In truth, it has been almost impossible to know how good Alex Smith really is. Five different offensive coordinators in five seasons is going to mess with every offensive players head, but the quarterback more than anyone else. I won't say that Smith can be lumped in, or ever will be, with Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady. But this season he's done more than just not making mistakes. The offense is well suited to his abilities, and the 49ers didn't really upgrade their offensive personnel in the off-season. So, it's not like they got him more weapons, they've just finally gotten him an offense he's comfortable in with a coach who supports him 100% as the starter. It's made a big difference for them.

I don't know, having to learn new playbooks every season is very hard to do although I am sure they used some of the same plays as years before.

7 in 7 years, actually.

Also, I recall Smith saying in an interview a few months ago that each offense was different from year to year.