... Durability is part of the kind of player you have. You just don't evaluate the type of player on the field only. If a guy is not on the field very much, it is a huge chunk of the evaluation. |
(I) quickly realized he's doing a darn good job, |
(Seattle is) the team in our division we would like to beat, and there are some concepts (the 49ers used against the Seahawks) where I can tell am I right or am I wrong? The game a lot of times can tell you that. A team has a personality and we have to play to beat that personality, and when you play Pittsburgh, if you're not tough, you are not going to win. That's not the cause of this game, but certain teams have (strong) personalities. |
(Stringer) walked off the field, went to the hospital and then (died) there. Whereas with our players it was all front and center. |
(The move) is really due to the good play of Andre Carter and Corey (Smith) than to anything else, |
(The win) was a step in the right direction. That was what I saw more than anything else. I don't know if I saw any more excitement or enthusiasm than (this team) had a year ago ... but what you get back is positive reinforcement. The final product is winning the ballgame. Those are the kind of things that make players understand better and better what you're talking about. |
[After the 49ers blew a 12-point fourth-quarter lead in a 34-31 loss to visiting Dallas, first-year coach Mike Nolan suggested there could be changes on the roster and in the lineup this week against Arizona. Nolan was particularly upset with breakdowns in pass coverage, which allowed Drew Bledsoe to throw for 363 yards, with five passes covering 20 or more yards.] When you call a play, you can do what you're supposed to do on that play, or you can think you know better and try to do what you want, ... One is called trust, one is called distrust. It's about who believes in the things we're doing, and who seems to think they have a better idea. Some people think they have a better idea. The ones who trust, I believe, are champions and will still be here. |
[Building a winning foundation] is a hurdle that you have to get over when you're losing in order to win [long term]. And that hurdle is much greater than your draft status. It's always good to have good players, but I believe wherever we pick, we're going to do well. |
[It's a steel platform with blocking dummies attached all over, including three in the front, with a helmet attached to a pole and grip. Singletary designed it in Baltimore.] Oh, they hated it that first week, ... It was hilarious, because Ray (Lewis) is such a stickler for getting everything right. |
[Jerry Rice shouldn't bank on returning for an encore season with the 49ers. If the 42-year-old receiving great makes it known that he would like a ceremonial return preceding a retirement announcement,] it's something we would be very open to, ... But it is my understanding right now that those aren't his desires. Jerry still wants to test the market and see if someone is interested in having him on the team as a full-time participant. |
[Reed is so good at disguising himself in coverage that even his own teammates have a hard time locating him in the secondary on pass plays. He's so savvy that he can baffle the most experienced quarterbacks. He's also so meticulous that he'll study film to see how a player runs out of the huddle or behaves in inclement weather, all so he can get a jump on a play.] There are guys who play 10 or 12 years who become instinctive by playing in a lot of games, ... Ed has been in the league three years and he already has that ability. |
[This year, coach Mike Nolan would prefer to use Battle exclusively at flanker, where Rice lined up, to utilize his athletic ability.] He has some very special skills, ... He has the ability to change directions quickly and go up for the ball. |
Alex is our quarterback, |
Alex is the guy we drafted with the first pick and I expect him to be the future of the franchise from the quarterback position. |
All four of those guys have really done well. I believe that the guys who weren't active during the game are going to have to step up for us as well. It's going to be a solid group. They proved it in the first game, but every game is a new test. I look forward to them doing good things. |