San Francisco 49ers 2009 Odds: Shaun Hill The Man?
The San Francisco 49ers 2009 odds of winning in an otherwise weak division (outside of Arizona of course) may hinge on who the quarterback will be.
The San Francisco 49ers 2009 odds include winning OVER/UNDER 7 games at Sports Interaction.com. Here's a hot tip, the oddsmakers at SIA have San Francisco has a huge -189 favorite to win more than 7 regular season games in 2009.
Even though Arizona plays in this division and should excel in 2009/2010, San Francisco could prove competitive if they can get all the pieces in place. Past trends also suggest the losing Super Bowl team will not play to the same caliber the next season. Personally we here at Gambling911.com think that the Cardinals will defy this trend, however. San Francisco would pay $250 for every $100 bet if they won the NFC West.
San Francisco won 5 of their last 7 games under new coach Mike Singletary, though they didn't exactly beat the best of the bunch. They enter 2009 with a quarterback controversy that may finally be settled.
The Santa Rosa Press was reporting Thursday that Shaun Hill has apparently moved ahead of Alex Smith. Hill has outperformed Smith in the preseason.
But Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post Dispatch suggests that few people believe Hill can function as a playoff-caliber quarterback. Nonetheless, Thomas writes that "when given the chance, the 49ers have found a way to win." Hill is 7-3 in his 10 starts with San Francisco while the team is 5-17 over the time Hill has been on the team but not started. He is also considered consistent even if he doesn't quite have the arm strength. Additionally, Hill does have leadership skills.
The problem with San Francisco is with their offense overall, which Gambling911.com would grade a solid "C" and C's don't get teams into the playoffs...unless Arizona happens to fall apart in this division that is.
There could be improvements in defense, and here we find a ray of hope.
Singletary went to a straight 3-4 instead of the mix-and-match approach that was implemented under Coach Mike Nolan. Once this occurred, the 49ers only allowed 14.2 points per game in their final five meetings of the 2008 regular season and the defense had risen to number 13. The one drawback is that San Francisco lacks an elite pass rusher.
Gambling911.com does not believe the 49ers will have any type of impact in the post season with the current personnel but Singletary could be just what the doctor ordered to make this a .500 team and maybe even one that can win 9 games. They'll have to beat two or three tougher teams to get there though. Winning the division may be worth the value ($250 paid out for every $100 bet). Arizona will be good, but they need to stay healthy. St. Louis and Seattle will not be a factor in our opinion.
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Mary Montgomery, Gambling911.com
