Questions abound with Hill-Smith quarterback battle in San Francisco

By Jeff Dickinson  |   Sunday, February 15, 2009  |  Comments( 5 )

San Francisco 49ers
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As the NFL offseason progresses and the draft approaches, the talk around the San Francisco 49ers centers on the most high-profile position on the team – quarterback.

The 49ers obviously have numerous holes to fill as they prepare for the 2009 season. You don’t finish 7-9 and miss the playoffs unless there are areas of the team that need to be improved.

And while Shaun Hill played pretty well after taking over the team from J.T. O’Sullivan last season, there is talk that 2005 No. 1 pick Alex Smith is going to be battling Hill for the starting job come summer. Yes, this is the same Smith who was benched and basically headed out of San Francisco and possibly the league before his shoulder injury sidelined him for the season last year.

Why are the 49ers even interested in bringing Smith back next season? Why is Smith interested in trying to resurrect his career in San Francisco instead of looking for a fresh start somewhere else?

Here are some of the questions surrounding San Francisco’s quarterback situation and their corresponding answers:

· Why aren’t the 49ers sold on Hill as their starting quarterback? – Hill was an undrafted free agent out of Maryland in 2002 for a reason. He wasn’t highly recruited enough to even get a sniff from a major football school and ended up playing two years of junior college ball. Hill didn’t even take a snap for the first three years of his NFL career, something that highly touted quarterbacks don’t have to endure. Through the first seven years of Hill’s NFL career, he has only passed for 2,547 yards and has thrown just 18 touchdowns. Hill is the starter for the 49ers on paper, but Smith will get every opportunity to beat him out during the preseason.

· Why are the 49ers even considering giving Smith another shot? – Because Smith finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting in 2004, his senior season at Utah. Because he finished his collegiate career with the Utes with 47 touchdown passes and only eight interceptions. Because Smith is an ex-No. 1 pick and San Francisco brass would love to be vindicated for the selection. And because Smith has already been a bust once, so there’s not really much to lose for the 49ers this time around.

· Why is Smith interested in trying to revive his career in San Francisco? – After a quarterback goes from the top of the rookie draft heap to the bottom of the bench, he is probably ready for a change of scenery. Smith had every opportunity to establish himself as the next Joe Montana with the 49ers. In his rookie season, he struggled as most young quarterbacks do. But he showed flashes of brilliance in 2006 by throwing 16 touchdown passes. The wheels came off in 2007, though, as Smith battled injuries and only threw two touchdowns. Smith has something to prove in San Francisco, and he knows he has a decent situation in battling the journeyman Hill for the starting job. If Smith wins back the starting job next season, it will be a feel-good story all over the league. If he falls flat on his face again, it will be old news.
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About Jeff Dickinson

I have been writing and editing professionally for 18 years. I spent the first three years of my career as a sportswriter for a daily newspaper in Alabama and got to cover sports and get paid for it! It was great until I got married and then it wasn't too much fun being away from my wife every ...
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