All Shaun Hill does is win football games but he always seems to be a long shot to start.  Hill doesn’t have a great arm but he gets the ball where it needs to be even if it’s not too pretty.  Hill has worked his way into this opportunity with good old fashioned hard work.  Alex Smith will “compete” with Hill for the starting job this summer.  Smith has looked overwhelmed at the NFL level and missing a whole season due to injury has set him back even further.  He has the look of a first round (and pick) bust but he still has time to turn his career around.  Veteran Damon Huard will be the #3 QB for the Niners this season and he’s a capable game manager type of QB so he could succeed if forced into action by the Niners.  Rookie QB Nate Davis has the look of a practice squad player due to his intelligence.  But, on the football field in college he did look pretty good so he does have a nice little upside.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON:  C

The 49ers are apparently warming up to Mike Martz’ offense as they held onto the football last night for 37:35 while rolling up 425 total yards of offense.  J.T. O’Sullivan is looking more and more like the starting QB of the 49ers.  He completed 7 of 8 passes for 126 yards with a 37-yard TD pass for WR Jason Hill.  Alex Smith followed O’Sullivan in the game and he did not look good.  Smith completed only 6 of 17 passes for 83 yards with a 12-yard TD pass to WR Dominique Zeigler.  Smith also carried the ball 1 time for 10 yards on the ground last night.  Shaun Hill finished up last night strongly for the Niners completing 6 of 7 passes for 60 yards.  Thomas Clayton was very busy last night leading the Niners in rushing with 81 yards on 18 carries (4.5 ypc) with a TD run.  He also caught 2 passes for 20 yards last night.  Frank Gore also was impressive last night with 51 yards rushing on 8 carries (6.4 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 19 yards (9.5 avg).  Fullback Zak Keasey was very involved in the offense last night also as he carried the ball 4 times for 22 yards (5.5 ypc) and caught 2 passes for 12 yards.  2nd year WR Jason Hill was impressive with 4 catches for 94 yards (23.5 avg) last night with a TD grab.  Fellow WR Dominique Zeigler also was busy with 6 grabs for 61 yards (10.2 avg) with a TD grab.  Vernon Davis only caught 1 pass last night but it was a 40-yard strike from J.T. O’Sullivan.  The 49ers finished up last night with 160 yards rushing on 35 carries (4.6 ypc) and they also completed 19 of 32 passes for 265 yards.

Safety Michael Lewis led a below par effort by the Niners with 4 tackles last night.  The Bears finished up with 109 yards rushing on 22 carries (5.0 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 28 passes for 204 yards.  The Niners were lucky that the offense played keepaway as the Bears moved the football well against them last night.

35-year old Joe Nedney kicked well last season for the Niners in his very limited opportunities.  Nedney played in 15 games for the Niners last season and he connected on 17 of 19 field goals (89.5%).  He also made all 22 of his extra point attempts last year.  Look for Nedney to score a lot of points for the Niners in the new offense.  Nedney has now played in 136 games in his NFL career and he has connected on 199 of 252 field goals (79%).  He also has made 261 of 264 extra points (98.9%) in his career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B

The 49ers will be looking to the TE a lot more in 2008 with Vernon Davis possibly having the kind of season many think he can.  Davis played in 14 games for the 49ers last season and he caught 52 passes for 509 yards (9.8 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Look for Davis to catch 75-80 passes this season if he can just stay healthy.  Davis has now played in 24 games in his NFL career and he has caught 72 passes for 774 yards (10.8 avg) with 7 TD grabs.

23-year old Delanie Walker also had a decent season for the Niners in 2007.  He played in all 16 games for the 49ers last season and he caught 21 passes for 174 yards (8.3 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Walker should also catch more balls than he did in 2007 in the new wide open offense of the Niners.  Walker has now played in 23 games in his NFL career and he has caught 23 passes for 204 yards (8.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.

25-year old Billy Bajema is a good run blocker but he doesn’t help much in the passing game as he didn’t catch a pass in 14 games for the 49ers last season.  He has played in 45 games in his NFL career and he has caught 5 passes for 54 yards (10.8 avg).

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  A-

The 49ers have brought in three new WRs that they hope fit into new offensive co-ordinator Mike Martz’ offense.  35-year old Isaac Bruce played for Martz in St. Louis and that’s no doubt why he’s here now.  Bruce is getting up there in years but he can still play the game.  He played in 14 games for the Rams last season and he caught 55 passes for 733 yards (13.3 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Look for Bruce to improve on those numbers as long as one of the Niners’ QBs step up.  Bruce has now played in 197 games in his NFL career and he has caught 942 passes for 14,109 yards (15.0 avg) with 84 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 23 times for 150 yards (6.5 ypc) in his career.

27-year old Bryant Johnson has always been a solid #3 WR behind Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin in Arizona.  But, he wants to make his own mark as a starter and the Niners will give him that chance.  Johnson played in all 16 games for the Cardinals last season and he caught 46 passes for 528 yards (11.5 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Look for Johnson to possibly double those numbers in the new Niners’ offense.  Johnson has now played in 77 games in his NFL career and he has caught 210 passes for 2,675 yards (12.7 avg) with 9 TD grabs.

28-year old Arnaz Battle was one of the best receivers on the 49ers last season and he should also benefit from the offensive change in philosophy.  Battle played in all 16 games for the 49ers last season and he caught 50 passes for 600 yards (12.0 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  He also carried the football 4 times for 4 yards (1.0 ypc) with 1 TD run last season.  Look for Battle to have a really solid 2008 season for the 49ers and he could have a breakout year.  Battle has now played in 64 games in his NFL career and he has caught 149 passes for 1,792 yards (12.0 avg) with 11 TD grabs.  He also has carried the ball 21 times for 59 yards (2.8 ypc) with 1 TD run.

The 49ers really like 2nd year WR Jason Hill despite the fact that he didn’t do much as a rookie last season.  Hill played in 5 games for the Niners last season and he caught 1 whole pass for a whopping 6 yards.  Look for him to catch quite a few passes for the Niners this season as he has been impressive in training camp.

23-year old rookie Josh Morgan has also been outstanding in training camp and he could work his way right up this depth chart.  He played in 14 games (11 starts) at Virginia Tech last season and he caught 46 passes for 552 yards (12.0 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Morgan finished up his career at Virginia Tech playing in 51 games (24 starts) in which he caught 122 passes for 1,817 yards (14.9 avg) with 16 TD grabs.

28-year old Ashley Lelie is running out of chances to re-establish himself as a legit WR in the NFL.  He played in 15 games for the Niners last season and he caught 10 passes for 115 yards (11.5 avg) without a TD grab.  Lelie could move up the depth chart or off of the team altogether and it’s entirely up to him.  Lelie has now played in 94 games in his NFL career and he has caught 206 passes for 3,552 yards (17.2 avg) with 13 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  C