Today the the Niners lost to the Houston Texans 24 - 21 at Reliant Stadium in Houston. The game was the story of 1st half vs 2nd half for the Niners. In the first half we had a hard time doing anything right. From Shaun Hills 6 for 11, 45 yard day, to a fumble on a punt by Arnaz Battle, to allowing 24 points in the first half of the game. Apparently the entire 49er team had their popcorn ready to watch the game rather than play in the game. Come the second half there was a change in attitude and quarterbacks with Alex Smith starting and leading the team back to get within three of the Texans. The Niners just could not pull it together to get the last field goal of the game to tie it and send it into overtime.

I was very excited to see todays game because it was going to signify the beginning of the Crabtree era in San Francisco. Beginning meaning not the MC Hammer and Deion negotiation show but the Crabtree finally rocking the #15 Jersey for the Niners. It was going to be the worlds first chance, as well as mine, to see the 10th selection of the 2009 NFL Draft play a game FINALLY! No one knew what kind of shape Crabtree was in, how he would adjust to the NFL Speed, DB's and coverages. For a first NFL game it went ok for Crabtree. Crabtree played in over 90% of the offensive plays, had 5 receptions for 56 yards for an average of 11.2 yards per catch. All I know is that for Crabtree better be like SHOWTIME for him.

Another player who had a big day today was Vernon Davis, who is the Niners most talented player. Vernon had 7 receptions for 93 yards 3 Tds averaging 13.3 per catch. For some strange reason the Houston defense left Davis open all day over the middle and Alex Smith took advantage. Abusing the Texans defense for 3 Tds on the same exact play Davis down the seam. Davis did have a scary moment in the game when he went down after he caught his first Touchdown from Smith. Apparently a teammate, knee'd him in the stomach during the celebration knocking the wind out of Davis.

Another surprised today was the appearance of Alex Smith. Smith went 15 of 22 for 206 yards for 3 tds and 1 int. He had a passer rating of 118.6 with a 9.4 average per pass. I was surprised to see Alex Smith out there in the 2nd half due to the fact Shaun Hill hadn't imploded. He just couldn't throw the ball, which is no new news to anyone. Shaun Hill was still doing what his job technically, which was is just to manage the game not win it. The Niners O-Line did a terrible job of blocking in the first half and we had no running game. Hill was constantly under pressure but you had a feeling that he wasn't who we could win the game with.

On the first series of the 2nd half out comes Alex Smith and the Niner Offensive. With the 2nd half came a new attitude. It was like Venus and Mars. The O-Line had better run and pass protection. Smith was making all the right passes. The set back for Smith this week was his poor management of the play clock. There were three different occasions in which Smith lost focus on the play and either had to waste timeouts or take the penalty. Otherwise his performance was a very much over due.

The 2nd half effort of the Niners was what I expected to see for the entire game. I expected better pass and run defense. They were able to buckled down in the 2nd half and make things happen. Only giving up a field goal in the 2nd half. Today was a lack of intensity and concentration during the 1st half for the entire team. During the 2nd half everyone finally showed up at the stadium and decided to play football. Moving forward I believe the Niners do need to make some changes which I think will greatly improve their offensive chances. I concentrate on the offense because the defense is ranked 5th against the run and 15th against the pass. Our offense needs the change like the Raiders need a new Owner. Its something that is long overdue. We have some great players in Gore, Davis, Crabtree, Morgan yet there isn't anyone to truly distribute the ball to them. I believe going to Alex Smith, who can win games rather than just manage games, will help a lot with that issue. As well I believe going to a starting recieving core of Davis, Crabtree, and Morgan would benefit more than having Issac Bruce start for us. Don't get me wrong Bruce is a great wideout but I do believe we are stunting the growth of Morgan by not having him in there for us. Bruce would better serve on 3 wide sets and in more of a veteran leadership role than a starter. Bruce only has 13 receptions for a 167 yards. Morgan has 13 Receptions for 202 yards and a TD. Having the duel threat of Crabtree and Morgan would greatly help Smith with his passing. So now with two dual outside threats you have Davis free to torch the middle of the field. Davis is leading the team in receptions with 22 Receptions 262yards and 3 Td's. Even though this core is a young I believe this can be a great trio of offensive receiving weapons for the 49ers.

Many people do not believe Smith is the quarterback for the Niners but I beg to differ. I don't believe that Smith has had the proper chance to succeed in the NFL. He has had rotating coordinators and coaches. Always changing schemes and terminology of the offense. Under Singletary I believe Smith can grow into the qb who can help lead the 49ers back to the playoffs. Smith just needs the time in which most QB's get to grasp and learn a system that is going to be around for a while.With that trio of weapons you can't forget about Frank Gore or Glen Coffee in our backfield. If our line provides Smith with ample protection I believe that the 49ers offense will blossom towards the end of the season as we are making a push towards the playoffs.