What Rust? Michael Crabtree Sees Plenty Of Action in NFL Debut

The San Francisco 49ers waited through training camp and the first seven weeks of the regular season for their first-round draft choice, wide receiver Michael Crabtree, to make headlines for something other than his contract demands.

The 10th overall pick did just that Sunday, supplanting starter Josh Morgan and sending two other key 49ers receivers -- Brandon Jones and Jason Hill -- to the inactive list at Houston's Reliant Stadium. That gave Crabtree a starting assignment in his NFL debut, and the former Texas Tech star showed he was worth the wait.

Lined up wide, often opposite veteran Isaac Bruce, Crabtree caught five passes for 56 yards, many of them coming against the Texans' press coverage. Three of his catches resulted in 49ers' first downs.

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But while Crabtree's presence didn't snap a two-game 49ers' losing streak -- the Texans won 24-21 after taking a 21-0 halftime lead -- he displayed impressive chemistry with both starting quarterback Shaun Hill and, later, backup Alex Smith, who replaced Hill at halftime.

Crabtree -- who spent the entire 49ers' Week 6 bye at the team's Santa Clara training facility working and studying the playbook -- was in on the first 38 of the team's offensive snaps and 48 of 54 total, after not playing a down of football since last January.

No one was sure how the two-week crash course would make up for the valuable time Crabtree squandered while embroiled in a 71-day contract impasse with the 49ers that finally resulted in him signing a six-year, $32 million deal on Oct. 7.

Coach Mike Singletary made Crabtree inactive for the 49ers' 45-10 Week 5 loss to the Falcons at Candlestick Park. But the no-nonsense Singletary promised his controversial rookie would be hitting the playbook, the film room and the practice field during San Francisco's Week 6 bye.

Clearly, Crabtree is not only a fast study, but he's showing those sure hands that saw him catch 97 passes for 1,165 passes for 19 touchdowns last season in Texas Tech's spread offense will be just as effective at the NFL level. In two seasons in Lubbock, Crabtree was a two-time consensus All-America selection, catching 231 passes for 3,127 yards and 41 touchdowns.

"He did a heck of a job," Singletary said of Crabtree's first NFL appearance.