(By: Daisy Barringer)

Considering Coach Harbaugh claims Kaepernick is starting on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins it appears he either didn’t read my letter or… well, clearly that’s the only option as had he read the letter, we all know who would be starting on Sunday: Alex Smith.

Alas, in Monday’s press conference, Harbaugh said he still felt like Kaepernick was the team’s starting quarterback. Of course he also said, “Alex is not out of this” and even though it seems clear at this point that just means that Smith is the backup in case something happens to Kaepernick, like an injury or a complete meltdown, I can’t help but let it give me hope.

I mean, call me a dreamer, but I’ve literally spent all week fantasizing that Harbaugh is just trying to fool the Dolphins into preparing for Kaepernick when, in fact, he’s been planning all along to go with Smith. I know, I know. It’s not going to happen. But a girl’s gotta have something to fantasize about and ever since Jared Leto shaved off his eyebrows to play a drag queen in “The Dallas Buyers Club,” there hasn’t been much.

However, regardless of who the starting quarterback is, we have a game to play on Sunday and winning right now is more important than anything we’ve ever done. The Packers and Bears are only half a game behind us and the Seahawks are on all of our heels. The Niners need to win all four of their final games. Starting with the Dolphins.

The Good

  • At 5-7, the Dolphins kind of suck. Their wins this year come against the Raiders, Bengals, Rams, Jets, and Seahawks. They’ve also lost four of their last five.
  • Under Harbaugh, the Niners are 5-0 after a loss. I wish we didn’t lose so much that this was a statistic, but there you have it. It’s a home game, the crowd will be into it, and the Niners know what’s on the line.
  • As much as it kills me to say it: Miami’s defense sucks against the mobile quarterback. And Kaepernick is definitely mobile. Dude can run and pass. Expect to see him doing a lot of the former on Sunday.
  • Offensive tackle, former No. 1 pick, and four-time Pro Bowler Jake Long is injured. He’s being replaced by a rookie who has never started a game at left tackle. Look for some intense blindside action on QB Ryan Tannehill from everyone’s favorite OLB, Aldon Smith.
  • And even if Aldon Smith doesn’t sack the rookie, Tannehill pretty much sucks. The Dolphins offense as a whole ranks 28th and the only current starter with a lower passer rating than his (72.3) is Mark Sanchez.

The Bad

  • Reggie Bush is a threat. Luckily, he’s not as much of a threat because he’s under-utilized and the Niners have a great run defense. Still, it’s important to contain him.
  • Mario Manningham suffered a shoulder injury last Sunday and hasn’t practiced all week as a result. If he doesn’t play, that leaves the Niners with Crabtree, Randy Moss, Ted Ginn and A.J. Jenkins. Not too inspiring. What is inspiring, however, is that Delanie Walker and Vernon Davis can still make big plays even if we’re low on WRs.
  • Miami actually has a decent run defense. Frank Gore and Brandon Jacobs were pretty ineffective last week, so it will be interesting to see what happens this week. People are dying for LaMichael James to go out there and show what he can do; I don’t know if it will happen. Can’t stand the guy’s attitude on Twitter, but I am stoked to see him run.
  • Too many 49ers penalties. Enough with that crap.
  • David Akers. I seriously can’t even with this guy right now. SO. OVER HIM.
  • Kaepernick made mistakes last week. Crucial mistakes that cost the Niners the game. Is he to blame? I mean, sure. But he shouldn’t have even been in that position. Nonetheless, he will be again this week. And this time it’s at home. If he does anything too egregious, I can only imagine this crowd starts chanting “We want Smith.”

The Rest of It
I don’t appreciate the controversy that was caused with the benching of Smith. I think it took away from the team’s focus. I think it is why we lost last week. I think that loss could very easily haunt us when it comes to the playoffs. But at this point, it is what it is.

Sunday is Kaepernick’s first start at home since Smith was cleared to play. Yay. Regardless, and as I mentioned above, maybe even because of that, I think the Niners have every single thing they need to win this game. They just need to come out confident, score first, create turnovers, control the clock, NOT MISS FIELD GOALS, and do all of those other cliché things that need to happen for a team to win.

It would be a pretty big upset for the Dolphins to come into Candlestick on Sunday and win. And I just don’t see that happening. Not this week.

As always: Wear Red. Get Loud. And buy me a beer if you see me. Please.

GO NINERS!

Watch San Francisco vs. Miami this Sunday at 1:05 p.m. PST on CBS.