San Francisco 49ers: Why Jim Harbaugh's San Francisco 49ers Will Regress in 2012

The San Francisco 49ers will finish with a losing record in 2012.

Just kidding 49ers fans. They will still be a good team, but the 49ers will regress next season.

The 49ers were the surprise team of 2011. They went from a losing record to 13-3 and almost making the Super Bowl. A lot of the credit has to be given to their rookie head coach Jim Harbaugh. 

In 2012, the 49ers are going to have a tougher time succeeding. There's no denying that they have one of the best defenses in the league. Patrick Willis is an absolute beast and will continue to lead that defense.

Their real problems are on the other side of the ball.

For one, their quarterback is still Alex Smith. Smith improved a lot under Harbaugh's system. He was able to do just well enough to lead them to 13 wins. 

However, Smith's time is up. Teams are going to be able to figure him out now that he had his one year under Harbaugh's system. There is a reason why this guy has not been successful in the NFL. It is simply because he is not that good.

A lot of people will think he is turning the corner because of his one game against the New Orleans Saints in the playoffs. Sure, that was a great performance, but it was against the Saints' defense. They had one of the worst defenses in the NFL in 2011.

Still think that Smith is the answer and will turn the corner?

Then explain to me why the 49ers thought about signing Peyton Manning this offseason.

Even Harbaugh knows that Smith is not the answer. He is waiting to find the right quarterback. The Manning drama is definitely going to get to Smith's head. He is not a proven player in this league and knows that he is on the hot seat.

Some people may say that Smith had no legit wide receivers to throw to. Do you really think Mario Manningham and Randy Moss are the answers?

Manningham had that great catch in the Super Bowl, but besides that he has always been a No. 3 wide receiver. He is not a game-changing receiver.

Moss is not the same player he once was. He was so horrible two seasons ago that he had to step away from the game for an entire season. 

It is great that they added depth to their receiving corps, but the fact is Smith does not have the ability to get the ball to them. The 49ers took a risk adding Moss, and he will blow up on them if Smith cannot get him the ball.

Last season was a cake walk for the 49ers when it came to NFC West division games. This season, they will deal with much more competition because the rest of the teams in the division improved during the offseason.

The Seattle Seahawks brought in Matt Flynn and should have a healthy Sidney Rice. The Arizona Cardinals made their passing game better by drafting Michael Floyd. Even the St. Louis Rams got better by bringing in Jeff Fisher as their head coach.

When it is all said and done, the 49ers will still be a good team because they have an elite defense. However, don't expect them to go 13-3 and make it to the NFC Championship game again with Smith leading their offense.

His time as the starter is up. Harbaugh knows it, and after the 2012 season, everyone will know it.