Well, 49ers fans, the hopes and expectations of your team winning the NFC West aren’t panning out, and I hate to say this, but I am not really that surprised about the slow start.

I didn’t think they would go 0-3, especially in a weak NFC West, but there’s a lot of talent on this team. You’ve got gamers like Vernon Davis and Frank Gore, and a hardcore lunchbox player in Patrick Willis. But I think it all has to do with the quarterback Alex Smith. For far too long, the Alex Smith experiment has failed in the city by the Bay. Year after year, Smith has proven that he was not worthy of the first overall pick back in 2005.

Even last year, when he was a C- quarterback, he showed the signs that he’s just not the quarterback the 49ers need, yet management has stuck by him because they were reluctant to bring in another quarterback who may have been a better fit for this team who is one signal caller away from being the division winner all the experts and all the fans have told us they are. Yes, even I thought this team could be the division winner so long as Smith could make himself to be an average quarterback. However, right now, that isn’t the case and I think five years in, it’s probably never going to be so.

So where do the 49ers go from here? There’s another former first overall pick in David Carr, it’s a possibility, but at age 31 and a history of being sack-prone, is he really the answer? He might be, at least in the short term. If he can show some consistency and the ability to not make mistakes, he’s worth a shot.

Whatever is ailing the 49ers needs to be fixed, and soon. They lost to a Chiefs team that has been underrated every game that they have played despite not having a loss this season. The truth about them is that they look like something. With coordinators like Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel, both of whom were apart of the hated Patriots Super Bowl dynasty, the Chiefs have something good brewing, and with an exciting player in Dexter McCluster, they should be excited. If only Michael Crabtree could provide the kind of excitement McCluster does.

Only twice since 1970 has an 0-3 team made the playoffs, and history is not on the 49ers’ side, but the Titans nearly did after starting 0-6 last season, so it’s not how you start, but how you finish. Sometimes, though, a good start is much needed and appreciated.