Here’s the 49ers injury report for Wednesday, courtesy of the 49ers.

49ers
Did not participate in practice: S Dashon Godlson (knee)

Seahawks
Did not participate in practice: G Robert Gallery (knee), T Jarriel King (ankle), WR Sidney Rice (shoulder)
Limited in practice: LB David Hawthorne (knee)

SANTA CLARA – Tavares Gooden, the newest 49er, introduced himself to the Bay Area reporters today.

Here’s what he said.

Q: Are you going to be an inside linebacker here?

GOODEN: We haven’t really discussed that yet. Any way to help the team out. I played outside and inside at the University of Miami, so obviously I have that in my repertoire.

Q: What did you learn from getting to play alongside Ray Lewis?

GOODEN: What I learned from Ray? The biggest thing is run to the ball, face the football. Also learned a great deal of film study from Ray – how to study film, certain things to look for, different tendencies, things like that. And now, playing with Pat, I’m playing with a younger group. They’re my age group. Ray was a little older than I was. He went to Miami ten years before I got there, so, nah I’m just kidding.

Q: Vic Fangio said you’re also going to play special teams. What are your thoughts on that?

GOODEN: We all know special teams is a big key to football. I try to be a game changer in that aspect. Just take my repertoire that coach John Harbaugh and coach Rosburg taught me, bring it over here and apply it to San Fran.

Q: What are your specific responsibilities on special teams?

GOODEN: Just kick tail, kick butt. That’s my primary deal, just go out there and play like a monster, play like a mad man, and I think that’s what I did the first three years in the NFL and I have that reputation for playing hard and going out there and kicking butt.

Q: Is it nice to not being answering questions about injuries?

GOODEN: It’s a fresh start. I want to go out there and give it my all. The injuries obviously are a big concern to me. I’ve got everything prepared, so I want to go out there, I want to play 16 games, I want to show the NFL, show Coach Harbaugh, show everybody that I can do it. I want to prove that I am healthy this season.

Q: Has yoga made an impact?

GOODEN: Absolutely. Flexibility, range of motion, it also added strength to me.

Q: Who brought yoga up to you in the first place?

GOODEN: Actually, my agent and Baltimore, they wanted me to get stretched out, because they feel like stretching brings speed and flexibility, and also it reduces the injuries. I just wanted to reduce my injuries so I took yoga as something that would help me out.

Q: Is that something you’re still doing?

GOODEN: I did it the whole summer. I’m looking for a place out here where I can find a stretch doctor or instructor to help me out and I think I’ll continue that because it has helped me out.

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SANTA CLARA – Vic Fangio spoke at the podium in the media tent today. Jim Harbaugh will speak tomorrow, and Greg Roman will speak on Thursday.

Here’s the complete transcript of Fangio’s Tuesday interview, courtesy of the 49ers.

What kind of role do you foresee for LB Tavares Gooden?

“When you’re selecting back-up linebackers, a major part of that process is the equation of special teams. We felt he would be an upgrade in the special teams for us as a backup linebacker, and he’ll also be a backup inside linebacker for us.”

What’s your background with Gooden? You coached him in 2009, that seems to be his best year in Baltimore. What did you see from him during that season?

“Well he’s a good athlete, he can run very well. He’s been a good special teams player throughout his career and I think he just improves our overall speed. Again, he has an ability to cover kicks and block on kick returns.”

So you’re comfortable with upgrading on special teams, but are you comfortable with having just three outside linebackers?

“Not comfortable with three outside linebackers, but we felt it was worth the gamble to upgrade our special teams over the insurance of having a fourth outside linebacker.”

Would LB Larry Grant be the backup at both inside linebacker spots?

“He is right now. Hopefully we can get Tavares schooled up enough that he can be the backup behind [LB Patrick] Willis, and Larry can be the backup behind [LB] NaVorro [Bowman] to be able to cut down on the learning for Larry to know. Today as we speak, Larry is the backup.”

Do you ask different things of those two spots?

“It’s not so much a skill set difference from what you’re asked to do, but the sides are different. Larry has double the load in learning right now, and if we can take that off of him, that would be beneficial to him.”

What do you make, I know it’s going to be talked about all week, of Seahawks Head Coach Pete Carroll and 49ers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh reuniting on the NFL sidelines?

“I don’t think it’s anything that big or special. The game’s being played by the players. It’s being played by the 49ers versus the Seahawks. Anything that’s happened to them while they were coaching in the Pac-10 is secondary. That’s when you’re having too much time for the game and you’re getting bored.”

How do you envision using LB Aldon Smith early in the season?

“He’ll definitely get some playing time in there. He’ll be a part of our rotation outside. Exactly putting a number on that would be hard to do right now, but he’ll definitely be in the rotation.”

But LB Parys Haralson and LB Ahmad Brooks are your starters?

“Yes.”

What about the other cornerback spot, opposite of CB Carlos Rogers?

“It’s up in the air. [CB] Shawntae [Spencer] is supposed to start practicing today. We’ll see how he feels and how he reacts to getting back out there. He hasn’t done anything football-wise in over four weeks I believe. That would be a tall task for him to come back this soon and play a full game. Maybe he can come back and play parts of it, but that all remains to be seen and to be determined day-to-day as we go through this week.”

As you prepare for Seattle, it’s been an unusual offseason, as far as game-planning. What percent for you is the installation of new players and what percent for you is going over the basic defense so that they know terminology?

“It’s all of that. Obviously when you’re playing your first real opponent in a real game, things get tapered down a little bit. We’re into game-planning. We’ve been practicing a lot of stuff. Players won’t be expected to know as much this week as they were last week, if that makes any sense to you, because we were putting in a lot of stuff and just piling it on them from week to week to week and never setting in. Whereas now when you’re in a game week, we’ll have a shorter list of what they’re expected to learn, and we’ll try to zero in on what we want to play against the Seahawks.”

You guys had so much time during the lockout where you didn’t have your players. Did you start going over opponents at that point? How long have you been studying the Seahawks this year?

“Well, we did start going over the future opponents, but the Seahawks, because they have a new offensive staff, we didn’t have the ability to watch a lot of stuff because they had changes. For us to watch the Seahawks offense, it was us looking at coaching backgrounds in different places. It wasn’t as clean as we had hoped it would be.”

Did you look at Minnesota film as well?

“Yes, we looked at Minnesota film. We’ve looked at Tom Cable who is there now as the offensive line coach, his background and his running game, what he likes to do. We looked at a lot of things really. It’s kind of like you can overdo it as a coach sometimes when you’re put in these situations. It wasn’t clean for us like Dallas the second week, in that the offensive staff has stayed intact. There’s no changes there per say that we know of going forward from this point, so we were able to really look at stuff in the offseason.”

From your perspective, your side of the ball, how has WR Braylon Edwards come along in the short time he’s been at this camp in terms of a matchup problem?

“I really haven’t noticed a whole lot other than he can be a matchup problem because of his size and his speed. He can outsize and outmuscle a corner at times down the field, in the red-zone. He’s a nice big target and hopefully he’ll have a great year here for us.”

Who’s going to start at safety for you?

“It’s yet to be determined right now. [S] Dashon [Goldson] is hurt, hasn’t played or practiced last week. [S] Reggie Smith is coming back from his injury. We expect to see him back on the practice field for the first time today. It’s up in the air right now.”

With S Donte Whitner, when he came here the first day, he was saying he envisioned himself like an equipped Troy Polamalu role, flying around, what are his talents?

“Well, he’s a versatile guy. He can cover, he can play the deep zones, he’s smart. We expect him to be kind of the quarterback of our secondary, and we’re very pleased to have him. He just needs to be the safety for us.  He doesn’t need to be the safety for somebody else.”

How was Jim Harbaugh’s transition from college to the pro game? Is he the same guy he was a year ago with the college kids?

“I think so pretty much, but obviously there’s going to be some changes to a degree. Just from scheduling and meeting time, it’s a whole lot different here than it is in college football. Particularly now when you get into a game week, you’re limited to a 17-hour rule in college football. Because everybody says 20 hours, but three of the hours is the game. So, you’re limited to 17 hours in college football and no more than 4 hours a day. So, he’s going to have more time during each and every day here that he’s not been accustomed to in college football. So, that’s going to be a change and an adjustment for him, basically everything. He’s the same guy.”

What led you to him (Jim Harbaugh)? Why did you decide to follow him over here?

“Well, it was something we had talked about a couple years in advance even before I went to Stanford and got to know him, obviously through his brother (Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh). He did a great job at Stanford turning that program around, and I think he can do that here also. So, I chose to follow him here.”

When an offense does a lot of motion, how does that complicate what you can do on defense?

“Motion? Sometimes it can complicate it and sometimes it’s wasted energy by the offense and doesn’t complicate anything. It kind of depends what bag you’re working in on defense, but really it’s not that big of deal. We assume that it can happen on every play and we know the appropriate adjustments. Many times you can create a problem for the offense too, because you may not adjust the way they think you are and now you have pieces moving and they’re not quite sure. That’s why teams like Indianapolis, per se, they never move because they want [QB] Peyton Manning to see the higher lined up, and they don’t want him to have look and see how you’re lined up after a motion. It can be a useful tool for them sometimes, but sometimes it’s not.”

With three outside linebackers, do you envision any of the inside linebackers playing some outside just for depth purposes?

“No.”

What have you liked from CB Tarell Brown?

“He’s done a good job out there in corner for us. He’s competed, he’s covered well in camp and in the preseason games. I think he’s a smart player. He’s very into football which is important. He likes football and enjoys playing and competing. I know that sounds like a standard nothing answer to you, but that’s not always the case and it’s refreshing. It brings confidence to his game and we have confidence in him as a coaching staff.”

It seems like beyond Spencer, and maybe Rogers, Brown obviously has the most experience at the position because you’ve got a lot of young guys. Is that important to you to have somebody who’s been there, who’s played, who’s started a few games, who’s played in a lot of games?

“It’s a plus, but it’s not the overriding decision maker. We still want to put the best player out there. Experience sometimes is a part of that equation, but sometimes it’s not.”

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The 49ers just announced on twitter that they signed seven players to their practice squad, and running back Xavier Omon is one of them.

Omon had a strong exhibition season, rushing 30 times for 121 yards and a touchdown.

The sixth round pick from USC, Ronald Johnson, did not have a strong exhibition season, and the 49ers did not sign him to their practice squad either.

The eighth and final spot will probably go to Keaton Kristick. The Niners waived him today to make room for Scott Tolzien, but Kristick is still practice squad eligible.

Here’s the complete transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s Saturday press conference.

He said the 49ers are comfortable with Colin Kaepernick as Alex Smith’s backup quarterback, and when asked if the team would sign another QB, Harbaugh seemed to suggest that if they do, he may only play for the practice squad. So perhaps the Niners won’t be so interested in a signing a veteran QB. Perhaps they’ll be interested in Scott Tolzien, whom the Chargers cut today.

Harbaugh also said Kendall Hunter is the No. 2 running back for now, but that could change depending on which running back is hot.

Here’s Harbaugh in his own words.

Q: What was the most difficult part of today’s cuts?

HARBAUGH: Talking to the guys that were 49ers, those kind of guys that we wanted here, that had that mindset, and who worked really hard to be here. Them, and a lot of the guys who were going through it for the first time. The rookies who experienced something so new that you feel for them all that worked very hard, but also understand that they benefited greatly from the opportunity and the experience and I think that will bode well for many of the youngsters.

Q: What prompted the release of Josh McCown.

HARBAUGH: There was an effort to get our best 53 on the roster, and it’s just decisions that we made.

Q: Is there a sense that McCown would be available during the season if you were to need a No. 3 at some point?

HARBAUGH: It’s possible, but then again it’s possible that he wouldn’t, so like any team that only carries two quarterbacks at this time, you’re rolling the dice somewhat and we understand that.

Q: Are you going to be keeping two quarterbacks or will there be another quarterback added before the start of the regular season?

HARBAUGH: I anticipate there will be one in the building, practice squad or other.

Q: With Colin Kaepernick, do you feel confident that he can step in and function in a regular season game, or do you have to get a veteran guy behind Alex?

HARBAUGH: We feel confident in Colin.

Q: Would that preclude you guys from going after maybe a young quarterback, a rookie that got released today?

HARBAUGH: No, there’s nothing that precludes us from doing anything that we feel helps our football team, and that goes for any position.

Q: What were some of the moods of some of the guys that made the team?

HARBAUGH: The mood was good, it was good energy with the squad when we met today, and I think Patrick and Frank Gore both summed it up. It starts right now, getting ready for Seattle. That’s the mood. It’s serious and they’re ready to get going.

Q: Are you interested in adding a third tight end to that group?

HARBAUGH: That’s possible. That’s a possibility.

Q: You guys kept probably more defensive lineman than a 3-4 team would normally keep. What did you see from some of those young guys that made you keep so many?

HARBAUGH: We did. A little heavy there on the defensive line. Particularly Demarcus Dobbs and Ian Williams we felt earned a spot. We feel like they have a very good upside. That’s a tough position to find in the National Football League – those big bodies, so we were please, and I think that’s one of the things when you start looking at the roster, more defense than offense, a little light in some positions, there were men who earned their way onto the roster and made decisions very difficult, but that’s what we decided to go with.

Q: What were Dobbs’ and Williams’ reaction?

HARBAUGH: They were happy, but at the same time they know that all, the people that made the team, when it was close they were happy that they were chosen. Everybody’s good out there, and everybody that was in our camp was good, and then there’s better that make the 53, and then now they’re on a progression to be the best. That’s as hard of a task as it is to make the team, and then that step to be a starter and be the best is very difficult as well. They’re very serious and they understand that this isn’t the end, this is the beginning.

Q: As far as the third tight end, does having Bruce Miller on the team give you see leeway at that position? Can he do some of the things that a third tight end might do?

HARBAUGH: Yes he can, as well as playing special teams, but he is definitely going to be a swing guy in that regard for us.

Q: C.J. Spillman, Blake Costanzo, and Colin Jones were kept for special teams. Will you keep them in uniform for game days?

HARBAUGH: Yes, yes, we do. We expect them to be in uniform. They’re picked with the idea of being on the 46. In the National Football League you’ve got to win two out of the three phases to win a game, and we want to be strong on special teams. That’s a sign that we want to be strong on special teams.

Q: Did you leave the decision for those three spots up to Seely?

HARBAUGH: All of our coaches had input on the spots in the final roster, but the decisions were made by Trent and myself.

Q: Did you say Frank Gore and Patrick Willis spoke to the team today?

HARBAUGH: Yes.

Q: Can you kind of summarize or hit on the themes that they hit on in that meeting?

HARBAUGH: No, not really, not really summarize what they said, but it is noteworthy and an honor that Frank was selected captain on offense and Patrick was selected captain on defense.

Q: Are the captains voted on by the players?

HARBAUGH: The captains are voted on by the players.

Q: Have you made up a decision on who your backup to Frank Gore is going into the season?

HARBAUGH: I think that’s an on-going decision, who’s playing better. I know there will be a rotation – all three of those backs will play. I’d say right now Kendall Hunter is ahead on the depth chart.

Q: How do you approach the rest of the week as far as getting the guys prepared to play a game in eight days? Do you get a bonus practice?

HARBAUGH: Yes, we had a bonus workout today and we’ll get a bonus workout on Tuesday, and then we’ll approach it like a regular week.

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Here are in-game quotes from NaVorro Bowman, courtesy of the 49ers 

Talk about what you saw on your forced fumble and fumble recovery:

“It was just a basic blitz. I had the running back on me one-on-one and that’s something that a linebacker wants to get when trying to get a sack. Running backs really like to cut and once they don’t cut, you give them one move and get around them and chase the quarterback down and get the sack.”

What are your thoughts on how the defense has played through the first half?

“I think we went out there with the energy the coaches wanted us to have and perform for the little bit of time that we were going to be out there. We knew we weren’t going to play too long, but the little bit that we were in there, we wanted to make a statement and show that we were prepared for them and that we wanted to keep them out of the end zone.”

What are you working on during the last preseason game?

“Really just approaching it like it’s a real game because the following week coming up is a real game. We really have to be focused. That’s pretty much what the coaches are wanting to see out of us, that we’re approaching it like it’s a real game. I think we did that.”

The Niners fourth and final exhibition game against the San Diego Chargers this Thursday means very little for some players, and it means everything for others.

This is not a make or break week for Alex Smith. He’ll probably play very little. His make or break week will come during the regular season.

But on Saturday Harbaugh and Baalke will cut 27 players, so for the backups Thursday’s game is their last chance to make an impression on the coaches and win a roster spot.

Here are the top five players who need to have a big performance:

1. Anthony Dixon – He clearly fell behind Kendall Hunter on the depth chart last week, and now he’s got to hold off Xavier Omon if he wants to remain a 49er. The 49ers seem to have no problem cutting recent draft picks, and Dixon was just a 6^th rounder in 2010. If he rushes for less than three yards per carry in this game, he could get cut.
2. Adam Snyder – He just lost the starting center job to Jonathan Goodwin. If Snyder plays well, he could potentially challenge Chilo Rachal for right guard job. But Snyder hasn’t been playing well – he’s been getting pushed around at the line of scrimmage. On Monday Joe Staley said he was disgusted with the line’s performance, but nobody acted more disgusted than Snyder, who refused to talk. Snyder very likely will find himself a second-stringer if he doesn’t have a big performance.
3. Ronald Johnson – The starting five wide receivers seem to be set, and Ronald Johnson doesn’t appear to be one of them. Actually, there could be six or seven receivers in camp who have played better than Johnson. They are – Braylon Edwards, Joshua Morgan, Ted Ginn Jr., Kyle Williams, Lance Long, and Chris Hogan. Not to mention Michael Crabtree, who will make the  team. Johnson is looking like a practice squad player, and with all the fumbles and drops he’s had so far this exhibition season, it’s unlikely another team will claim Johnson from the 49ers.
4. Phillip Adams – Like the recently cut Scott McKillop, Adams hasn’t recovered 100 percent from his season-ending injury he sustained last season. For McKillop it was a knee, and for Adams it’s his ankle. The coaches describe him as 75-80 percent recovered, which doesn’t bode well for his chances of making the team. He’s going to have to show he’s closer to 90 percent on Thursday by playing tight in coverage at cornerback.
5. A third quarterback – Both Josh McCown and McLeod Bethel-Thompson need to play well on Thursday because most likely there will be a third quarterback but not a fourth quarterback. Most likely it will be one of these two players, and neither of them has played in a single exhibition game. Sure, the coaches have seen them play in practice. But it would be fair to give them some reps on Thursday to show what they can do in under pressure.

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SANTA CLARA – Alex Smith talked to reporters at his locker today. Here’s everything he said.

The last question is a question I asked him after the other reporters left the area around his locker, and it was the first time I’ve asked Smith a question one-on-one. He was gracious and thorough and he even cracked a joke.

Enjoy.

Q: Do you plan to play on Thursday?

ALEX SMITH: I’m not expecting anything. I’m going to go out there and play and play until they tell me to come out. It’s been that way a lot of years. Last year, I didn’t play in it, but in years past I’ve played almost the full quarter. A couple drives, at least. So I think it obviously will depend on how we do. But looking forward to getting out there, getting some first downs, get the ball moving and hopefully put some points on the board.

Q: Are there a lot of bugs to work out?

ALEX SMITH: I don’t know about bugs. We’ve got a bad taste in our mouth, that’s for sure. Want to get out before the regular season.

Q: Goodwin’s now the starting center. How important to establish starters on the line?

ALEX SMITH: We’ve been getting a lot of reps with both those guys. I just think obviously as you get closer to the regular season it’s important to finalize where all those guys are. Lock all those guys in up front so they’re familiar with where they’re going to be comfortable come the regular season.

Q: Do you think Crabtree can get caught up before week 1?

ALEX SMITH: He’s done a great job in meetings, the walkthroughs, the meetings out on the field. He’s really had his head in it, paying a lot of attention, asking a lot of questions. Obviously, it does take the reps as well, so we’ll see. He’s done it before, his rookie year he stepped right in and contributed right away.

Q: Did you know Crabtree’s foot was broken in June at first minicamp?

ALEX SMITH: I did not. Obviously he said it was hurting and that was the reason he stopped running. I had no idea until later, actually found out that he had surgery and that it was broken.

Q: How to deal with sacks when communicating w/ o-line?

ALEX SMITH: Sacks, it’s a stat that you can’t just look at on paper and then blame it on the guys up front. They are a lot of coverage sacks, quarterbacks holding the ball too long. Running backs are involved in that, tight ends. It’s a stat that you look at on paper and it’s easy to say the offensive line. But it’s all of us. We’re all involved in it. It takes all 11. It’s a work in progress, getting better. But if you’re playing quarterback and expect just to sit back there and not get touched, you’re kidding yourself. It’s part of the game. Teams are going to press you, you’ve got to have a plan where to go with the football and get it out sometimes. Those guys up front are battling, they continue to work and I think they’ll continue to get better and gel.

Q: Did you expect growing pains in offense given the lockout?.

ALEX SMITH: Absolutely. I think to say that there weren’t, you’d be kidding yourself. Still working some things out. Still coming together. It takes reps. It takes time. Got to get it done faster – last week was unacceptable for all of us and we’ve got a lot of improvement ahead of us.

Q: What have you seen from Frank re: contract situation?

ALEX SMITH: I stay out of that. I think a lot of us do. That’s the reason we have agents. They handle that stuff. I haven’t noticed any lack of focus. He’s all in. He’s here. He’s been a part of everything. Jumped in full go so I’m not really thinking or paying attention to any of that other stuff.

Q: Early memories of Frank, who is known as such a smart football player?

ALEX SMITH: Just picks up things extremely fast and then just has great instincts on the field. And not just running with the football. Great instincts blocking. Great instincts in the pass game. Just a really good football player, a great football player. You could see it from the start. Obviously his rookie year he didn’t get as many reps but definitely that second year, exploded on the scene in the run and the pass. And he’s always been great in protection, takes a lot of pride in that. I don’t know if I see another back in the league that takes as much pride as Frank does in protection and the physicality of it. It’s tough for a guy that gets that many carries to step into protection and be that physical. And Frank takes a lot of pride in it, and I’ll tell you what, and all of his teammates notice it and appreciate it.

Q: What exactly does Harbaugh teach footwork-wise? Parallel feet under center, or left foot back?

ALEX SMITH: You know that’s a better question for (Harbaugh), no I’m just kidding. We’re all a little different. It’s not something like he’s looking for uniformity. We’re all different. It’s how we feel comfortable under there. He just wants us each to be consistent with ourselves. Does that make sense? He doesn’t want us to all be cookie cutters. He’s working with each of us individually with what’s best, what we’re comfortable with. He just doesn’t want that to change from play to play.

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SANTA CLARA — Jim Harbaugh spoke this afternoon after a morning practice. He talked about Michael Crabtree, Joe Staley, and Frank Gore extensively, but he also dropped some nuggets you’d find interesting.

He announced that Jonathan Goodwin is now the starting center, not Adam Snyder. He also explained the reasoning behind cutting LB Scott McKillop.

Here’s the complete transcript, courtesy of the 49ers.

You activated WR Michael Crabtree off the PUP list today. What is he able to do right now?

“We’ll talk about that very little and just assess it as we go.”

Will he play on Thursday?

“We’ll see. We’ll see how it comes along. Like I said the other day, we’ll see just how quickly he’s able to re-acclimate into playing shape, football shape, and back into the flow of playing.”

You’ve gotten to see Crabtree’s hands a little bit. Is that one of his better assets, how well he’s able to catch the ball?

“Saw a lot more than that when you watch the tape from last year. He’s an explosive receiver. He catches the ball extremely well, does a great job of getting yards after the catch. What I have seen being around him this training camp is that he’s a football guy, smart guy. He’s really good in the meetings. He’s been outstanding in his participation. I think that’s going to bode well for him and hasten that ability to get back in the lineup.”

As far as his participation yesterday, was that allowed under the league rules of warm-ups or practice otherwise, that he’s allowed to be out there for?

“There’s absolutely no malice by the team to try to break any rules or steal practice reps for Michael Crabtree. Did he or did he not practice? I can answer that question. He did not practice, and that was obvious. It was reported that he ran five-yard routes, he didn’t run any routes. He was walking around. He was playing catch. The malice wasn’t on our part. I think the malice was in the way it was written and the question that’s being portrayed.”

Is he ready to get activated or was that so that he could do that without any questions being asked?

“He was playing catch.”

No, I’m saying like today. Was there any difference in today as opposed to what he did yesterday?

“He wore his uniform today. He was out there in uniform, and he was lined up. He came out of the huddle in the walk through portion of practice.”

T Joe Staley told us yesterday that he was very disgusted, that the line was terrible. He sort of took some accountability for some things.

“Sort of? Accountability is exactly what he did. That is a strong guy. That is a man with big shoulders that makes you really proud to have guys on your team that are accountable guys. It’s Joe’s birthday today and Joe is a stud on all fronts.”

Based on how the unit performed on Saturday, would you expect to approach the game on Thursday more as trying to get those guys more reps than they normally would in a typical fourth preseason game?

“I think it’s possible. We’re trying to really hit a count of close to 80 to 100 plays in the preseason. We can’t predict exactly how it’s going to go but it will be more predicated on that than anything else. Making sure these guys are ready to go as part of the plan. We’ve stayed healthy, that’s been a real positive. We’re reset right now mentally and physically to go forward. The next 12 days including this preseason game against San Diego, I’m looking forward to it.”

You guys have had some limited snaps offensively. In terms of evaluating the quarterbacks, you’ve said that it’s crimped it a little bit where you haven’t been able to get great evaluation of QB Alex Smith or QB Colin Kaepernick because of that. Is that another factor looking into this? That you want to see more of them because you haven’t had that much opportunity?

“That question has come up a bunch of times, ‘can you evaluate the receivers, and can you evaluate the quarterbacks?’. There’s been valuable reps and experience and evaluation that they’ve gotten. Every play isn’t going to be perfect and most of the time it’s not going to be. So to be able to have that experience and have that practice for our guys is very, very valuable. So, yes, we can evaluate.”

How do you look at the passer rating that the league does for games? In terms of, is that a useful tool?

“I think it’s a tool. It’s useful. I look at it.”

After agent Drew Rosenhaus came here yesterday are you still encouraged and confident that a deal can get done for RB Frank Gore?

“It’s been my experience, and I’ve said this before, I’ve never seen it go well to benefit anybody, a player or organization, when you start talking about contracts in the media. So I just choose not to do that. I’m very optimistic because Frank’s a ‘says what he means, means what he says’ guy. Our organization is the same exact way. Like we’ve said, we’ll deal with this man to man with Frank and with his agent, Drew, but Frank is a great guy. Frank is a true 49er. I’ve said that from when I first got here, that’s how I thought I would feel about Frank Gore. Now I know how I feel about Frank Gore. The guy is awesome. Somebody should do a movie. Somebody should do the Frank Gore story, because it’s an awesome story.”

Just to clarify, are your starters going to play at least some of Thursday’s game?

“I anticipate our starters playing, yes. Always individual decisions you have to make for each guy.”

Frank, too?

“We’ll see.”

What is TE Vernon Davis’ status?

“A family, personal reason for missing today.”

Did he have to leave the area?

“It’s a personal, family issue.”

Will C Jonathan Goodwin start the game at center?

“Yes, he will start this game at center.”

Do you want to see more of him than what you’ve been seeing with the first group?

“Well, like I’ve said before, I really and truly believe that we’ve got seven starters on our offensive line. We’re going to look at combinations and find out what the best one is as we move forward, in terms of what the best five is. We know what the best seven is.”

Frank Gore had indicated after talking to you in the offseason he was very excited about his role in the offense. Obviously in those talks you got a good impression of him. People talk about what a smart guy he is as a football player. Can you talk specifically about why you’re so excited about Frank Gore, why you say he should go to Hollywood?

“Yeah, it’s a great story. He’s a guy that really deserves all the credit. The way he’s worked. He’s so astute on so many fronts, and a guy that makes his life, changes his life, impacts other people in a positive way. He’s a team guy, he’s a great football player, and he’s got a big heart, most of all that’s what I like about Frank. He’s just enjoyable to be around. He works his tail off. I love his work ethic.”

Coach, in regards to cut down day, how difficult was your first cut down? And as far as now, are you guys going to be involved in scouring the wave wires to see what else is out there?

“Well, at all times we’ll be trying to make the decisions that are best for our football team.”

Can you talk about the decision to cut LB Scott McKillop and what factored into that?

“Yeah, I think for Scott, it was a decision that was made now so that there could be a chance to get on with another football team. The way that it has shaken out he wouldn’t have a spot here on our team. So especially when it comes to guys that have been on the 49ers, and have been 49ers, you go a little extra to try to make it best possible situation for them.”

Obviously you were a player in the league for a long time dealing with management, now you’re more management dealing with players. Did your experience as a player color the way that you handle a day like this and deal with the players on cut down day?

“No, just as a person. It’s about having a conversation and being honest, and being truthful. I think it has more to do with that than whether you are a coach, or a player, or management, or anything else.”

Being truthful, did you give the guys like, here’s what I think about your future prospects, and send them off with something like that, or is that not where you want to go?

“That’s just conversation between me and those guys, and they are not always the same. I tell them the truth as I know it, as I see it at that time. If there’s an opportunity to advise them and if they want that advice, then absolutely. I’ll also again speak the truth as I know it at the time, and appreciate them too. Appreciate the guys for the work that they’ve done and the contributions they’ve made to our football team, and if there is anything I can do for them, we can do for them, within our power, and we have the ability to do that, and it aligns with what’s best for our football team, sure as heck would do it.”

Jim, you’ve talked about how impressed you’ve been with Crabtree in meeting settings and things to that degree, does that make you maybe comfortable putting him on the field Thursday. You didn’t rule him out for Thursday. Has he shown you enough that he can go out there and do something?

“We’ll see how he progresses physically. Definitely the mental work that he’s done is not going to be a big hurdle, in my opinion, and that’s what I know of right now. Until we actually get him out there and start working to the tempo and the timing, the actual practicing, we’ll have a better idea, and could tell you better at that time. Right now it’s just speculating.”

On the cuts, do you meet with all the players personally, or because you have so many cuts in such a short period of time, is that even logistically possible?

“I would like to meet with all the guys.”

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The 49ers just sent out a press release listing the first seven cuts. They are:

• WR Tyler Beiler
• T Donovan Edwards
• G Nick Howell
• WR Kevin Jurovich
• LB Scott McKillop
• P Sam Paulescu
• RB Seth Smith.

SAN FRANCISCO — Watching a football game from a press box is new to me, and the view from there is terrific. As opposed to TV, you get to see the defensive backfield and the wide receivers run their routes and who’s open and who isn’t.

I don’t want to seem negative and I haven’t watched the film of the game yet, but here are the impressions I got from the Rambus Press Box at Candlestick park.

When Matt Schaub dropped back to pass, especially on a play action, often more than one receiver was wide open. He didn’t have to find one open receiver, he had to choose which open guy to throw to. On some plays it looked like he had his primary target (Andre Johnson) open, he had his alternate target (Owen Daniels) open, and he had an outlet (any running back) open. The Niners couldn’t cover any of them.

The Texans are a terrific offensive team, but clearly the 49ers have things to fix in the next two weeks.

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SAN FRANCISCO — Here’s what Colin Kaepernick had to say at his locker after the game, courtesy of the 49ers.

Were there a lot of breakdowns on offense?

“I think the biggest thing right now is, if you have ten people doing the right thing on one play, and you have one person doing the wrong thing on offense, that turns into a bad play and it turns into a bad play quickly. Right now we’re kind of having some of those problems where it might be one thing here, one thing there, and a drive falls apart because of that.”

What happened on the interception, were you just trying to get the guy and didn’t see the defender cut in front?

“No, actually I saw the safety. I thought that [WR] Braylon [Edwards] was going to be able to cross his face before he got there. Just a bad judgment on my part.”

What does [Head Coach Jim] Harbaugh tell you after something like that?

“He asked me if I saw the safety, if I saw what was going on. I told him, ‘yeah.’ He said, ‘All right, well we’ll just move on from there, we learn from it.’ That’s one of the good things about the preseason is you can learn from those things and they don’t count for anything right now.”

How hurried did you feel? How rushed did you feel back there? It seemed like you guys were under a lot of pressure.

“That’s something you have to deal with as a quarterback no matter where you are at. Right now we’re still trying to pick up on things. We’re trying to adjust to different things. So, right now every position is going to have problems from time to time.”

What do you think you didn’t adjust to against the Texans?

“I think everything we did today was just on ourselves. We had little problems here and there that we just need to correct throughout the next week.”

That was your first time playing with some ones against their ones, how do you think of your overall performance in that time?

“I think we need to get a lot better. I think the scoreboard shows that. We didn’t put any points on the board offensively tonight. So, there’s a lot of things we need to work on.”

Were you disappointed and would you like to see more points scored offensively?

“Yeah, being an offensive player, you always want to put points on the board. You want to put as many up there as you can, but right now there’s still a lot of learning we’re doing. There’s a lot of progressions we’re still going through, and really we’re trying to get amped up for this season. This is practice for this season to make sure everything is right then.”

What was different about going against ones and playing with some ones also?

“I wouldn’t say there were any huge differences. You still have to go out there, you have to play football and go through your reads.”

Was there anything positive you took from tonight’s game?

“You can learn a lot from games like this. As much as you hate to have them, sometimes you learn more from losses than wins.”

What did you learn?

“You have to get better. You’ve got to do a lot of things better offensively. I have to be better with my eyes, feet, and some of my reads.”

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