49ers quarterback Troy Smith couldn’t totally relax during San Francisco’s bye week. He was too busy back home in Ohio getting faxes from his coaches, previewing the team’s game plan against the Rams.
“The faxes kept coming in,” Smith said via the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “Got to keep rolling and make sure my ink cartridges are filled up and everything’s cool.”
It raises the question: Is it a little odd Smith wasn’t back in San Francisco learning his new team’s offense with the coaching staff during the bye week?
Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee calls Smith’s trip home peculiar and ESPN’s Mike Sando agreed.
“Shouldn’t a new quarterback be doing everything possible to maximize a rare opportunity?”
It’s admittedly not a major story. But we found it to be a notable nugget during a week in which Mike Singletary has been focused on wanting better leadership from the quarterback position.
UPDATE: Interesting quote from Singletary via Eric Branch of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat: “If Alex [was] healthy, I think right now he’d still be the quarterback.”
Alex Smith isn’t healthy, though. Troy Smith is taking all the reps at practice.