"It's just the Pre-season"

Here's the formula for reacting pre-season football games, especially for the 49ers who have had a Jekyll and Hyde performance last week against the Bears and this week against the Raiders: when the Niners win in convincing form, as they did against the Bears, walk around town claiming "Super Bowl contenders!", and when they lose, "Well, it was just an exhibition game anyway." The lesson: exercise caution.

It was a game with few San Francisco highlights: one possibly marking an on-coming apocalypse, as Warren Sapp hinted when his former teammate (Bucs) and current Niner backup QB Trent Dilfer was flagged with two personal fouls for taunting. Starting QB Alex Smith hardly impressed, but in the name of the scripted reaction, we just won't pay any attention because he can throw all the picks he wants in games that don't matter. Come September 10th in Arizona though, all those interceptions better be out of Smith's system.

Notes from the weekend:

• The Kevan Barlow (personal site) trade to the Jets (rumored to be a 4th round pick that can improve depending on Barlow's performance) puts Frank Gore at the top of the depth chart. With a wealth of middle-round picks in the upcoming draft, 49ersnews.com has the Ashley Lelie rumor mill churning.
• No, that's not John York trying to fool us into a sense of security over his management style. Jerry Rice is coming home to retire though, and the Niners will be retiring his number.
  
• Cornerback curse? An already questionable secondary will miss Shawntae Spencer for the rest of the pre-season due to a pulled hamstring.

Solid Rice Montage, despite the Varsity Blues theme

Editor's Note: The draft pick has been confirmed as a straight up 4th pick