Still experiencing pain in his right shoulder, San Francisco 49ers starting quarterback Alex Smith might be close to resolving the issue of how best to treat the injury, and that could include the possibility of not playing again in 2007. Smith told Bay Area reporters on Thursday that, even after nearly two weeks of rest, he still can't raise his right arm above his shoulder without discomfort. He will visit early next week with an orthopedist, and surgery remains a viable option for the top overall selection from the 2005 draft.

Tully Banta-Cain pounced on Kurt Warner's fumble in the Cardinals' end zone to give the 49ers a wild 37-31 overtime victory and end their eight-game losing streak Sunday. "You could have swore we just won the Super Bowl the way we were celebrating," Banta-Cain said.

Hall of Fame middle linebacker Mike Singletary, the assistant head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, has removed his name from consideration for the head coach position at Baylor University, his alma mater. Singletary, who many league observers feel will be a head coach in the NFL someday, met with Baylor athletic director Ian McCaw in the Bay Area on Monday, and the two spoke on Wednesday as well. But Singletary, who was also considered for the Baylor job a few years ago, determined the position was not a good fit.

With the 49ers riding an eight-game losing streak and coming off four straight losing seasons, co-owner Denise DeBartolo York is promising change. DeBartolo York gave coach Mike Nolan and quarterback Alex Smith a vote of confidence, but she told the San Francisco Chronicle that the team plans big changes during the offseason, including likely hiring a general manager to oversee the entire football operation. "I would consider anything," DeBartolo York told the Chronicle. "I think that we have to get the minds together, the powers that be. I don't think I can start to delve into the entire football operation right now. I would need the whole panel of people there."

Ted Tollner rejoined the 49ers as an assistant coach Tuesday in an effort to spark the club's miserable offense. Tollner, the former USC and San Diego State coach, also is a longtime NFL assistant who served on the 49ers' coaching staff from 2002-04, with two years as quarterbacks' coach and one season as offensive coordinator. He was the Lions' offensive coordinator for part of the 2005 season.

San Francisco 49ers starting quarterback Alex Smith, who has struggled with shoulder and forearm problems since suffering a Grade III separation of his right shoulder on Sept. 30, will likely need at least two more weeks of rest and rehabilitation, and even then might still require surgery to repair the damage. The first overall choice in the 2005 draft, Smith was examined on Tuesday by noted orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, Ala. Sources close to Smith said Andrews apprised the third-year veteran that the shoulder separation was not significantly improved and might actually be worse in some ways than when he initially viewed the original MRI of the injury three weeks ago. A 49ers spokesman said the team's medical staff had not received the Andrews report.

Baylor Athletic Director Ian McCaw flew to California on Monday to interview San Francisco 49ers assistant head coach Mike Singletary the day after firing Guy Morriss, according to a source. McCaw is conducting the search to replace Morriss, who was fired as Baylor?s head football coach on Sunday after compiling a five-year record of 18-40. The 49-year-old Singletary, a former Baylor all-American linebacker and NFL Hall of Famer with the Chicago Bears, interviewed for the Baylor job five years ago. But with no coaching experience, Singletary was passed over in favor of Morriss.

Receiver Ashley Lelie will miss the 49ers' game against St. Louis after straining his quadriceps in practice Wednesday.

Trent Dilfer will start for the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday in place of quarterback Alex Smith, who finally acknowledged a serious arm injury has been affecting his play. Dilfer, the 14-year veteran who struggled through three straight losses while filling in for Smith, got the assignment Thursday from Coach Mike Nolan. Smith and his coach had a lengthy meeting Wednesday following the quarterback's public disclosure that his recently separated right shoulder led to a forearm injury that prevents him from throwing well. Smith and Nolan both had previously denied Smith's arm injury was causing his poor play. So the 49ers (2-7) will turn to Dilfer for their home game against the St. Louis Rams (1-8).

Mike Nolan seems like a stand-up guy, but that's an outright lie. He's been treating his quarterback badly and he's treated other people badly, and he consistently blames others for his own mistakes. If anyone with a conscience runs the 49ers, Nolan is doomed in San Francisco. What he's done to Alex Smith is shameful. For weeks, Nolan insisted Smith's shoulder was OK. Cohn sat in the postgame news conference after Seattle shut out the Niners, and listened as Nolan, with an ironic grin, insisted Smith's shoulder was sound. He said this even though Smith barely could throw a pass. Nolan's implication was the quarterback was the big problem, certainly not the coach.