San Francisco 49ers coach Mike Singletary has learned, and seems to be accepting, that sheer force of his will and desire won’t squeeze victories out of the team. “You’re just trying to make sure you have everything where it needs to be, making sure your players (are in the right) mental state of mind and trying to figure out practice, trying to look at some of the injuries,” Singletary said. “Even though they are day-to-day, you’re trying to figure out how to manage those things and at the same time putting the game plan together. So that’s where my mind is.” — San Jose Mercury News

These figure to be Alex Smith’s final four games for the 49ers. He’s 17-30 as a starter with 46 TDs and 52 INTs. Singletary thought Smith gave the 4-8 team its best shot of staying in the playoff race in the NFC West. Troy Smith was 3-2 as a starter. — Fox Sports

Jed York’s been saying – and text-ing – it all season, and he’s not changing his message: The 49ers can still make the playoffs. Despite his team’s 18-point loss Sunday and its 4-8 record, the 49ers’ president and chief operating officer on Sunday said the playoffs are still within the team’s grasp if it can win its three remaining games against division opponents. Two of those opponents, the Rams and Seahawks, are tied atop the NFC West. Both won on Sunday, putting the 49ers in a two-game hole in the race to win the league’s sorriest division. “Our guys can’t give up,” York said. “We have to keep moving forward.” — Sacramento Bee

If the 49ers continue to fade in the NFC West and don’t make the playoffs, many believe that owner Jed York will make a move to hire a big-name coach to replace Mike Singletary. In today’s NFL, football is all about revenue. The 49ers need a revenue injection to help them build a new, much-needed stadium. And the only way to do that is by hiring a major coach who will attract new fans and new revenue. The status quo definitely won’t work in the Bay Area. This is why Jon Gruden makes sense in San Francisco. Gruden was never interested in the U. of Miami job, but he started his career in San Francisco and the team has a lot of pieces in place except for quarterback. But the 49ers can draft one next April. — Fox Sports

The 49ers will turn to their third kicker of the season in what promises to be a sub-freezing game Sunday in Green Bay. The team picked up former Steelers kicker Jeff Reed on Thursday to fill in for Joe Nedney, whose right knee strain has not progress- ed as quickly as hoped. According to Reed’s agent, the 49ers gave Reed the option of meeting the team in Green Bay, but he decided to fly to the Bay Area this morning, sign his contract and join his new team when it flies to Green Bay on Saturday morning. — Sac Bee

49ers QB Alex Smith offered a polite but forceful retort, saying he and Mike Singletary have very different ideas about what leadership entails. “Being a middle linebacker – and what leadership is – and being a quarterback are different things,” he said. “Executing on offense and executing on the defensive side of the ball are very different things. It’s a different mind-set, in my opinion. We’ve talked a lot. I mean, over the last couple of years we’ve always talked. He’s pretty open about that.” Smith noted that Singletary had no issues with his leadership skills when he took over for Shaun Hill at the midpoint last season. Singletary also named Smith one of the team captains before this season. “I’m the same guy I was then, and that leadership was just the same,” Smith said. “I’m the same I’ve always been. I work hard, I feel like I’m a good teammate, bust my (butt) to do everything I can to help us win. I mean, I’m there for my teammates. “I think the real question as far as leadership goes, you have to talk to the guys in this locker room. That determines leadership – not coaches, not me. It’s your peers.” — Sacramento Bee

John York on Tuesday reiterated ownership’s stance that Mike Singletary’s job is safe despite the 49ers’ disappointing start. Asked if Singletary will remain the team’s coach for the rest of the season, York responded: “Yes, he’s our coach.” York spoke to a handful of reporters at a charity event in London, where players made a goodwill visit to schoolchildren in advance of the 49ers’ game against the Denver Broncos on Sunday at Wembley Stadium. The brewing cloud over Singletary, however, followed him overseas. After a loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, which dropped the 49ers to 1-6, Comcast SportsNet Bay Area reported that York and his son, team president Jed York, were displeased with the coaching in the 23-20 defeat. Comcast quoted an unidentified source as saying there were “some grumbles” from both John and Jed. “I’m not sure why somebody would have said that.” John York said, when asked about the report. “We were grumbling because we lost the game. I think we grumble anytime we lose the game.” — San Jose Mercury News

The 49ers’ starter for Sunday’s game at Wembley Stadium will be Troy Smith, Mike Singletary announced before the team’s Wednesday practice in Hertfordshire, England. Regular starter Alex Smith will miss two to three weeks with a left shoulder sprain, he said. The move means that Singletary has skipped over David Carr, who was ineffective after filling in for Smith on Sunday, for Troy Smith, who only joined the team on Sept. 6. — Sac Bee

Following the 49ers’ sixth loss in seven games to open the season, John and Jed York privately expressed displeasure about the team’s coaching to their “inner circle,” a team source told Comcast SportsNet on Sunday. “There were some grumbles from the owners about bad coaching,” the source said. Coach Mike Singletary was signed to a four-year contract after guiding the 49ers to a 5-4 finish in 2008 as the interim coach. But the 49ers went 8-8 last year, and are off to a 1-6 start this season. Team president Jed York, the son of owner John York, declared the 49ers would still win the NFC West even after the club lost its first five games of the season. — CSN Bay Area

In what has become an almost weekly ritual, the 49ers pledged to ease up on Frank Gore’s workload. Offensive coordinator Mike Johnson said it again Thursday, vowing “there will be a plan going forward to make sure we use other people (so) that he’s not taking as many of those snaps.” Um “… sure. Coach Mike Singletary said the same thing as far back as draft weekend, after the team selected running back Anthony Dixon. “You have a hard time trying to explain to Frank how some other guy needs to play. He just doesn’t get it,” Singletary said in April. “I think as time goes on, he’ll be a little more willing to do that.” Um “… right. Six games into the season, Gore has 116 carries. Dixon has three carries, and Brian Westbrook has two. Gore also is the 49ers’ leading receiver with 33 catches (five more than tight end Vernon Davis). The 49ers have run 371 offensive plays, and Gore has touched the ball 149 times. In other words, 40 percent of the offense is going through one guy. — San Jose Mercury News

At 330 pounds, Isaac Sopoaga is big enough to handle multiple nicknames. Teammates call him “Soupy,” “Chief,” “Ice” and “Big Ike,” to name a few. Now, he can add new nickname to the list: Refrigerator II. The 49ers defensive tackle lined up as a fullback twice Sunday in the late stages of a 17-9 victory over the Raiders, evoking memories of William “The Refrigerator” Perry, the Chicago Bears defensive tackle (and Mike Singletary teammate) who gained fame as a short-yardage specialist in 1985. Sopoaga didn’t carry the ball, but his mere presence on offense created a stir. “Guys were just laughing,” he recalled Monday. “They were like, ‘I can’t believe you’re in this huddle.’ ” Sopoaga’s presence also showed the willingness of new offensive coordinator Mike Johnson to add a few wrinkles to a previously predictable offense. The results were less than astonishing — the 49ers had 349 total yards, just a tick above their season average — but at least they provided a few more things for the Carolina Panthers (0-5) to think about Sunday in Charlotte, N.C. — San Jose Mercury News

Earlier this week, Alex Smith vowed to play more fearlessly. He said he would “cut it loose” after seeing how well the aggressive approach worked in the final minutes last weekend against Eagles. But let’s not get crazy, Smith said. “You’re not trying to get out of hand. You have to make split-second decisions, smart decisions, throughout the course of the game,” he said Wednesday. So he plans to cut it loose “… within reason. “You can’t lose your levelheadedness,” Smith said. “The emotions of the game go up and down, and as a quarterback, I think you have to be the guy that is always steadying the ship.” Smith leads the NFL with nine interceptions, a stat he blames on playing too cautiously. He recognizes that sounds counterintuitive, but playing tentatively can mean being a fraction of a second too late with a throw. — San Jose Mercury News

Say what you will about Alex Smith. Seriously, say what you will, because Smith isn’t going to hear it. The 49ers quarterback does his best to avoid the avalanche of criticism awaiting him on sports pages and talk radio. He doesn’t need to read it to know it’s there. “As a starting quarterback in the NFL, you are more responsible for wins and losses than any player on the field,” Smith said Wednesday. “So to go 0-4 and then say you’re surprised by (scrutiny), you’d be pretty ignorant or pretty naive. “We’re 0-4. I’m the starting quarterback. So, no question a lot of that falls on my shoulders, absolutely, without a doubt.” — San Jose Mercury News

Mike Singletary acknowledged Monday that questions about his job security are “the nature of the game” after the 49ers’ 0-4 start. But in the same breath, he maintained he isn’t the least bit worried about them. “Players have responsibilities and if they don’t do their jobs certain things happen,” he said. “Coaches have responsibilities and if they don’t do their job, things happen. My mind doesn’t focus like that. I don’t worry about who I need to talk to, am I OK. These 53 guys, that’s my responsibility. The last thing I’m thinking about is my job security.” Singletary maintained he isn’t paying attention. “The most important thing that I’m thinking about is where this team is going, the direction of this team,” he said. “As far as all that other stuff, there are coaches right now that are riding pretty high and at the end of the season, their job will be in jeopardy.” – Oakland Tribune