1. Middle linebackers aren’t usually fast enough to keep up with tight ends or slot receivers
2. Offenses just have to adjust their route running to square-ins and middle curl routes
3. With the new statue of liberty plays, receiver screens and 3,4 wide formations, usually create coverage problems and mis-matches on the field

I’ll elaborate #3 a little.  For the statue of liberty play, once the middle linebacker sees pass, he drops back.  These plays are usually draw plays with traps up the middle which would be covered by that middle linebacker spot.  With receiver screens, your middle linebacker is usually your rover in a 4-3 and with him inching back for pass, the WLB and SLB have to pinch in leaving the corners and safety alone or worse yet (on trips wide), you leave your OLB lined up on a wideout, safety moved up and CB being blocked which leaves no room for error.  Finally for the 3,4 wide, if teams run deep crossing patterns down the middle, your middle linebacker ends up covering the 1 & 2 receivers and you only have safety help from the outsides, so when that linebacker sees he can get burned deep you can run your slot on a square-in underneath OR your tight-end off the blocks for nice curl pattern.

Instead, I’m a fan of the Nickel Defense.  It plays off the 3-4 but with 5 DBs and 3 LBs or sometimes just 2 down linemen (depending how you go).  I feel like whether you’re in prevent or in a regular down situation, the nickel suits you with the speed of the DBs to cover the run (not to mention the fast LBs you need for the Tampa 2 anyway) and you cover the pass with a solid 5 DBs in your secondary.  It’s not a fool-proof defense but I think if you’re going to rely on the front 4 to pass rush and team speed for your run (like the Tampa 2 / Cover 2 does), you’re better off with the Nickel Defense. On top of that, there are much better/complex blitz packages that you can do with this defense.  But that’s for another day.

Crabtree doesn’t have the speed that Randy Moss or Calvin Johnson has (4.5 vs 4.3 40-yd sprint) and he’s not the biggest target that you’ll find. Furthermore, his game against Oklahoma at the end of the season showed that he could be somewhat bullied by more physical teams and his route running ability (while very impressive) isn’t crisp.

But, enough with the skepticism…the bottomline is: how much impact will Crabtree have with the 49ers?
In one word: HUGE.

He is the best receiving package for the Niners since Terrell Owen and hopefully this little squibble about money doesn’t mean he’ll have the attitude of Owens. But Crabtree shows that he can run clean routes, has great size, knows how to use his body and has exceptional hands. The one thing I’m wondering about Crabtree is his ability to block. Gore doesn’t necessarily run too many sweeps or outside the tackle type runs and Coffee is a one-cut, between the blockers type of runner, but this league is going more and more to the receiver screens, and since QB Shaun Hill looks as if he could use a confident booster in first 3 quarters of every game, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Niners adopt this philosophy to some point. In fact, with Bruce, Morgan and Crabtree, I’d be surprised if by the end of the season we don’t see a lot more of this type of offense. Combined with the fact that we could create a tight end screen for “the freak” Vernon Davis and we got a ridiculous offensive set.

With Crabtree able to catch the quick outs as well as stretch the defenses (not so much with his speed as his route running, vertical ability and hands) with catches of 15 yd+, defenses will have to keep honest to the pass a little more. They can’t stack the box on Gore which should free him up for more creases in the line. Furthermore, the aged wonder, Isaac Bruce, is one of the best at the 5-yd out and 7-yd slant. We can also release Vernon Davis out wide or have him cut off the blocks for a curl right behind the front seven and because the free safety may have to cover over on Bruce or Crabtree, Davis would be open even more.

Anyway, I’m excited to see some great things out of him in the future…but because of his cry baby act, I wouldn’t be surprised if a couple strong safeties “clean his clock” to welcome him to the NFL…that’s for sure.

NFC West Pick: San Francisco 49ers..yep, that’s right…you heard me.

Here are the top 10 reasons why the 49ers will win their division:

10. Arizona is the only good team in this division and Kurt Warner’s age combined with a 2-peat conference championship in mind is hard to swallow for the rest of the young flock on this team…I’d say they flop to mediocrity just like the Baltimore Ravens did in 2001. Oh, and finally, I don’t see them finding their running game anytime soon…and 1-D offenses only takes you so far for so long…

9. Because Allen Rossum can give you 1 TD / game…returning kicks, punts, receiving or playing DB…you only need 12 more ppg to hit last year’s scoring average!!

8. Seattle who? I think their pass defense is the laughing stock of the league…might as well just throw a long ball every down because their secondary looks like they’re swatting flies.

7. Shaun Hill impressed me last year. He came into a struggling offense and definitely showed some poise while everything and everyone around him collapsed. With some consistency in his line and a couple of breakout performances from Vernon Davis and Battle (stupid Crabtree), this guy could be a definite sleeper pick for the niners.

6. The Rams should move back to LA. They have a better chance here. At least maybe they could get some decent coaching and a better team philosophy instead of lets see how many points we can put up and still lose…

5. The 49ers fans are about one missed tackle away from painting their face black n silver…and we all know how blasphemous those words are.

4. Because Isaac Bruce is a winner…and so should you!

3. Solid Defense. I think Mike Singletary definitely did a number on the run stoppage when he pulled down his pants in the locker room because something clicked at the end of the season. Plus a solid secondary led by Dre Bly, Clements, Walt Harris and LB Patrick “the little train that could damn well do it” Willis will make them an overall solid defense.

2. Jimmy Raye will spark Vernon Davis into the high-flying, hulkified, ridiculous specimen of a tight end just like he did for Anthony Gonzalez in 2000.

1. Frank Gore…Healthy…please!!!!~

(Disclaimer: The 49ers are my favorite team but this report was as unbiased as it could get…maybe…)