ESPN NFL

Posted by ESPN.com's Mike Sando

The premise: A team's best players must play their best for a team to realize its potential.

The reality for San Francisco: It's not happening.

A quick look at how the 49ers' players with Pro Bowl experience are faring midway through the 2008 season:

• Andy Lee, P: His numbers are strong, but not where they were last season. Offensive field position can affect punting stats. The 49ers aren't punting as frequently. They aren't getting as many inside-the-20 punts.
• Frank Gore, RB: He's on pace for more than 1,200 yards rushing. Look for his numbers to spike as the 49ers commit fully to the run under Mike Singletary.
• Nate Clements, CB: The 49ers still don't have a great pass rush. Their safety play has been sketchy. That makes it tougher for Clements, who is playing OK, but not great.
• Walt Harris, CB: We're seeing signs that Harris is nearing the end. The team has tried him some at safety.
• Michael Lewis, S: Went to the Pro Bowl after the 2004 season, but has not been back. Not playing at that level this season.
• Takeo Spikes, LB: Spikes has given the 49ers more than they could have expected from a 31-year-old linebacker. He has three interceptions.
• Patrick Willis, LB: It's tough to explain why Willis hasn't been as dominant as he was during his rookie season. The defense as a whole hasn't been as good.
• Isaac Bruce, WR: His 17.3-yard average has exceeded reasonable expectations for a 35-year-old receiver. But with only 23 receptions, Bruce is on pace to finish with his fewest number of receptions since his rookie season in Los Angeles.

Brian Jennings has also gone to a Pro Bowl. I'll put him in a different category because we tend to take accurate long-snapping for granted.