Nolan's Philosophy Doesn't Mix with Personnel Decisions

It is becoming clear that 49ER head coach Mike Nolan is a defensive minded coach. Every coach is entitled to his personal belief system. Mike Martz wants to go with four and five WR sets and throw the ball all over the field. The Titans Jeff Fisher wants to run the ball 30 plus times a game. The Detroit Lions drafted WR's Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson high in the first round and those picks coincide with their offensive philosophy. The Titans drafted RB's Lendale White and Chris Henry in the 2^nd round in the 2006 and 2007 NFL Drafts. After the Titans picked both of those backs they continue to run the football on a consistent basis. On the other hand, the 49ERS selected QB Alex Smith with the overall #1 pick in the draft and they took TE Vernon Davis with the #6 pick in the 2006 NFL Draft. Mike Nolan refuses to let Alex Smith become the focal point of the offense and Nolan is reluctant to take advantage of the size and speed of Vernon Davis and move him around from the TE position and feature him in the slot.

It's clear to 49ER fans that Nolan wants to win with defense. What puzzles San Francisco supporters is why would Alex Smith be drafted when the 49ERS could have easily selected OLB's Demarcus Ware or Shawn Merriman. When the 49ERS took TE Vernon Davis DT Haloti Nagata and DT Broderick Bunkley were still on the board. If Nolan wants to run the ball 40 times a game you don't cripple your franchise by paying QB Alex Smith over 25 million for him to turn around 30 times and give it to Frank Gore. A #1 pick should have the ability to win games with his arm. After picking Alex Smith San Francisco got Vernon Davis and most people felt that move was made to give Smith some help on the offensive side of the ball. It makes no sense to draft a TE that has 4.3 speed and rely on him to be a run blocker the majority of the time. In 2005 the 49ERS ran the ball 428 times and passed 389 times. In 2006 San Francisco passed the ball 444 times and ran the ball 439 times. It's clear that Mike Nolan wants to run, but someone in the 49ER organization must take responsibility for drafting players that clearly do not mesh with Mike Nolan's football philosophy.