2007 — Niners pick Patrick Willis. Norv Turner leaves, Alex Smith loses his marbles. Niners suck, go 5-11.
2008 — Mike Nolan lets new coordinator Mike Martz start JT O'Sullivan at QB. Mike Nolan is fired. Mike Singletary takes over; takes care of business. Niners salvage a 7-9 record; being named 'Mike' becomes part of front-office job requirements.
2009 — Niners move to retro jerseys, look awesome, play awesome. Brett Favre proves that karma does not apply to him, kills Niners' hopes for a 4-0 start. Kurt Warner uses his swan-song season to ruin the Niners' first solid season in half a decade. Still, Niners go 8-8 for a decent season.
2010 — LET'S GO!!!!!!
Here's the deal. The Niners are making the playoffs this year. I'm guaranteeing it.
No, I'm not crazy. Though the previous four years of history that I have displayed for you above may lead you to believe otherwise, I'm here to tell you that picking against the Niners is like saying Albert Haynesworth isn't fat. Or that JaMarcus Russell doesn't take enough cough syrup.
Let's start out by looking at the rest of the NFC West:
Kurt Warner, eternal Niner killer, is gone (finally) and has no plans (of now) to play for the Cardinals again. His replacement, Matt Leinart of now-tainted USC title-winning fame, is more interested in where the party's at than getting to the SuperBowl.
Leinart's former coach, Pete Carroll, is taking the helm of a Seahawks team that is floundering and could start Matt Hasselback, who broke multiple ribs after being hit by Patrick Willis last year, at quarterback after a career-worst season.
The Rams just paid Sam Bradford, he of multiple shoulder injury fame, $50 million in guaranteed money. That, and the fact that he might already be their best player, is all you really need to know.
And then there are the Niners. Coach Mike Singletary is the authoritative but respected leader of a team of talented youngsters looking for their first playoff birth in nearly a decade. Alex Smith has supposedly bulked up for the upcoming season, and is still one of the most mentally-tough men in the NFL (for more evidence read this). Michael Crabtree, after missing 6 games in a hold-out last year, is ready for a full training camp and season ahead of him, his sights set on Jerry Rice and T.O. Vernon Davis finally lived up to his G.O.A.T billing and is back for more next season. Frank Gore is still a perennial Pro-Bowl running back, and will get some help from a slew of young back-ups. And, though water covers two-thirds of our earth, the other third is most certainly covered by Patrick Willis.
But that's not even the most encouraging aspect of the Niners' 2010-2011 campaign. Two first-round rookie offensive linemen (Anthony Davis, Mike Iupati) will beef up Smith's security detail and open holes for Frank Gore to pound the ball in the running game. The Niners' defense, with the return of Manny Lawson from injury, the addition of Ricky Jean-Francois, and potential breakthrough in wild-card rookie Taylor Mays, stands to be one of the top five in the league. And Niners' offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye plans to tailor his passing attack to Smith's strengths, something he only did for half of last season.
So really, this is the Niners' year. I'm not talking about a SuperBowl win or anything, but an NFC West title and a playoff berth are in the cards. It's a sure shot, like Brett Favre on a hunting trip or Plaxico Burress in a club. And in a year where all the early 49ers talk has been about a move to Santa Clara, the Niners look to finally put San Francisco back on the football map.
