After leading the league in tackles in his rookie season, Patrick Willis was recognized as the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the year.

Willis garnered 48 out of the 50 votes, the only other two going to Carolina LB Jon Beason

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Adam Schefter is dispelling rumors that the 49ers are interested in Mike Martz and is saying that instead they are interested in recently fired Georgia Tech head coach Chan Gailey.

Gailey was Jerry Jones' puppet in Dallas as head coach in 1998-99, and could be Nolan's newest puppet.

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Currently all indicators are that Mike Nolan will return to coach the 49ers in 2008. There is a press conference scheduled at 1pm. Even though he's staying, there will likely be a lot of changes.

About three months too late, Jim Hostler is hitting the unemployment line. Someday he can tell his grandkids about how he ran the worst offense in NFL history.

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Mike Nolan's weekly press conference was canceled today, in lieu, Nolan will be meeting with John and Jed York. After meeting for several hours, the meeting dispersed, to be resumed in the morning. When asked about what has happened, John York was very short in his answers.

For those of us who want to see him fired, we may get our wish very soon.

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McCloughan is currently the 49ers' vice president of player personnel, his job is as adviser to Nolan and does not hold much power.

Rumors about changes in the front office have been swirling since the day Denise DeBartolo-York said that changes were on the way, the first of which would likely be stripping Nolan of his general manager duties in favor of a "strong general manager".

It is believed that McCloughan could be the man for the job, in the eyes of the Yorks. Among the powers likely to be handed to McCloughan would be the final say on personnel matters and possibly even the power to fire Nolan.

If there is truth to this rumor, it looks like a lateral move on the part of the ownership. The appearance of change with very little actual change. McCloughan has had an influence already in GM decisions, the only change is a shifting of powers between him and Nolan.

If this is the ownership's idea of major changes, then we are in for a long offseason.

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QB Shaun Hill has not practiced all week and his status will likely be determined during pre-game warm ups. If Hill cannot start, QB Chris Weinke will be getting his 20th career start.

Rather surprising to many is that Nolan did not diagnose Hill himself, apparently Nolan only went to medical school long enough to learn how to diagnose a shoulder...

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Neither do some of the players, apparently.

Quote: SFGate

"Do you think he's coming back?" two defensive starters asked point-blank. The question was startling. For obvious reasons, they didn't want their names used. Told that Nolan appeared safe for a fourth season, both players reacted negatively. "This win shouldn't gloss over anything," one player said. "I really hope it doesn't."

Both players said they wanted a coaching change, citing numerous issues with Nolan they said have been setbacks for what they consider to be a strong defense: questionable personnel schemes, such as abandoning the base 3-4 scheme too often in favor of nickel and dime sub packages that left the edges and middle of the field exposed; favoritism that determines playing time; poor game and clock management; poor communication that extends beyond the Nolan-Alex Smith injury flap. "No way we should be 5-10 right now," another player said. "Look at the personnel we have. Something is wrong."

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In spite of the rough season they are going through, the 49ers rose to the occasion on Sunday and played one of their best games all season, winning 21-19 over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. has made it fairly clear that he plans to retire after this season, making this his last home game.

When played his last home game, dominated the game as Rice's heir apparent. Today was no different as rookie middle linebacker racked up 20 tackles, 2 sacks a forced fumble.

had another strong showing, against the league's number one pass defense, no less. Completing 11 of his 24 passes for 123 yards, 3 touchdowns and 1 interception, he posted a quarterback rating of 83.85.

As the final seconds ran down, Bryant Young was carried on the shoulders of his teammates. The lone tie to the dynasty days of the 49ers, he has been an embodiment of class and what it means to be a 49er. You will be greatly missed, Bryant.

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Quote: Bryant Young

“More than likely this is my last home game”
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has hinted at retiring all season, but this quote probably showed he's made his decision. In the offseason, Young restructured his contract to shorten it partially in order to avoid creating dead money if he decided to hang em up after this season. Let's hope the organization does him justice and retires #97. Young has been a warrior on this team for all 14 seasons of his career and has been a constant professional and great team leader. He also received his 8th Len Eshmont award, which is given to the 49er who exemplifies inspirational and courageous play. Here's to you, BY.

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49ers star rookie linebacker and punter were named today to the NFC Pro Bowl roster. Willis leads the NFL in tackles while Lee leads the NFL in punts, punts in the 20, yards and net average.

, , and were named as alternates.

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After a week of drama between Nolan and Alex Smith, no one was even thinking of Shaun Hill. That all changed tonight when he led the 49ers to one of their best offensive showings in a long time.

Say what you will about the Bengals 26th ranked defense, up until last week, Hill had never thrown a pass in his six year NFL career. The most notable statistic of his career up until this point was his 80 games as a third string QB over the span of six seasons. As of tonight, he has a 107 quarterback rating in two games worth of play, that is a much more impressive statistic.

While just two games, this is still very impressive and he will likely have his chance to show what he's got in a game against the Buccaneers top tier defense next Sunday. Does he deserve a legitimate shot next season? He's going to have his chance to earn one soon enough.

His current deal runs through the end of this season and a good showing in the next two games will undoubtedly drive his price up. Give him an extension and let him compete, he's shown more when it matters than Alex Smith ever has. Crown his ass? I think we should.

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After a 8 game slide there seemed to be little hope for the 49ers going into Arizona against a team that has been heating up the last few weeks. Fans, media and former players were all quick to write off the 49ers chances. So what happened?

The team that we've seen for the last 10 weeks has chased it's tail, shown little life and was lucky to win any games. That team didn't show up in Arizona. Instead the team that everyone expected to show up starting in week one made an appearance.

Say what you will about it being a close game, these 49ers showed some fight from kickoff up until recovered the fumble in overtime to win the game. The offense generated it's best showing all season, and arguably the best showing in the last couple years. The defense showed some tenacity and forced four key turnovers.

What made the difference?

First and foremost, the offense capitalized on turnovers. Turnovers have not been abundant this season, and when they have come about, too few have been converted into any points, much less touchdowns. The offense converted two early turnovers into 10 points to help keep pace with the Cardinals explosive offense.

Second, the offensive gameplan had the right concept. Get the ball into the hands of your playmakers. and combined for 38 touches, 259 yards and 3 touchdowns. This is the first game this season where they both have had a strong presence in the offensive effort.

The key to this game was the offensive turnaround versus prior weeks. Has Ted Tollner made that much of a difference? Time will tell if this is a fluke, or if Hostler needs to start beefing up his resume.

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According to the Chicago Tribune, there are rumors floating around that Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren may be returning to the Bay Area to take over the 49ers as general manager. Last week, Denise Debartolo-York told the San Francisco Chronicle that the 49ers are considering stripping the power from Mike Nolan and hiring a GM. The public nature of York's interview potentially could be a move to push Nolan into resignation instead of straight out firing him.

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Jim Hostler will be receiving some help in masterminding the most inept offense in NFL history. The 49ers hired NFL journeyman Ted Tollner as an offensive assistant. If the name sounds familiar, he was the man behind the dynamic offense the 49ers had in 2004.

God help us all.

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The 49er groundhog came up today from the hole in the ground and saw his shadow. According to an ancient myth, this is the sign of at least one start by an over the hill QB with a Super Bowl ring, who was never very good to begin with.

This is the third time this season that the groundhog has projected such a thing, and the groundhog will likely keep seeing his shadow as long as Alex Smith's shoulder keeps hurting.

It's going to be a cold Winter.

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