49ers Look To Next Season
Mike Nolan says he sees San Francisco as a power-running team. They did win their last two games of the season behind a defense and the team's running attack.
Rookie Frank Gore gained 108 yards on 25 carries in the 49ers' 20-17 overtime victory over Houston on Sunday. SF rushed for 399 yards in their last two games of the season.
Smith finished with his best two games in his first season, probably because the team began to have a little success with its ground attack.
San Francisco's line needed to be more physical - and it was. A big improvement. A lot was down to practices. When the 49ers used center Jeremy Newberry, the offensive line never practiced together because Newberry had to leave off his bad knee during the week. When Eric Heitmann switched from right guard to center - all that changed.
Snyder and David Baas entered the lineup too and the offensive line began to show improvement over the final four games or so.
