Things are looking up for the tragic Alex Smith. Drafted in the first round as the heir to the Montana/Young line he did OK. He did what you might expect of a decent rookie quarterback on a deteriorating team. After a decent sophomore campaign, he was benched midway through season three, a failure, especially in the eyes of fans, who needed a scapegoat for the now horrible 49ers.

In came O’Sullivan and Shaun Hill. These two nobodies were now fighting for the QB spot while a disgraced Smith watched on. Hill eventually got the nod until last weekend. But it might have been exactly what Alex Smith needed. In his absence, the 49ers built a solid defense and focused on the run with Frank Gore as a premier back in the NFL. Now you throw in a QB with the potential Alex Smith has and you could be looking at a new and improved Alex Smith. Before, he was the lone focal point of the new-era 49ers, now he’s a piece of a balanced 49er squad. It would be great to see him meld with rookie Michael Crabtree who has proven himself to be valuable to the offense. The losses they’ve taken so far have been close, like today’s 18-14 battle in Indianapolis. The Niners look poised to do some great things in the next couple of years, but this may not be the season.