Can the 2008 49ers Be Like the 2007 Browns?

The San Francisco Chronicle's Gwen Knapp points to some striking similarities between the 2007 versions of the 49ers and the Browns. Both fired former Miami Hurricane head coaches three years ago and brought in NFL-weathered defensive coordinators. Both teams also have young quarterbacks, although their careers appear to be going in different directions.

In fact, San Francisco was down to their fourth-stringer on Sunday, former Heisman Trophy winner, Chris Weinke.

[Although he spent all but one month of the season out of football] ... Weinke didn't look any worse than [Alex] Smith had early in the season, before his separated shoulder. Numbers barely begin to explain NFL performances, but for the record, Weinke's passer rating Sunday was 86.2, a sliver below Smith's high of 86.9, against St. Louis in Week 2.

Knapp also notes that the 49ers missed undrafted free agent Shaun Hill's energy before adding, "How weird is it that an undrafted, third-string quarterback seems to vital to the team?"

So are the 2008 49ers just a competent quarterback away from becoming the 2007 Browns? Well, it all starts with the head coach, and unlike Romeo Crennel, who is seemingly loved throughout Cleveland (winning solves a lot of problems, apparently), Nolan can't even get along with Smith, the alleged face of the franchise.

The 49ers have Frank Gore in the running game, and Joe Staley should anchor the offensive line for the next decade. And on defense, there's Nate Clements and the likely Defensive Rookie of the Year, Patrick Willis. Who knows if Hill's 15 minutes are up, or if he has a legit shot at the starting job heading into training camp.

It would be nice to have a definitive answer at quarterback, but none of this matters if Nolan undermines his players through the media. Of course, if Smith is out of the picture, this may not be much of an issue. Assuming everything falls into place, it's not unrealistic for the 49ers to win nine games next year. The Browns' offense came out of nowhere in 2007; all it took was a quarterback able to take advantage of his weapons. We'll see if San Francisco figures that out by next season.