Niner Noise
FanSided

Ranking 49ers Teams over Last 10 Years by Strength

By Chandler Wright

Remember Curtis Holcomb? Neither do I. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Remember Curtis Holcomb? Neither do I. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Quarterback Alex Smith endured five years of controversy, injury and inconsistent play after being drafted first overall in 2005. Mandatory Credit: PRESSWIRE
Quarterback Alex Smith endured five years of controversy, injury and inconsistent play after being drafted first overall in 2005. Mandatory Credit: PRESSWIRE /

No. 7: The 2005 Niners

The dawning of a new era was in San Francisco. The 49ers held the No. 1 pick in the 2005 NFL Draft and they selected future franchise quarterback, Alex Smith.

Excitement ensued. The Niners also came away with draft steal Frank Gore in the third round. They had two great rookies to build around for the next decade and a half, but early on things weren’t going to be good. They just couldn’t.

But why was that?

An All-Time Weak Roster

At the time, the 49ers roster included only a handful of players that a team could build around. Most were either past their prime (Tony Parrish, Bryant Young and Derek Smith) or injury prone (Jonas Jennings, Jeremy Newberry and Jamie Winborn). The ones that weren’t though, really had a hard time that year. The Niners finished the season with a 4-12 record and cemented themselves as the league’s laughingstock for the next five years.

A Young Core That Wasn’t Ready

The biggest position of inexperienced youth on the team was at quarterback, where Smith wasn’t ready to start Week 1. It wasn’t until Week 5, against the Indianapolis Colts, that Smith got his first chance to play. His first start then came in Week 6 at the Washington Redskins.

I was at that game, and it was brutal. Smith was better than the week before, but was injured on a blind-side sack by linebacker Lavar Arrington. Frank Gore had a 72-yard touchdown run though, as the Niners lost 52-17.

Bottom Line

The 49ers roster lacked talent and experience. Couple that with a poor coaching staff, and things were going to be bad. Gore and Smith got valuable experience though, and it led to some magic the following season.

Next: No. 6, the 2008 Niners