O.T.A. Reports - Hostler's Notes

From Fox Sports,

At the conclusion of the 49ers' Organized Team Activities, offensive coordinator Jim Hostler made an observation to his unit. Hostler spent the previous two seasons as quarterbacks coach. "We've gone through two years of learning in the offseason," Hostler said. "This is the first time we've had a chance to get better at what we do. And there's a huge difference there." Quarterback Alex Smith learned two different offenses in his first two NFL seasons. He was paired with Mike McCarthy and a West Coast scheme in his first season. Last year, Smith came under the tutelage of Norv Turner's vertical passing game.

Although Smith has his third offensive coordinator in three years, he will not be asked to learn a new scheme this season. In fact, the 49ers will use mostly the offense that Turner installed, while incorporating some aspects of the West Coast system. "We didn't throw the ball down the field and we didn't stretch the defense," Smith said of McCarthy's short-passing game. "Defenses were on top of us, and playing downhill was hard. It was like we were the passive ones and they were the aggressors."

Last year, Turner implemented more seven-step drops and deeper pass routes. Although the 49ers got more big plays, they ranked among the worst in the league on third downs and in red-zone efficiency. "I think a little bit we missed the controlled-passing game, and five-step drops and things like that," Smith said. "It's nice that (Hostler) is incorporating both. And we need to be able to do both."