Nolan brought him up here. I’m a big fan of Manusky. Since Singletary was promoted Manusky has had much more control over the defense. This will be an interesting year for his defense.

There’s been a lot of jokes made about how Singletary wants a “physical with an F” team. However, as much fun as it is to have a dynamic passing attack, a team that can roll over another team is fine by me. It is certainly tough to watch them sometimes when the running game is struggling because the passing game can be abysmal.

At this point Singletary is getting the benefit of the doubt. It will be interesting to see what people think a month into the season if the team is 1-3 or 0-4.

Frank Gore is definitely the starter and will get a good majority of the carries. The remaining carries are likely to be split between guys like Coffee, Purdue rookie Kory Sheets and RB/FB Michael Robinson. At this point Coffee will get the most out of that group. I’m hoping in the 100-125 carry range, but I guess it depends how committed they are to the power rushing attack. I don’t think Coffee will strictly qualify as “3rd down back” or “short yardage back,” but really a guy who can come in at any point to mix it up a little.

I think you’ll see some improvement this year in his numbers. One of the main problems last season was that due to the Mike Martz offense (and lack of pass protection), the 49ers held Davis back to block more often than not. He’s a great blocking tight end, but obviously a first round pick is expected to do more than that. 49ers OC Jimmy Raye has said he’ll use Davis like he used Tony Gonzalez in KC. We’ll see if that actually happens as Martz wanted to utilize him a lot in the passing game and that went south quickly.

Your fantasy team deserved to stink it up :P

Isaac Bruce was the most consistent receiver last year and either he or veteran Arnaz Battle could be your safest plays early (if you so chose). The guy with the big upside is Josh Morgan. He was a 6th round pick (some character issues) in 2008 and only had 20 catches last season. However, people are rather stoked about his potential going forward. At the same time, this is definitely a run-first team so 49ers receivers might be a less than stellar option out of the gate.

As for dead-weight, Brandon Jones is the deadest of weight b/c of injury. He is out until early October but still carries a roster spot. As for talent reasons, Barry Sims would probably qualify given that he’s getting old and a whole lot of washed-up. We’ll see if he improves out of the Martz pass protection scheme.

I don’t know that a team quarterbacked by Shaun Hill can ever have a fantasy receiver.

I won’t hold my breath, but I’m hoping for 9-7 this year. Cross your fingers!

The raiders haven’t really showed to have a good offense. Jamarcus Russell isn’t accurate enough. The 49ers defense so far has been getting a lot of turnovers so far in the preseason. Our defense is improving, so we might be able to hit top 10 (ranked 13th last year) if we get a better pass rush. We have gotten 7 ints (tied for 2nd in preseason) so we’re looking a lot better as a unit. I only recall Darius Heyward Bey having one pass thrown to him but it was off target. So I way say it is a mix.

I think there rushing defense is more an issue than anything else. The Chargers should be able to run all over them.

The Raiders offense is not in good shape at this point. Chaz Schilens was one of the bright spots and he’s out for the short term. The running hasn’t impressed anybody thus far. The 49ers have definitely made a lot of turnovers on defense, but the Raiders are pretty awful at this point.

Sorry, been a bit busy the last couple days.

I didn’t follow Art Shell closely enough, but it seems like people just buy into the intensity from Mike Singletary a little bit more. Art Shell had his hey-day, but something about Singletary just brings a certain legitimacy to the table. He was actually a motivational speaker after his playing days and before he entered the coaching profession.

At this point it’s too early to tell how fresh things are. Players are buying into it in large part because they know he’s a Hall of Fame linebacker and he doesn’t BS them. Every single player on the 49ers that has been asked about Singletary responds that he is very up front with them and doesn’t BS them. At this point, as long he maintains a level of honesty with his players, he’ll be fine.