49ers' get-together will focus on new offense

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June 3, 2011MAIOCCO ARCHIVE49ERS PAGE49ERS VIDEOMatt MaioccoCSNBayArea.comTight end Vernon Davis revealed on Twitter on Friday that he plans to attend the 49ers' player-organized "minicamp," which he noted begins on Monday.DAVIS TWEET: "Wake up!!!"
Quarterback Alex Smith said this week that he has personally reached out to every 49ers offensive player to extend invitations to the get-together. A group of approximately 15 players has been meeting regularly in the South Bay since the beginning of the owners-imposed lockout.This is the first time in which all of the 49ers have been encouraged to come to the Bay Area to work on some of the details of the new 49ers playbook.Question: With no coaches allowed, who runs workouts, drills, 7-on-7's, etc in mini-camp, just the players themselves? @yougomango
Answer: This is Alex Smith's baby. (Actually, it's his second baby. His wife gave birth to the couple's first child several weeks ago.)Of course, the NFL is prohibiting coaches from any contact with players. So Smith will take charge with the outline of what he hopes to accomplish.
There is not expected to be any 7-on-7 work, which pits the offense vs. the defense. The offense will be running their plays mostly -- if not, exclusively -- against air. Vic Fangio's defensive playbook is not circulating among the 49ers' players, so there's nothing to gain for the defense to get on the field together.Also, when the offense and defense get together -- even in non-contract work -- the risk of injury increases dramatically. Any injury during a lockout could have potentially disastrous consequences.Smith got his hands on the playbook on April 29 when the lockout briefly was lifted. It took Smith just two years to graduate from Utah with a degree in economics. In a month's time, he has learned the basics of the Jim Harbaugh-Greg Roman authored playbook. The 49ers' new offense is similar to what Smith learned as a rookie under then-coordinator Mike McCarthy.Now, Smith is ready to teach his teammates what he has learned in a class called "West Coast Offense 101."

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