49ers midseason report card

QUARTERBACKS The assignment: Shaun Hill was supposed to manage an offense driven by a powerful running game. When that running game failed, Hill was replaced by Alex Smith, who coaches believe can better open up the offense in the absence of a strong ground game. Progress report: Smith has shown flashes of being the quarterback everyone expected him to become. But Sunday's loss to Tennessee also showed that he is capable of lapsing into the mistake-prone quarterback who mostly has frustrated fans since 2005. The grade: C+ RUNNING BACKS The assignment: The 49ers thought they could use Frank Gore and the running game as the foundation for the rest of the offense. Progress report: Defenses easily have outmatched the 49ers by stuffing eight defenders along the line of scrimmage. Gore missed nearly three games with an ankle injury, but he showed Sunday that he can be a top running back when he gets room to maneuver. Glen Coffee was excellent in the exhibition ...