superpunk
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It ain't Cowboys stuff, but some of the stuff in here is so unbelievable I figured I'd post it on the main board. (for now, lol)
49ers in shambles pleases me.
49ers' Smith rips into Nolan for turning team against him
By Dennis Georgatos and Daniel Brown
Mercury News
Article Launched: 12/11/2007 01:36:33 AM PST
Quarterback Alex Smith is going to have his right shoulder surgically repaired, but repairing his relationship with 49ers Coach Mike Nolan could be more difficult.
In his strongest act of rebellion to date, Smith on Monday said that Nolan has tried to "undermine" his reputation in the locker room. In an exclusive interview with the Mercury News, Smith said Nolan made it clear to teammates that the quarterback was using injuries as an excuse for poor performance, a charge that has left Smith's locker-room reputation in shambles.
Smith, who had long been hinting that an operation was required, said he was frustrated by Nolan's repeated public comments - "the spin," as Smith called it - that questioned the quarterback's toughness. He even suggested that his health status has been left in limbo for so long by the 49ers because "if I had surgery, it would make them look bad."
The 49ers announced late Monday that Smith will have season-ending surgery.
A month ago, after a 24-0 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the quarterback volunteered that his separated right shoulder was "killing him." Nolan had repeatedly said Smith's health was fine, setting off a brief dust-up between the coach and quarterback.
Smith said Monday that he had no problem with the public controversy, but said Nolan pushed it too far by making it an issue in the locker room.
"He came out and said some things to the team," Smith said. "It was like he was telling his side of it and I didn't want to get into it. . . . That was my biggest concern when he did that: I felt it was trying to undermine me with my teammates."
Blaming poor performance on injury is a cardinal sin of the athlete's code - especially in the ferocious warrior culture of the NFL. 49ers running back Frank Gore runs weekly on a sprained ankle; offensive lineman Justin Smiley made no mention of a torn labrum last season until after the season; Nolan even refused to answer questions about the death of his father, who died a day before the Seattle game, rather than risk it being interpreted as an excuse for a lopsided loss.
Smith, 23, understands.
"I think if (my teammates) would have heard what I actually said out there that day, it wouldn't have been an issue," he said. "But all of a sudden Nolan spins it as if I was making excuses for an injury. What I really felt like was, 'Yeah, I tried to play on it. And that was my decision and obviously I wasn't playing well enough.'
"But at that point my arm wasn't getting any better. In fact, it was getting worse and I was going to go get a second opinion. (Nolan) can spin it however he wants to, but the first thing Dr. Andrews told me when he saw me was 'This is much worse than I thought.' "
Nolan acknowledged at the time that there was a miscommunication, but since said his relationship with Smith had been patched up. He has, however, grown increasingly dismissive of questions about his quarterback's health status and has made no secret of his disdain for Smith's agent, Tom Condon, who interjected himself into the controversy when he suggested the 49ers botched the handling of Smith's injury.
Last week, Nolan said he remains surprised that Smith pulled himself out of action. He has said repeatedly that the diagnosis of Smith's injury, by both an outside doctor and team medical staff, has not deviated from a Grade III separation. And he has further described Smith's separation as "not very severe" for a Grade III.
Nolan also has continued to heap praise on Trent Dilfer not only for his strong play, but also for his toughness and passion. "I believe that Trent, as far as playing quarterback, puts his heart and soul into everything he does," Nolan said after a recent game. "It's evident every time he goes on the field. I admire that, and I think that he's given us the chance to win the games that he's played in."
Smith has all but become a persona non-grata in the 49ers' locker room after his injury controversy. Winning teammates back might be the hardest part of his rehabilitation.
Last week, Nolan was approached by a reporter and asked whether the tougher battle Smith faced was restoring his teammates' trust and confidence.
"You didn't ask me that question," Nolan said. "And I'm not going to answer it. I can't answer it."
No player was willing to go on the record when asked about the quarterback's leadership status, but no player rushed to his defense, either. "I'm not touching that one," one veteran said.
Another player recently refused to discuss the extent of his injury with a reporter because, he said, "I don't want it to be like Alex's interview where I'm blaming my production on it." Another acknowledged that certain members of the team have derisively referred to Smith as "The Lion," as in the one without courage in "The wizard of Oz."
One assistant coach said Smith "made a mistake" when he went public about his ailing shoulder and now clearly is paying a price for his honesty. Another player said that Smith had to expect that there would be "consequences" for failing to keep his injury-related struggles in house.
Told of the mounting criticism, Smith sounded only mildly surprised.
"Well, no, I haven't noticed it - especially the guys around me - but like I said, Nolan is spinning it toward his direction," he said.
Smith demonstrated more durability a year ago when he became the first quarterback in 49ers history to take every snap over the course of the season. Only four other NFL quarterbacks did that in 2006, including Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts.
Smith's struggles this season began Sept. 30 against Seattle when he suffered a separation of his throwing shoulder on an opening-drive sack. A month later, during his first game back, he clutched at his ailing shoulder so often that the game-day broadcasters repeatedly said the 49ers "had to get him out of there."
Smith finished that game - as well as the next two - and looked woeful, missing open receivers by several yards on errant throws. After his last game, Seahawks linebacker Julian Peterson said Smith was grimacing after every throw and clearly wasn't right.
Told that comment the next day, Nolan quipped, "That might mean something to me if Julian was a doctor."
49ers in shambles pleases me.
