An ‘A’

Ross Tucker from SI hands out grades every Monday to derserving NFL parties. This week he handed out an “A” to coach Mike Singletary:

Mike Singletary, San Francisco 49ers. One of the toughest things to do for any head coach is to get his team to play inspired football when the playoffs are no longer in reach. Singletary has been passing with flying colors ever since that humiliating defeat at home against Seattle in his debut.

Singletary’s public humiliation of Vernon Davis, private halftime speech in which he dropped his trousers, and postgame press conference were the talk of the league for quite some time and won’t soon be forgotten. But to his credit, Singletary has put that aside as he focuses solely on the duties at hand. He knows he needs to finish in impressive fashion to be considered for the permanent job. He took a big step in the right direction Sunday as his team found a way to win on the road. The Niners limited the Bills, who had just scored 54 points the previous week, to just three points.

Singletary has his team playing extremely hard, that much is clear, and players like Takeo Spikes and Shaun Hill told me on Sirius XM NFL Radio how much they enjoy playing for him as they try to ensure that he will get a longer opportunity in San Fran. The victory over the Bills was hardly a statistical gem, but it was the first time this season that a West Coast team traveled to the East Coast and won.