sports world.

These differences, I believe, are very important. For us to survive we must know the difference between a fad and a trend. Of course the Niners didn’t want to face a ‘Fad’,

They wanted to play the New York Giants instead of the Green Bay Packers. What reasonable mind wants to face a pugnacious, little punk, like —Billy the Kid? A Fad-setter. Perhaps, the assassins, the ‘Shoot-Out’ artists are better left to wither and die alone,

The End