[WillH]

Well I just looked this up on Wikipedia, Im not sure how accurate or relevant any of this is but for the sake of argument:

The West Coast offense requires a quarterback who throws extremely accurately, and often blindly, very close to opposing players hands. In addition, it requires the quarterback to be able to quickly pick one of 5 receivers to throw to, much quicker than previously used systems. Often, the quarterback cannot think about the play, but instead reacts instinctively--and thus is often under the control of the offensive coordinator, calling the plays for him.

This is in contrast to the previous quarterback requirements of other systems, which were an adept game manager and a strong arm. Thus, for example, many people reasoned that Johnny Unitas, a strong-armed field general would not have fared well in being subservient to the offensive coordinator, and that his long but sometimes wobbly passes would not have worked in the new system. The West Coast offense caused a split still evident today amongst quarterbacks: those who were more adept at the west coast style (Joe Montana, Steve Young, Matt Hasselbeck) and those more in tune with the old style (Dan Marino, Jim Kelly, Peyton Manning).

Also, the West Coast offense requires sure-handed receivers comfortable catching in heavy traffic, and the system downplays speedy, larger receivers who are covered easily in short yardage situation. One result has been the longevity of receivers in the West Coast system (such as the notable Jerry Rice) because a decline in speed is not as harmful, when, in "stretch the field" systems, a receiver who loses a step is a major liability. "WCO" systems also rely on agile running backs that catch the ball as often as they run. Roger Craig was a leading receiver for the 49ers for many years and was often a 1000 yard rusher and 1000 yard receiver. Finally, receivers must follow precise, complicated routes as opposed to innovation; so subservient, intelligent players are valued more than independent, pure athletes.

A West Coast offense thus requires a willing, accurate passer and sure-handed receivers with intelligence.

Finally, the West Coast offense, with its emphasis on quick reactive skills, can be seen to further develop the running quarterback motif, where extremely fast running quarterbacks (Michael Vick, Jake Plummer, Steve Young, Donovan McNabb, Vince Young) are valued, if they are good passers, because in blitz or short-yardage situations, when the West Coast offense's value is negated, the running quarterback can make up this difference by posing a threat to make the first down himself, paralyzing an aggressive defense.

So (according to these requirements) we seem to have some things that lend to this type of system, and some that dont (how insightful huh?).

Campbell is accurate, but perhaps not on shorter throws. He has incredible arm strength so one could argue that the WCO might be a waste of that ability considering its heavy use of quick, short passes, but of course those deeper passes can be set up by the shorter passes. Also I am not sure if he has the knowledge to make all the reads accurately just yet, and he seems to have trouble getting the ball out quick enough to make this system work correctly. He does, however, have athleticism that could compliment the system, and all the aforementioned issues can be resolved with a bit more experience. So as far as JC goes its a toss up.

As far as Moss and El . . . well Im not sure they have the most reliable hands, I wouldn't say that route running was their strength (not that they are bad at it, but Moss is ussually credited more for his ability to adjust to the deep ball then for running crisp routes), I'm not sure either are built for catching balls in heavy traffic (but Im sure they'd be "comfortable" with it, perhaps not durable enough though), and they seem to be much better suited for running deeper routes because of their speed. Both, however, have shown that they are great at making plays after shorter passes, and once they have established themselves as a serious threat on shorter pass plays it will open things up for their speed to be put to good use on deep shots, and could perhaps flourish in the system given the right playcalling.

Clinton Portis, despite his production on screens late in the season has never been known for his catching abilities. I am excited at his improvement in this area, but I am not sure I would bank on him being the hybrid runningback-receiver this system calls for. On the other hand, the running lanes this system is supposed to create due to forcing teams to respect the pass could really improve CP's production; we all know what he can do if he gets into space. Also it mentioned somewhere that traditionally the WCO is a two back system which might allow us to utilize both CP and Betts.

As far as Cooley, there was little if any mention TE's in what I read, so I am not sure what his role would be. What I am certain of, however, is that he MUST be utilized. I am sure he could help on the short passing aspect of the philosophy, and could be used on screens.

Overall what I read suggested that the WCO had little to do with playcalling, but was more of a philosophy that short to intermediate passes can be used to setup the run and the deep pass. A "pass first, run later" philosophy if you will. I tend to think that we are better setup for a run first team. Over the past three years more often then not it was our running game that won us most of our games, and CP has shown that he can carry the team on his shoulders if need be. Plus, I had enough of the dinking and dunking we saw with Brunell. I know that that was not a philosophical decision, but rather his inability to throw the deep ball making those passes a liability, but still I am not convinced that the short passes actually do much to open up either the run or the deep ball. But as I said before, I know next to nothing about this. I am just bored and decided to research this a bit for fun, but from what I can tell (which is very little) the WCO doesn't seem to match up well for this team.