49ers Offensive Chemistry

So, unfortunately, the 49ers Home Page doesn’t list the birth dates of their players (a gross oversight in my astrological opinion), and so it’s taken me longer than I expected to compile my data; in fact, I’ve only had the opportunity to look at the offensive side of the ball. Here’s what I’ve found so far:

The 49ers are a mess.

That is to say: from a basic astrology point of view, they’re something of a mixed bag…a stew if you will. And they’ve got some pretty fair challenges on the offensive side of the ball. Which is not to say it won’t be…um…exciting football. As I learned in last weekend’s NORWAC conference, “the most difficult Aspect to have in a chart is NO Aspect.” But still, it’s not going to be smooth sailing for the 49ers.

First off…um, where’s the center? NFL.com shows the team has no C position. The 49ers home page lists Tony Wragge as the center, even though his position is listed as guard. Wragge’s a Big Leo, so he probably exclaimed, “hey coach, I can play ANY position.” Actually C is a good position for a Leo…he gets to be the center of the line (just like the Sun is the CENTER OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM). Kudos to you, lad, for taking on the job.

Now, the Center has that all-important job of snapping the ball. QB Alex Smith is a Taurus, astrologically square (a difficult or “challenging” aspect) to Leo. Uh-oh…in general, one would prefer to have these guys in a more “harmonious” pairing, to cut down the number of fumbled snaps. The tension between the two means they’re just going to have to work harder in practice.

Frank Gore is a 3rd year back and a Taurus…reminiscent of Taurus Emmitt Smith, even in his height and weight (Emmitt was 5’8”, 200#; Gore is 5’9”, 212#). Stocky little Bulls; I can’t remember for sure but didn’t Emmitt have some fumbling problems in the early years, too? Well, Emmitt had his best years running behind Aquarius Moose Johnston…Gore’s fullback counterpart is Gemini Moran Norris. Aquarius-Taurus is a square aspect (challenging, see above), but one with explosive potential (note: you don’t usually want explosive potential between a QB and center). Gemini-Taurus is a non-aspect. They’re not even on the same planet, let alone the same page. Gemini is all about talking, picking up and collecting information, linear/logical thinking. Taurus is about…well, sitting quiet, withdrawing, hoarding energy/resources. Of course, I just went to the wedding of a Gemini friend who has several planets in Taurus, and such might be the case with Norris…I’m just talking in general, here.

Regarding the relationship of the QB to his receivers…again you want these folks to be on the same page for maximum effectiveness. Here are some examples:

Dave Krieg (Libra) – Steve Largent (Libra) Conjunct signs
Steve Young (Libra) – Jerry Rice (Libra) Conjunct signs
John Elway (Cancer) – Shannon Sharpe (Cancer) Conjunct signs
Joe Montana (Gemini) – Jerry Rice (Libra) Trine signs
Matt Hasselbeck (Libra) – Darrel Jackson (Sagittarius) Sextile signs

Conjunctions, Trines, and Sextiles are all pretty favorable. Squares and Oppositions can be challenging but with a lot of potential for growth (based on tension…especially with squares). Here’s how Alex Smith (Taurus) shows up with his receivers:

TE Vernon Davis (Aquarius) – Square
WR Arnaz Battle (Pisces) – Sextile
WR Bryan Gilmore (Cancer) – Sextile
WR Ash Lelie (Aquarius) – Square
WR Darrel Jackson (Sagittarius) – No aspect

While Lelie and Davis have the potential to make an impact, Battle and Gilmore are more likely to be on the same page with Smith (Battle was the leading receiver last year). Interesting that D-Jack has no aspect with Mr. Smith. It will be interesting to see if and how he can adapt to the 49ers game plan. Seattle will certainly miss him.

The offensive line is the next area of interest. On the left side we have Justin Smiley (Scorpio) and Kwame Harris (Pisces). These two should get along quite well and should give Gore some decent running on the outside. On the right we have Larry Allen (Sagittarius) and Jonas Jennings (Scorpio). As non-aspected signs, it may require a little work to find common ground. Fortunately, Scorpios will often have a bit of Sag in them and vice versa (being next to each other in the zodiac, there’s often Mercury or Venus in the other sign). They’re a bit more problematic for their running backs (Sag is opposed Gemini and non-aspected with Taurus; Scorpio is opposed Taurus and non-aspected with Gemini). As for their “center;” well, a Leo will get along famously with a Sagittarius, but can certainly have clashes with Scorpio (Scorps and Leos both being the biggest “drama queens” of the zodiac).

Some may think it strange to even look at this kind of melding of “astrological chemistry.” However, from what I’ve read and heard from offensive linemen, the gelling of the line is a substantial part of the whole offensive process. Lord knows, the Seahawks have had some tremendous line difficulties over the years (and have ended up with mediocre records despite some talented players). However, let’s look at the truly dominant left side of the 2005 Seattle Seahawks:

T Walter Jones (Capricorn)
G Steve Hutchinson (Scorpio)
C Robbie Tobeck (Pisces)

Capricorn sextile Scorpio and sextile Pisces. Scorpio sextile Capricorn trine Pisces. Pisces sextile Capricorn, trine Scorpio. Add Shaun Alexander (Virgo) running behind Mack Strong (Virgo) and you end up with a truly unstoppable left side (Virgo is trine Capricorn and sextile Scorpio)…one that allowed Shaun Alexander to lead the league in rushing yards and break the record for most TDs in a season. Oh, yeah…and take the Seahawks to their first Super Bowl.

Okay, so the last piece we need to look at is the coach, of course. Mike Nolan is a Pisces…definitely necessary for a team that is in such a state of chaos. Pisces should get along very well with a Taurus QB (Alex Smith)…though theirs will seem a lot less of an intellectual relationship then some coach-players…more of an “I feel you guy” kind of relationship with grokking the gist type of communication. Which is VERY different from past 49ers coaches (I can’t find any Pisceans in the 49ers list of past head coaches), and it really remains to be seen whether or not he’ll be able to turn the team around. As stated, they’ve certainly got some challenges.