San Francisco 49ers

Under former San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Nolan, the club's defense seemed to lack an identity.

Nobody seemed to know whether the 49ers were a 3-4 or 4-3 team. The reason nobody knew was because the 49ers played both defensive schemes interchangeably.

Nolan simply called it a hybrid defense. But after Nolan's firing, defensive coordinator Greg Manusky has tried to provide his players with the answer. The 49ers are now mostly a team that runs a three-man line.

The 49ers figure to play mostly a 3-4 defense when they play host to Brett Favre and the New York Jets on Sunday at Candlestick Park.

The 49ers will be trying to build on an impressive defensive showing in a victory over the Buffalo Bills.

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Here's a surprise for fans of a certain wide-eyed linebacker on the Chicago Bears' dominant defenses of the 1980s: Mike Singletary thinks he's even better suited for his new career. After six weeks as the San Francisco 49ers' interim coach, Singletary claims he's deriving at least as much satisfaction from game-planning and teaching as he ever did from his Hall of Fame playing career.

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Mike Singletary's widespread support in the locker room can't be discounted, especially after the San Francisco...

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At this time last season, the New England Patriots were just a month away from their eventual undefeated...

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Browns GM Phil Savage has no qualms about throwing coach Romeo Crennel under the bus to save his job.

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Although two victories in three games qualify as a big surge for the San Francisco 49ers, Shaun Hill and Mike Singletary know they shouldn't get comfortable in their new jobs any time soon. The quarterback and his interim coach realize they're both far from certain to return to the 49ers (4-8) next season, even after revitalizing a team that dropped seven of its first nine games this fall during...

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Tony Romo seems well-positioned to move ahead in what is a wide-open pursuit for league MVP honors.

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If misery loves company, the Buffalo Bills can now appreciate what San Francisco 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis has felt like for much of the past month, sitting on the outside of the playoff hunt looking in. With little more than pride on the line, Willis took out his frustrations in helping San Francisco all but dash the Bills' playoff hopes with a 10-3 win on Sunday.

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The San Francisco 49ers hit the final five weeks of the regular season with a lot of uncertainty looming.

The 49ers have an interim head coach (Mike Singletary) and an interim starting quarterback (Shaun Hill). Both men would like to earn the permanent jobs with their performances the remainder of the season, beginning Sunday against the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y.

A lot of jobs are at stake in the final five weeks of the season. In addition to Singletary, the remainder of the coaching staff has tenuous futures, including offensive coordinator Mike Martz.

The 49ers have compiled a 1-3 record under Singletary, who took over as interim coach on Oct. 20 when Mike Nolan was fired after 31/2 seasons as head coach.

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Bills starting strong safety Donte Whitner didn't play in Buffalo's game against San Francisco on Sunday, missing his second consecutive contest because of a separated shoulder. Whitner was hurt in the fourth quarter of the Bills' loss to the New York Jets on Nov. 2, and has now missed three of the last four games because of the injury.

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