49ers notes: Receiver was ready to take over if ...

SANTA CLARA – Alex Smith was in the locker room with a concussion. Colin Kaepernick was scrambling out of the pocket against an aggressive Rams' defense. And No. 3 quarterback Scott Tolzien wasn't even in uniform.

Who would have lined up under center Sunday if Kaepernick had to leave the game?

The 49ers' emergency quarterback turned out to be receiver Kyle Williams, who said he threw "a couple" of passes at Arizona State as part of the school's scout team. The one-time baseball player didn't play quarterback in high school.

"I'm capable of doing the job when I'm in there," Williams said Wednesday. "Obviously, the playbook isn't as (extensive) when I'm in here, but if need be, if it comes to that and something catastrophic happens, we're prepared for it."

Williams said he had a brief chat with quarterbacks coach Geep Chryst after Smith left the game but never warmed up on the sideline.

"No, it didn't come to it," Williams said.

Smith appears to be on track to play Monday against the Bears. If he couldn't, the 49ers would activate Tolzien, who has been one of the 49ers' seven inactive players in every game but one this season.

Akers speaks – Kicker Davis Akers said he felt "horrible" about pushing a potentially game-winning field goal left of the uprights Sunday, but he said rebounding from misses is something he's always been good at.

"And when you don't, and you let down your teammates and fans and the organization, absolutely it bothers you," he said. "I kicked very well in practice and had a great preseason. And then it's been kind of a roller coaster."

Akers made his first five field-goal attempts to start the season, but he's missed at least one attempt in four of the last seven games, and his field-goal percentage – 71.4 percent – is 30th in the league.

Akers said the usually tough Candlestick Park conditions were not a factor on his 41-yard miss in overtime.

"I just wanted to smooth it and came off the ball a little bit," he said. "You can second-guess yourself all the time.

"You try to take the situation and make the best decision for that time about how to approach the ball. Obviously, I didn't get a chance to re-kick that."

Akers was a key component of the 49ers' success last season, setting an NFL record with 44 successful field goals.

Despite his struggles this year, he leads all kickers during the fan portion of Pro Bowl voting. Voting ends Dec. 17.

• Read more articles by Matthew Barrows

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