subject: San Francisco 49ers Tickets - Niners Make Plans For Qbs [print this page] Leading up to the start of the 2010 regular season, the San Francisco 49ers were busy paring down their roster to 53 players, but that didn't mean just looking at the players they had on hand. They also focused on players not yet on the team when considering who would make the final cuts. After the dust settled from their large cut, the Niners made one more move at quarterback and decided to part ways with third-string quarterback Nate Davis.
Davis had reportedly not developed as hoped, perhaps complicated by his dyslexia. Davis hails from Ball State and the 2009 season was his first in the league and his first with the San Francisco 49ers. He didn't see any playing time last year despite many shakeups on the Niners' offense. The Niners didn't leave themselves shorthanded at quarterback and added Troy Smith as their third-string quarterback.
Smith inked a one-year deal with San Francisco, and the 2010 season marks his fourth in the league. He spent the previous three seasons with the Baltimore Ravens. He played 14 games in that time, tallying 558 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He will be behind starter Alex Smith and backup David Carr on the depth chart.
Interestingly enough, the Niners have two first overall draft picks as their first and second string quarterbacks. Despite the expectations for both Smith and Carr, they haven't lived up to expectations-yet. Fans with San Francisco 49ers tickets to see them live are hoping they can turn on the talent that made them top picks in the beginning. Smith was selected as the first overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft by the Niners. He suffered an injury during his first season, but worked hard to bounce back from it in 2006. He suffered another injury during the 2007 season, which hindered his progress.
In 2008, a back injury didn't help his hunt for the starting quarterback position, which was given to J.T. O'Sullivan. He later was placed on injured reserve because of a shoulder injury. Further hurting Smith's progress was the deluge of new offensive coordinators in San Francisco during his development years. Mike Singletary became the coach in 2009 and quickly elevated Smith to starting quarterback. He started in all but one of the 11 games he played in, tallying 2,350 yards, 18 touchdowns, 12 interceptions and a passer rating of 81.5. With Singletary back, Smith looks like he is poised to continue his development.
David Carr was the first overall pick of the 2002 NFL Draft, picked up by the Houston Texans. He started every game his rookie season, but had trouble keeping the ball out of the hands of the defense. He had 2,592 yards, nine touchdowns and 15 interceptions. He remained with the Texans through the 2006 season. He spent the 2007 season with the Carolina Panthers and then two seasons with the New York Giants. Last season with the Giants, he played in six games and tallied 225 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions.