He's the anti-Alex Smith. That's what he is. He has come from nowhere, worked his way through anonymity, stuck in there through tough physical moments, supported his coach, and he has won games, including Sunday's 21-19 victory over Tampa Bay.

He's the anti-Alex, and that's a powerful thing these days in 49erland, even if Hill's two victories have come against two extremely unmotivated teams.

He's the anti-Alex, and therefore, Hill is Mike Nolan's potential 11th-hour savior and best, best friend these days.

Pretty heady stuff for a guy who hadn't thrown a pass in the NFL until a few weeks ago, huh?

Such is the whirling way of things in the NFL, and especially for downtrodden teams searching for hope and meaning.

Hill, the twang-talking kid from the plains, by way of the University of Maryland, NFL Europa, the Minnesota Vikings and the wild blue yonder, won another game for the 49ers on Sunday.

He wasn't great (11 of 24 for 123 yards, three touchdowns and one interception), as Hill himself acknowledged. He wasn't the spiritual leader — that was Bryant Young in the final home game of his grand 14-season career.

Hill is just the guy who happened to be playing quarterback when, for the first time this season, the 49ers started looking decent on offense.

Which means something. It doesn't mean that Hill should be the 49ers' starting quarterback in 2008 or that he has a great future in this league.

But every time Hill hits a receiver in stride, or gets back up from a huge hit, or darts away from a defender...Alex Smith loses that much more credibility in the locker room.

And there's a cause and effect: Nolan gains when Smith loses; and when Hill shows that he can run the offense, Smith loses tremendously.

You've begun to hear the players speak up about this, and Sunday, after the 49ers' victory, you really heard the hardening of opinion.

"He's for real — Shaun Hill is for real," said tight end Vernon Davis, who caught a touchdown pass from Hill for the second week in a row. "You've got to have a competition.

"You can't let the No.1 guy sit in front and feel comfortable. He's got to know if he doesn't get the job done, he's got someone behind him to step up."

Nolan acknowledged as much after the game, saying that, just by performance, Hill certainly has earned the right to compete with Smith for the starting job next season.

That is, of course, if Nolan is around as coach, if Hill doesn't leave as an unrestricted free agent, if a new front office doesn't change everything, and if Smith is around, too.

It's all very up in the air. It's all very strange.

But Hill's sturdy play gives Nolan and his supporters — and that's just about the whole locker room, except Smith — the best possible explanation for the sorry offense in the first three months of this season:

The 49ers needed a decent quarterback, and they finally got one with Hill.

"I'm not going to pick favorites," center Eric Heitmann said, "but I think Shaun's done a tremendous job. ... Without a doubt, I think Shaun's always been a guy who we knew, especially the offensive line, could come in and play, and play at a high level.

"I look forward to him competing for a starting job with any team, here or any team in the league."

Hill was his usual droll self after the game, repeatedly pointing out his several mistakes, including the interception, and saying that going up against the Tampa Bay defense was a huge step up for him.

"I had to double-check the pictures of their defense on the sidelines, because it felt like they had 13 guys out there," Hill said. "I messed up a couple throws. I messed up more than a couple throws."

But he perked up when told that his teammates seemed to want to see him competing for the starting job next season.

"Obviously, that's great," Hill said. "That's what you want — your teammates to respect you. I'd love to do it."

Hill's second TD pass came in the third quarter, two plays after he was knocked out of the game when Gaines Adams speared him in the chest. Hill took a play off — Chris Weinke subbed in for a Frank Gore run.

Then Hill trotted back out to a huge cheer and promptly fired a zip pass to Davis for a 5-yard score.

"Adrenaline's a great thing, you know?" Hill said.

That's such a QB thing to say — and it's not something Smith's teammates have heard much this season from the former No.1 overall pick who is, they know, guaranteed $24 million.

Smith has been hurt, and that's out of his control. And Smith has been undermined by his coach — then struck back in public. Which was in Smith's control.

His teammates have sided with Nolan. The worst thing that could've happened to Smith was the one thing that could've possibly saved Nolan:

Some no-name quarterback showing up and making the 49ers offense look decent.