Michael Crabtree is unlikely to be charged as a result of a sexual-assault investigation. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images)

As the San Francisco 49ers prepare for a trip to New Orleans for Super Bowl XLVII, it appears likely they will avoid any consequences stemming from an investigation of sexual assault into wide receiver Michael Crabtree.

A league source told ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter on Sunday that it is “highly, highly doubtful” Crabtree would be charged as a result of the investigation, which began last week.

Schefter reported that Crabtree has cooperated with police so far, and there’s no reason to doubt his account of what happened:

A second female witness backed up Crabtree’s version of the events to police, according to the source, and there’s a feeling in the organization that these events will not develop into anything more than they already have.

Crabtree cooperated with police, interviewed with them for two hours, never was booked, never was charged, and the team doesn’t believe he will be.

The team thought the timing of the announcement of the investigation, coming Friday night, was suspicious.

The 25-year-old Crabtree had a career season and is one of the most important components of the 49ers offense heading into the Super Bowl. He set career highs in receptions (85), receiving yards (1,105) and touchdown catches (9). He became the first 49ers wide receiver to have more than 1,000 receiving yards in a season since Terrell Owens in 2003.

Crabtree had six catches for 57 yards in the 49ers’ 28-24 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship game on Sunday.

49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree is being questioned by police about an alleged sexual assault. Harry How/Getty Images)

The San Francisco Police Department is investigating 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree for an alleged sexual assault, reports The San Francisco Chronicle. 

Crabtree was interviewed by police, but has not been arrested or detained.

San Francisco plays the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday for a berth in the Super Bowl and Crabtree is expected to play.

San Francisco police have interviewed 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree about allegations that he sexually assaulted a woman in the city following the team’s victory last weekend, The Chronicle has learned. The alleged attack occurred at an unnamed hotel early on Jan. 13, hours after the team’s victory over the Green Bay Packers at Candlestick Park. The incident is being investigated by the Special Victims Unit, whose detectives have interviewed Crabtree with his lawyer present. Crabtree has agreed to make himself available for possible further interviews about an assault.

Crabtree, 25, was the team’s leading receiver this season, catching 85 passes for 1,105 yards and nine touchdowns.

49ers confirm Michael Crabtree made trip with them to ATL, aware of investigation into alleged sexual assault—
Cam Inman (@CamInman) January 19, 2013

The 49ers cut kicker Billy Cundiff on Friday less than three weeks after signing him. (Larry French/Getty Images)

Less than three weeks after signing kicker Billy Cundiff to compete with struggling starter David Akers, the San Francisco 49ers cut the eight-year veteran on Friday, reports CBSSports.com.

The 49ers signed Cundiff on Jan. 2 because Akers had started to struggle towards the end of the season. Akers ended up hitting 29 of his 42 field goal attempts this season, including successfully making six of his final 10 to end the regular season. That had head coach Jim Harbaugh bring in Cundiff to compete with Akers.

Cundiff did not play in the team’s 45-31 playoff win over the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Divisional Playoff last weekend. Akers made one field goal from 36-yards and all six of his extra points. The team has not filled the vacancy on their 53-man roster yet.

The 49ers released disgruntled running back Brandon Jacobs after one season. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

The San Francisco 49ers released running back Brandon Jacobs, 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh said Monday, reports the Sacramento Bee.

The team suspended Jacobs for conduct detrimental to the team earlier this season when he made known on social media outlets that he was not happy about his lack of playing time and criticized the 49ers coaching staff.

Jacobs can not sign with another team for the playoffs and players that are claimed off waivers once the regular season ends are not assigned new teams until the Super Bowl ends.

The 49ers’ Justin Smith reportedly has a partially torn triceps. (David Welker/Getty Images)

San Francisco 49ers defensive end Justin Smith has a partially torn triceps, Matt Barrows of The Sacramento Bee reported on Thursday. Barrows reported that Smith will likely need surgery in the offseason.

Smith, who suffered the injury in the 49ers’ Dec. 16 game against the New England Patriots, has not practiced or played since. Smith missed last weekend’s game against the Seattle Seahawks with what the 49ers called an elbow injury.

He is listed as questionable for Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Arizona Cardinals.

The 49ers (10-4-1) can clinch the NFC West division title with a win Sunday against the Cardinals. San Francisco could also earn a first-round with a win and a Green Bay Packers loss.

Smith has been one of the cornerstones of the 49ers defense over the past five seasons, though his production is slightly down this year. He has 66 tackles and three sacks in 14 games.

49ers wideout Mario Manningham will miss the remainder of the season with a knee injury. (Otto Grutele/Getty Images)

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Mario Manningham tore the anterior cruciate ligament and posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in Sunday night’s 42-13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks and is out for the remainder of the season, reports ESPN.com.

Manningham was injured in the third quarter when he was tackled low by Seahawks linebacker Leroy Hill and fumbled. Manningham was seen limping out of the locker room Monday on on crutches.

Manningham had 42 receptions for 449 yards and one touchdown for the 49ers (10-4-1) who have already clinched a playoff berth in the NFC. The 49ers can still secure a No. 2 playoff seed with a win Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals along with a Green Bay loss at Minnesota.

More brutal injuries: 49ers wide receiver Mario Manningham tore his ACL and PCL Sunday night vs. Seattle. Done for season.—
Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 25, 2012

Coach Jim Harbaugh expects Justin Smith to play Sunday, after suffering an arm injury against the Patriots. (David Welker/Getty Images)

49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said on Tuesday that he expects defensive tackle Justin Smith will be able to play Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks. Smith suffered an arm injury last Sunday during the 49ers 41-34 defeat over the Patriots.

Smith had an MRI Monday, and while the results were not released, Harbaugh did rule out torn triceps. It seems safe to assume everything came back clean if Harbaugh thinks Smith will be ready by Sunday.

“Everybody affectionately refers to Justin Smith around here as ‘The Cowboy,’” Harbaugh said. “I expect we’ll see The Cowboy. Knowing what I know of Justin Smith and the situation, I think The Cowboy will be around, saddled up … roping and riding. If it’s humanly possible, The Cowboy will be out there, roping and riding.”

Smith has an active streak of 185 starts, third in the NFL behind Ronde Barber (213) and London Fletcher (197).

49ers running back Brandon Jacobs plans to file a grievance against the team. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

Hours after he learned the San Francisco 49ers would be suspending him for the remainder of the 2012 season, running back Brandon Jacobs plans to file a grievance against the team, USA Today’s Mike Garafolo reported.

Garafolo reported that Jacobs is aiming his grievance at one of three options — getting reinstated, receiving the rest of the money on his contract, or being released by the 49ers.

Jacobs earned a base salary of $950,000 this season. He would lose more than $167,000 if his suspension is upheld.

Jacobs was clearly unhappy with a diminished role in San Francisco, and had voiced his opinions through numerous rants on Twitter. His latest came on Saturday.

“I don’t understand why people are angry at me because I wanna do what I am paid to do, I am a competitive person, I think people should be mad if I didn’t wanna play, but I forgot the people that’s pissed they don’t have [an] athletic bone and their body. As for all of my Instagram photos I don’t have any niner pics, if you’ll find me some pics I’ll put them up.”

Jacobs, who was not active for Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins, came to the 49ers in the offseason after spending seven seasons with the New York Giants. He played in only two games this season, rushing five times for seven yards.

On his Twitter account Monday night, Jacobs thanked everyone who had been supporting him throughout the day.

“Thank you all for all your support, I am doing wonderful it’s not a big deal things happen, I am strong enough to get through this, again thank all of you for your support,” Jacobs wrote.

49ers running back Brandon Jacobs has carried the ball only five times this season. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

San Francisco 49ers suspended running back Brandon Jacobs on Monday for the remainder of the season citing conduct detrimental to the team, reports Comcast SportsNet BayArea.

Earlier in the day, 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh was vague when asked about Jacobs’ role on team and offered multiple “no comments” when asked if he was even still on the team.

Jacobs, who was not active for Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins, came to the 49ers in the offseason after spending seven seasons with the New York Giants and took to Twitter on Saturday to complain about his role on the team.  Jacobs has played in two games this season, rushing five times for seven yards.

Here is part of what Harbaugh said according to the Sacramento Bee. 

Have you spoken to him?

JH: “No comment.”

Is he still part of the team?

JH: “I’ll go with the fifth amendment. I have no comment on that.”

Did you know when you acquired him that he had a tendency to complain about playing time?

JH: “Yeah, at this time, at this hour, I choose to have no comment.”

Colin Kaepernick’s tattoos include Bible verses. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Colin Kaepernick’s sudden rise to 49ers starting quarterback has dropped an avalanche of unanticipated attention on the second-year player — and his parents aren’t happy about some of it.

Kaepernick’s tattoo-covered arms recently drew criticism from Sporting News columnist David Whitley, who wrote:

San Francisco’s Colin Kaepernick is going to be a big-time NFL quarterback. That must make the guys in San Quentin happy…

…NFL quarterback is the ultimate position of influence and responsibility. He is the CEO of a high-profile organization, and you don’t want your CEO to look like he just got paroled.

Rick and Teresa Kaepernick, Colin’s adoptive parents told USA Today they were aggravated by Whitley’s comparing their son to inmates.

“It annoyed me,” Teresa said. “You are categorizing this kid on something like tattoos? Really? Saying other guys are role models because they don’t have them? Really? Some of these other guys don’t have crystal clear reputations. That’s how you’re going to define this kid? It’s pretty irritating, but it is what it is.”

Colin’s parents would like to set the record straight: Their son is a 4.0 high school student who’s never been arrested. While they admittedly weren’t excited about Colin’s decision to get his tattoos while playing at Nevada, they agreed that he was old enough to make his own decisions.

And those controversial tattoos? Those are Bible verses inscribed on Colin’s biceps.

“Colin’s a fairly religious kid, but he’s not in your face about it,” Rick said. “It’s more about him and what he believes.”

Alex Smith suffered a concussion on a hit by the Rams’ Jo-Lonn Dunbar on Nov. 11. (Brian Bahr/Getty Images)

Alex Smith addressed his demotion to backup quarterback with the media Thursday for the first time since 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh named Colin Kaepernick the team’s starter.

“I mean, it sucks,” Smith said. “I don’t know what else to say. “I feel like the only thing I did to lose my job was get a concussion.”

Smith was knocked out in the first quarter of the 49ers Nov. 11 game against the Rams, and diagnosed with a concussion. In his absence, he lost his starting job to second-year backup Kaepernick, despite producing a 19-5-1 record since Harbaugh was hired in 2011.

Smith went on to say that he does not regret telling doctors that he had blurred vision and other concussion symptoms.

“No, I’m not looking back on that — no, no.”

Does he think his demotion will cause other players to conceal concussion symptoms?

“I don’t know. It’s a good question. I’m not sure. I mean, that’s kind of the deal with all injuries. The thing with the concussions and the brain, I think we’re going to be finding out a lot more in the years to come.”

The 49ers reportedly go with backup quarterback Colin Kaepernick against the Saints on Sunday. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh has informed starting quarterback Alex Smith that backup Colin Kaepernick will start Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints, reports SI.com.

A source tells SI.com that the decision is not based on health. Kaepernick completed 16 of 23 passes for 243 yards and two TDs and no interceptions in the 49ers’ 32-7 victory over the Chicago Bears on Monday night. It was Kaepernick’s first career start and Smith did not play due to a concussion suffered the previous week.

“I usually tend to go with the guy who has the hot hand,” Harbaugh said earlier in the week. “But we have two quarterbacks who have a hot hand.”

Kaepernick led the 49ers to scores on their first four possessions against the Bears to build a 20-0 lead and opened up a 27-0 cushion with a five-play, 62-yard touchdown drive to start the third quarter.

BREAKING: Jim Harbaugh has informed Alex Smith that Colin Kaepernick will start Sunday, per source. Said decision not based on health.—
Jim Trotter (@SI_JimTrotter) November 22, 2012

49ers quarterback Alex Smith will not play Monday night against the Bears, according to sources in a report by ESPN.com’s Chris Mortensen. A neurologist reportedly would not clear Smith a week after he suffered a concussion against the Rams.

Alex Smith will not play tonight for 49ers, unable to get clearance from neurologist after suffering concussion last week, per sources.—
Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) November 19, 2012

Smith suffered the concussion on a hit by Rams linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar in the second quarter. Dunbar was not fined for the hit.

Smith appeared close to playing after reportedly taking first team reps — while wearing a black no-contact jersey — during practice last week. Smith is ranked third in the NFL with a 104.1 passer rating and has started 28 consecutive games.

Colin Kaepernick will make the first start of his NFL career in Smith’s absence. The backup was 11 of 17 for 117 yards, and rushed for 66 yards and a touchdown in relief of Smith against the Rams.

The Bears announced that quarterback Jay Cutler will not play Monday night against the 49ers. Jason Campbell will start at quarterback for the Bears.

LM: #Bears have announced that QB Jason Campbell will start Monday night's game at San Francisco.—
Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) November 16, 2012

Cutler suffered a concussion Sunday night against the Texans, and has not practiced this week. The Bears believe Cutler incurred the concussion on a helmet-to-helmet hit from Tim Dobbins late in the second quarter.

Cutler remained on the field and finished the half, but was sidelined the final two quarters after displaying concussion-like symptoms in the locker room at halftime.

Cutler must be cleared by Bears team physicians and independent neurological consultants before he can return to practice or a game.

Jim Harbaugh underwent a procedure to deal with an irregular heartbeat and missed practice on Thursday. He is expected to return in some capacity on Friday. (Ralph Freso/Getty Images)

San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh missed practice on Thursday to have a procedure to deal with an irregular heartbeat, reports NBC Sports. The team released a statement explaining why Harbaugh was not at practice:

“Coach Harbaugh is not at the facility today under doctor’s orders. He is having a minor procedure done at Stanford Hospital today for an irregular heartbeat. We anticipate that he will be back at the facility tomorrow, but do not have any further information to share at this time.

Harbaugh is expected to be back in some capacity by Friday.

The NFL admitted errors were made on two officiating calls on Monday, including one that allowed a touchdown to stand and another one which allowed the game clock to run for more than a minute, reports NFL.com. 

The first came in Denver’s 36-14 victory over the Carolina Panthers when Denver punt returner Trindon Holliday ran a punt back 76 yards and fumbled before he reached the end zone.

“Because the video showed that Holliday lost possession of the ball before it broke the plane of the goal line, (replay official Bob) Boylston should have stopped the game to initiate an instant replay review,” the league said in a statement.  ”Had that occurred, (referee Alberto) Riveron would have had the indisputable visual evidence necessary to overturn the on-field ruling. The result of the play should have been a touchback — not a touchdown — with Carolina gaining possession at the 20 yard-line.”

In the game between the San Francisco 49ers and the St. Louis Rams, more than a minute of game clock ran off when officials brought out measurement chains. The NFL said the clock operator was at fault, not the officials. The game ended in a 24-24 tie.

“No member of the officiating crew recognized that the clock was incorrectly started by the clock operator during the measurement,” the statement said. “Once the next snap occurs, there is no mechanism to adjust the clock. Matters of timing are not reviewable by instant replay.”

Alex Smith was denied an NFL record for highest completion percentage in a game. (Ralph Freso/Getty Images)

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Alex Smith has been denied the NFL record for highest completion percentage in a game after Elias Sports Bureau, the agency that handles stats for the league, ruled that his 20th potential pass in an Oct. 29 game was instead a lateral, according to Cam Inman of The San Jose Mercury News:

“It definitely was a pass,” Harbaugh said after his Tuesday press conference. “You guys are on to something.” Added right guard Alex Boone: “I’m kinda upset he’s not in the record book. He had a great game and put the ball where it needed to be.”

Former Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner currently holds the record, completing 24 of 26 passes in a 2009 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In order to qualify for the record, the quarterback must throw a minimum of 20 pass attempts. Smith finished the game 18 of 19, recording 232 yards and three touchdowns in a 24-3 win in Arizona against the Cardinals. San Francisco had appealed the initial ruling of his stat line following the game and the findings from the review were confirmed Wednesday evening by the Bureau. The initial calling on the field was that it was, in fact, a lateral to Michael Crabtree, who caught the backward pass from Smith and ran on third-and-19 for a gain of eight yards.

Though not an NFL record for Smith, there was a silver lining for him; he made NFL history that game for the most pass attempts in a game with one or fewer incompletions.

Unlocked vehicles belonging to the New York Giants were reportedly burglarized early Sunday morning at the Timex Performance Center in East Rutherford, N.J. while the team was away in San Francisco getting ready to do battle with the 49ers, according to a report Tuesday morning from MSNBC.com:

Neither police nor the Giants team would confirm the names of the  players who reportedly had their cars broken into, but Polite  said the majority of the burglarized cars belonged to players.

The Giants ended up winning the game against the 49ers in rather convincing fashion, 26-3. Amid the reports of burlarized vehicles, there was also the news that one of the cars, a 1996 Chevy Caprice, was reportedly stolen off the lot:

Souped-up versions  of the vehicle are popular with sports stars and “very common” in  cities like Miami, Polite said.

Only in Jersey can someone be heartless enough to break into my car while we are in Cali making fans proud..geez get your life right in 2012—
James Brewer (@Big_Brewski) October 15, 2012

The Giants are telling officials to keep a close eye on 49ers defensive tackle Justin Smith this week. (Brian Bahr/Getty Images)

New York Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride is giving something for officials to look out for when his team plays the San Francisco 49ers this weekend.

He wants to the referees to pay close attention to Niners All-Pro defensive tackle Justin Smith.

“Smith is a beast on the inside,” Gilbride said this week, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “He’s strong, he does as good a job of grabbing a hold of offensive linemen and allowing those twists to take place. He never gets called for it, so he gets away with murder.”

Smith had seven tackles, a sack and four hits on Giants quarterback Eli Manning in last season’s NFC Championship Game loss. This season, Smith has yet to register a sack.

“There’s nothing wrong,” 49ers defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. “There’s nothing wrong with him. He’s still applying good pressure. Teams have thrown the ball quickly on us at times. I haven’t felt during any of the games like, ‘Damn, where’s our pass rush?’ And until I feel that then we don’t have a problem.”

Alex Smith will be fined $15,000 the next time he wears a San Francisco Giants hat at a post game press conference. (Bob Levey/Getty Images)

Alex Smith may soon be the owner of a $15,000 hat.

If the San Francisco 49ers quarterback continues to show up to post-game press conferences donning a San Francisco Giants hat, he will be fined $15,000 by the NFL for violating a league policy on wearing non-sponsored gear 90 minutes before and after games, according to a report Wednesday from Cam Inman of The San Jose Mercury-News:

If he does so again, he says he’ll be fined $15,000 by the NFL.

“Yeah, can you call Larry Baer for me?” Smith asked reporters in reference to the Giants’ chief executive.

The irony, according to Inman, is that it’s former 9′ers safety Merton Hanks, now an executive in the league office, who would impose the fine on Smith. In fact, the league already issued a $15,000 fine to Smith for wearing the hat but then retracted the penalty, opting instead to issue a warning; if he wears it again, he’ll be out $15,000.

And if he continues to wear it after every game for the rest of the reason, he will have had more $200,000 deducted from his $9 million salary.

49ers linebacker Clark Haggans was suspended for three games for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

The NFL suspended San Francisco 49ers linebacker Clark Haggans for three games for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, the team announced in a statement.

Haggans was suspended as a result of his guilty plea on a charge of extreme DUI. Extreme DUI is for driving with a blood alcohol level of higher than .15.

“We were certainly aware that this decision was a possibility as we evaluated Clark prior to adding him to our roster. Therefore, we are prepared to move forward accordingly,” 49ers general manager Trent Baalke said.

This is Haggans second time being convicted of DUI and he is eligible to return to the active roster on Oct. 8.

Haggans, 35, has dressed for the 49ers first two games but did not see the field.

Haggans, who played with Arizona Cardinals the past four seasons, served jail time for the DUI charge in June.

Jim Harbaugh’s supposed bullying of replacement refs prompted a memo to coaches from the NFL. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

The National Football League has issued a memo to its coaches warning them not to bully the replacement refs, according to NBC Sports, citing a report on Sunday from Jay Glazer of Fox Sports:

[T]he league didn’t like the reactions of some of the coaches to some of the officials. Jay Glazer of FOX Sports reports that NFL sent a memo this week warning the coaches against bullying the referees.  One coach who prompted the memo was 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh.

Harbaugh was fined in the offseason by the league for his “headache” comments that were directed towards the replacement refs.

The league and its replacement refs also came under the microscope on Sunday after a ref was notified Sunday morning by the NFL that he would not proceed with officiating the New Orleans Saints game against the Carolina Panthers.

The league was made aware on Sunday morning that the official had Facebook pictures of him tailgating at a Saints game in August, with subsequent comments from Facebook users asking him to “be nice with those yellow flags for our Saints!”

Michael Crabtree is recovering from his latest injury, and could finally appear in an NFL preseason game. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images)

Michael Crabtree’s streak of injured beginnings is continuing into this season. However, he may yet appear in his first career preseason game. Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area reports that the fourth-year wide receiver has returned to practice after injuring his leg in the 49ers first practice of trianing camp on July 27.

Maiocco reports that Crabtree brought pads and wore football pants to practice for the first time since his injury, but it is not yet clear if this means he will participate in full practices anytime soon. It also isn’t known if he will be able to participate in a preseason game.

San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh called Randy Moss the team’s “best wide receiver.” (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

If the San Francisco 49ers’ receiving corps lives up to the hype head coach Jim Harbaugh is creating for it this offseason, opposing defenses could be in for a nightmare year.

Back in May, Harbaugh praised Michael Crabtree for having the “best hands I’ve ever seen.” And on Monday, Harbaugh had even higher praise for newly acquired wideout Randy Moss. SiriusXM NFL Radio’s Rich Gannon relayed that Harbaugh told him that Moss is “our best receiver right now,” according to the San Jose Mercury News.

Moss’ last season in the NFL was a tumultuous one in 2010. He caught 28 passes for 393 yards with three different teams — the New England Patriots, Minnesota Vikings and Tennessee Titans. He was traded by both the Patriots and Vikings after conflicts with team management.

But the 49ers are giving the 35-year-old Moss his comeback shot, and he has impressed Harbaugh thus far in offseason activities.

Gannon also told of a conversation between Harbaugh and Moss before he signed a one-year contract in March.

“At the end of the meeting, Randy turned to Jim Harbaugh and said, ‘Coach, what do you want me to do, what can I do for you?’” Gannon said. “And Jim looked at him and said, ‘For starters I’d like you to sit in the front row of my meetings.’

“He said by doing that it’s brought guys like Crabtree, who’d hang out in the back, and some of these other young guys, now they’re sitting up front with Randy Moss,” he said. “They don’t have the hoodies on anymore. They’re alert. They’re paying attention. Randy’s taking notes. Every meeting that coach has had, Randy Moss has been sitting in the front row.”

In addition to Moss and Crabtree, the 49ers receiving corps includes Super Bowl hero Mario Manningham, first-round pick A.J. Jenkins and sure-handed tight end Vernon Davis.

Niners QB Alex Smith says he got carried away with saying passing yards don’t equal winning and using Panthers quarterback Cam Newton as an example. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Alex Smith probably knows that he was a Peyton Manning signing away from being another team’s backup.

As with many athletes who don’t think before they speak, Smith’s comments about Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton comparing passing yards to winning have come back to haunt him.

“I could absolutely care less on yards per game,” Smith said in May. “I think that is a totally overblown stat because if you’re losing games in the second half, guess what, you’re like the Carolina Panthers and you’re going no-huddle the entire second half.  Yeah, Cam Newton threw for a lot of 300-yard games.  That’s great.  You’re not winning, though.”

Newton threw for 4,051 yards in 2011.  The Panters went 6-10, while the 49ers lost in the NFC Championship Game to the New York Giants.

“Obviously I got carried away there,” Smith said to the San Jose Mercury News. “I was going after more of the passing-yards statistic and I don’t really believe there’s a great correlation to winning in the NFL. I don’t.  I don’t buy it.  If you’re looking for a statistic that has a better correlation to winning, it’s probably yards-per-attempt.”

A young Giants fan won’t see Brandon Jacobs in this uniform anymore, but got a chance to meet him. (Chris Trotman/Getty Images)

All it took for the New York Giants to keep Brandon Jacobs from hitting the free agent market was $3.36. Well, not exactly. But that’s what a New Jersey six-year old boy took out of his piggy bank to encourage Jacobs to stay with the team and then sent a letter to the new San Francisco 49ers running back that he tweeted.

While Jacobs was back in New Jersey to pack up, he kept his promise to meet the boy, Joseph Armento, according to The Sacramento Bee. 

“He told me he really wanted to get out there with the kids,” Julie Armento, Joseph’s mother, told the paper. “He really wanted to enjoy it, and he did. It was amazing.” “When we first spoke, he said that he was genuinely touched by the letter, that it almost brought him to tears. “He said it came at just the right time for him.”

Jacobs took his young son and Joseph and his brother to a Jump On In bounce house and Joseph also received a signed Giants helmet and a $5 bill.

The 49ers signed first-round pick A.J. Jenkins to a four-year deal. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

The San Francisco 49ers signed wide receiver A.J. Jenkins to a four-year deal on Wednesday. Terms were not disclosed. The Niners chose Jenkins with the 30th overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft.

Jenkins, 22, was an All-Big Ten first-team selection in 2011 after leading the Illinois with 90 catches for 1,276 yards and eight touchdowns. Jenkins showed up to the 49ers offseason program out of shape and will be fighting for playing time among a loaded wideout corps.

The Niners already have receiver Michael Crabtree, as well as free agent pickups Randy Moss and Mario Manningham on the roster.

Despite struggling last season, Ochocinco apparently will still draw widespread interest from around the league. (Elsa/Getty Images)

Interest apparently remains high in wide receiver Chad Ochocinco, even after he was cut by the New England Patriots on Thursday following a miserable 2011 season. Mike Freeman of CBSSports.com reports that several teams are evaluating film of Ochocinco to see what he has left, and “the name that keeps coming up as a suitor is Jacksonville. That’s the odds-on favorite, at least according to people around the league.”

Freeman’s sources also mention the St. Louis Rams as a possibility, with Freeman saying not to count out the San Francisco 49ers.

Another general manager told Freeman that the Carolina Panthers, the Dallas Cowboys and the Buffalo Bills would be the only teams interested in Ochocinco, in that order.

So it sounds as if the Twitter star will have no trouble getting a chance to resurrect his career elsewhere.

49ers running back Frank Gore said he has no issues with Jonathan Vilma or Gregg Williams and the bounty scandal. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore says he has no problem with former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams mentioning him in the now infamous audiotape before the 49ers-Saints playoff matchup in January. In fact, he thinks it is a sign of respect. Williams’ part in the bounty episode got him suspended indefinitely by the NFL.

“We’ve got to do everything in the world to make sure we kill Frank Gore’s head,” Williams said on the tape. “We want him running sideways. We want his head sideways.”

“When you hear another team call your name, that means respect,” Gore said to the Sacramento Bee. “That’s a lot of respect, and you’re doing something right for your team. So it don’t bother me at all.”

Gore said he also didn’t have an issue with former high school and college teammate Jonathan Vilma. Vilma was suspended for the entire 2012 season for his role in the bounty scandal.

Gore had 1,211 rushing yards and eight touchdowns last season and had 13 carries for 89 yards and seven receptions for 38 yards in the 49ers’ 36-32 win over the Saints.

San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said Alex Smith was always the team’s quarterback and the club never pursued Peyton Manning. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh on Wednesday said that the idea the team pursued Peyton Manning this offseason is “erroneous” and “phony,” according to a report by The Sacramento Bee‘s Matt Barrows.

“It’s an erroneous perception that we were flirting with Peyton Manning. I keep hearing that over and over again,” Harbaugh said. “It’s silly, and it’s untrue. It’s phony. Even the perception that we were pursuing him … we were evaluating him.

“I’ve said all along, Alex Smith has been our quarterback. There’s been no scenario, other than Alex choosing to sign with another team, that we would have considered him not as our quarterback.” …

“Now, were we out there seeing, evaluating if we could have them both? Heck ya. You evaluate that, you eliminate that.”

San Francisco was widely reported to be a finalist for the quarterback, along with the Tennessee Titans and the Denver Broncos. Barrows reports a source said Manning did reach out to the 49ers first, and the team then began what Harbaugh called an “evaluation.”

Harbaugh confirmed that the team didn’t pull out of the running until Manning had picked the Broncos.

Smith, the former No. 1 overall pick who led the 49ers within a game of the Super Bowl, was a free agent in the offseason. He remained unsigned and visited with the Miami Dolphins before Manning made up his mind. Smith ultimately signed a three-year, $24-million deal to stay with San Francisco.

“Alex Smith is our quarterback, was our quarterback and we had every intention of bringing him back,” Harbaugh said. “There would be no circumstance that we would have let Alex Smith go.”

49ers back Brandon Jacobs plans to get down to 255 pounds this season. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Newly acquired San Francisco 49ers running back Brandon Jacobs wants to add more explosiveness to his game by losing weight.

Jacobs told the San Jose Mercury News that he plans to play this season at this college weight of 255 pounds. Right now, Jacobs is 10 pounds shy of that goal and hopes to get to the weight with dieting.

Jacobs said he ballooned up to 285 pounds after the New York Giants Super Bowl victory in 2008.

“We just relaxed, ate, took trips, had fun,” Jacobs said. “My body wasn’t meant to be that big. But I still looked good.”

Jacobs, 29, is entering his eighth season. Jacobs rushed for 571 yards and eight touchdowns for the Super Bowl Champion Giants in 2011.

“My legs weren’t as strong, my balance wasn’t as good as it needed to be,” Jacobs said. “I want to play down in the (250s) for basically the first time in my career. I don’t think it’s far fetched.”

New Jersey State Police are investigating complaints that state troopers escorted a high-speed caravan of luxury sports cars to Atlantic City, NJ, reportedly including former New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs, according to the Star-Ledger Report.

Witnesses complained that a group of luxury cars including Porsches, Lamborghinis and Ferraris were driving at extremely high speeds and being escorted by two state troopers with emergency sirens and lights on the Garden State Parkway on March 30.

In an email to ESPNNewYork.com, Justin Schulman, Jacobs’ agent, said his client was part of a group that did drive to Atlantic City on that same day. However, his agent told ESPN that he could not confirm whether Jacobs was part of the high-speed caravan.  State Police Lt. Stephen Jones told the Star-Ledger that the complaint is being investigated.

After not being able to agree on a deal to restructure his contract with the Giants, Jacobs signed with the San Francisco 49ers on March 28.  In  2011, Jacobs had 152 carries for 571 yards and seven touchdowns.

Just hours after officially signing with the San Francisco 49ers, newcomer Brandon Jacobs has already initiated a running-back controversy. In yesterday’s conference call with the Bay Area media, Jacobs says he wants the ball over teammate Frank Gore in goal-line situations.

“Well, being 25 or 35 pounds heavier than Frank, I’d hope I’ll be the one to get it,” Jacobs said, according to Cam Inman of the San Jose Mercury News.

“But Frank has done great in that area the last seven years,” Jacobs added. “We came into the league the same year. He’s done great. He has no issue getting in. It’s whatever is best for the team.”

Jacobs, the New York Giants’ fourth-round pick in the 2005 draft, has amassed 4,849 rushing yards and 56 touchdowns in his seven-year NFL career. Gore, a third-rounder in ’05, has 7,625 yards and 43 TDs.

Jacobs agreed to a one-year, $2 million deal with the 49ers on March 28.

A new voice spoke up today in the debate raging over Gregg Williams and the bounty system he instituted as defensive coordinator of the New Orleans Saints: Ken Williams, the general manager of baseball’s Chicago White Sox, whose son Kyle Williams was a Saints target with the San Francisco 49ers.

“As you have seen, Kyle Williams is a man’s man and has shown himself more than capable of answering on his own behalf,” Ken Williams said in a statement, according to the Chicago Tribune. “He has definite feelings on the subject but has chosen to remain committed to providing all his answers to any questions on the field next season. Knowing this young man’s intestinal fortitude, I doubt anyone will get him to waver from his position.”

In a pregame speech that was caught on tape by documentary filmmaker Sean Pamphilon, Gregg Williams can be heard asking the Saints’ players to “put a lick” on Kyle Williams to see if he had lingering effects of a concussion.

Ken Williams was happy to add in his statement that medically, his son was progressing nicely.

“As a father first and foremost, I am glad to report Kyle’s concussion tests have been extremely positive,” Williams said. “We are grateful he is ready and anxious to get back to competition.”

As if the San Francisco 49ers’ receiving corps wasn’t already loaded enough, the team announced today that Ted Ginn. Jr. was coming back for another season:

49ers today announced they have re-signed WR Ted Ginn Jr. to a one-year contract.

—
Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 22, 2012

In addition to inking Ginn today, the Niners also picked up Mario Manningham, plus they brought Randy Moss out of retirement last week. Put that power trio together with incumbent Niners wideout Michael Crabtree, and you’re looking at quite an arsenal for quarterback Alex Smith.

Ginn made 19 catches for 220 yards last season; he also gained 466 yards returning punts and 800 returning kicks.

Ginn, a former No. 9 overall pick who turns 27 next month, has been one of the best special teams weapons in the game for the last five years. He’s 24th among all active NFL players with 8,527 total all-purpose yards.