San Franciso 49ers: QBs Are Not The Only Story

The start to the 2008 season for the San Francisco 49ers has been full of quarterback talk. I've been guilty too. However, now it’s time to focus on the real bright spot for Niners: the defense.Let’s be honest, Head Coach Mike Nolan is, was, and will always be a defensive minded coach and with this team, it surely shows. The defense is greatly improved from Nolan’s first year.

The Niner's have inside Linebacker Patrick Willis as the anchor of the squad. Willis is coming off of his rookie season where he led the entire NFL in tackles. If you’re not so sure on this guy just look at what kind of game he had against the Vikings Adrian Peterson last year. How about 14 attempts for 3 yards. Actually if you saw this game you would have thought Willis was in the Vikings huddle. He was glued to Peterson when he had the ball.Oh yeah, did you see him run down that Cardinal receiver? If not, he was 15-20 yards behind the WR and caught him. How about that?

Willis is not the only one. The Niner's have this cornerback Nate Clements. Some people think he's overrated. These people obviously did not watch a Niner game in '07. This guy is great. Just watch a sweep coming his way. Although I think teams learned not to run his way because chances are it’s going to be a no gain. Clements is a total team player. He can wipe out a running back in the open field or take out a blocker and let someone else get him. Oh, his coverage ability isn’t bad either.

Outside Linebacker Manny Lawson is pretty good too. Unfortunately he missed most of '07 with a knee injury. This guy is lightning. He looks like a CB playing OLB, but he's 6'5" 240lbs. He's pretty good at getting to the QB too.

Free Agent acquisition defensive lineman Justin Smith isn't too shabby either. This guys motors going at 120 mph all the time. He did have only 2 sacks in '07, but he played on the Bengals where he was the only decent defender. However, he backed that up with 78 tackles, which is a lot for a defensive end. And in the Niner’s 3-4 scheme he is to stop the run and take up offensive lineman and let the LB's get the QB and the glory.

Strong Safety Michael Lewis makes RB's think twice before heading his way. The guy's a wrecking ball that reminds me a lot of John Lynch. CB Walt Harris has played in the NFL for 13 years, but is now at his best. OLB Parys Haralson is coming into his third season and has beat out Tully Banta-Cain for the starting spot. Keep an eye out for him.

ILB's Jeff Ulbrich and newly acquired Takeo Spikes are battling it out to start alongside Willis. Ulbrich is a non-selfish player who could start on half the teams in the NFL, and Spikes' resume speaks for itself. I could go on and on about this defense. You just have to stay tuned to the most underrated defense in the NFL.

I believe they could be ranked in the top five by season’s end. And their real enemy is going to be on their own team. The offense. Can the Offense keep them off the field and score so the defense can defend it? I think so, watch out for them.