Make-Or-Break Year For Niners

There have been several critical seasons in the great history of the San Francisco 49ers that have either propelled them to greatness or cast them in failure or mediocrity. This year 2010 is one of those seasons that will either make or break the red and gold.

Looking back, the decision, to go with Joe Montana over Steve DeBerg as the starting quarterback earned Bill Walsh the "genius" title. Likewise, the strategic move to draft Jerry Rice from a little-known college resulted in the discovery of what would become the all-time greatest wide receiver in the history of the NFL. And, although there were many critics and negative press at the time, the choice of the up-and-coming QB Steve Young over Montana who, by that time, was aging and injury-prone, led to regular playoff appearances and another Superbowl win in the '90s.

However, we have also seen the failure in recent years to duplicate the success of the Bill Walsh era. The choice to draft QB Alex Smith has turned out to be a debacle for the once-proud franchise. Smith's inability to adapt his game to the professional level and his subsequent shoulder injuries set the team back at least a decade as they waited and continue to wait for him to mature and develop into an all-star caliber signal-caller.

But, the recent failure of the 49ers is not all Alex Smith's fault. He was paired with Mike Nolan, a first-year coach who cared more about defense than scoring offensive touchdowns. That led to the hiring of one-and-done offensive coordinators (Mike Maccarthy, Norv Turner, Mike Martz, etc.) who brought in varied offensive schemes that not only Smith, but the entire offensive group, had to learn every year.

This brings us to the up-coming 2010 season. A number of factors are in the 49ers favor. For instance, this will be Head Coach Mike Singletary's second full year at the helm. He appears to be in control of the team and has earned great respect from the players. Also, Alex Smith appears to be healthy and, with a number of years and starts under his belt and a more consistent offense, should be more confident this season. Moreover, WR Michael Crabtree will be with the team at the start of training camp, TE Vernon Davis is coming off a Pro-Bowl season, and the defense, led by LB Patrick Willis, who reminds many people of a young Ray Lewis, looks solid, especially with the guidance and tutelage of Singletary. 

That being said, if the 49ers do well this season, the core players and coaches will remain intact and we can expect a competitive and playoff contending group for the next five years, at least. However, a sub-par season will more than likely result in another turnover of coaches and the drafting of a new signal-caller - a scenario that will likely disappoint the 49er faithful who will have to endure another decade of watching other teams compete for the Lombardy trophy.

Prediction: 9-7, first-round play-off loss