Aldon Smith Flexes His Muscles on the Way to 5.5 Sacks and More NFC West News

For the pundits who said Aldon Smith would never amount to anything in a 3-4 defense, shame on you. Smith is proving that he is a much better pass rushing outside linebacker compared to a 4-3 defensive end. It doesn't hurt that Justin Smith is eating up two, sometimes three offensive linemen at a time. This allows Aldon Smith to shoot gaps relatively untouched at times. 

Not to be confused, though—not all of Smith's sacks come untouched. However, when he does have to work for it, he makes things look equally as easy. The way he uses his speed coupled with his hands should be in a pass rushing textbook somewhere. 

After amassing 5.5 sacks last night against the Bears, Smith accomplished something no other player had ever accomplished before. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, he has tallied 29 sacks through his first 26 games, an NFL record that dates back to 1982—the first year they started recording sacks as an official stat.

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49ers LB Aldon Smith now has 29 sacks in 26 career games, the highest total by any player in NFL history according to Elias.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 20, 2012"

At the beginning of the season, I dogged Smith a bit because his overall pass rushing productivity had gone down on a per snap basis, yet over the last four games he has 10.5 sacks. He completely shut me and any other naysayers up as he now looks better than he did last season as a situational pass-rusher. 

The future sure is bright for this kid. 49er fans need to just hope Justin Smith sticks around awhile longer as he deserves just as much of the credit for all the sacks. 

Between Von Miller and Aldon Smith we will have the ability to watch two of best young pass-rushers harass quarterbacks for a long, long time. San Francisco's defense may have started a tad slow this past season, but watch out, because it is picking up steam as the playoffs quickly approach. 

Arizona Cardinals

Inside linebacker Daryl Washington tells Bob McManaman of AZCentral.com that the Cardinals can easily win six in a row to finish out the season. 

Shaun M. Church of Bleacher Report is adamant that Ken Whisenhunt must go even if the Cards make the playoffs.

San Francisco 49ers

David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune breaks down Kaepernick and the way he mauled the Bears.

Thomas Galicia of Bleacher Report makes the case for Colin Kaepernick as the permanent starter from here on out. 

Seattle Seahawks

John Boyle of HeraldNet.com says the Seahawks have been blessed with good health during the 2012 season.

Fullback Michael Robinson examines the Seahawks success for Brandan Schulze of Bleacher Report.

St. Louis Rams

Nathan Kearns of RamblinFan.com reports on the Rams activating center Scott Wells to the active roster.

Adam Wells of Bleacher Report takes a look at Danny Amendola's heel injury from this past week.

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