The Sacramento Bee, Calif., Ailene Voisin column: Nolan, S.F. emerge on NFL radar.(Column)

Byline: Ailene Voisin

Dec. 2--One can't say this with certainty, of course, but if confronted with similar 007 circumstances -- suspecting a pigskin snitch on the premises, as does his colleague Art Shell -- Mike Nolan seems like the kind of guy who favors the no-sweat, no-blood, all-stealth approach.

Identify the culprit. Reach for the silencer. Then tell anyone who asks that the former employee left to pursue other opportunities.

Under the camera's glare -- and with chat rooms and talk shows and microphones ever present -- Nolan is sneaking up on people. As the 49ers, persisting in their transition from young team with a promising future to young team staring at a possible postseason, prepare for Sunday's meeting with the New Orleans Saints, the second-year coach quietly has overcome a host of issues, not the least of which pertains to his job security. A month ago, remember, local scribes predicted a crash-and-burn for the 49ers and the demise of another coach. One season after Nolan coped with the Thomas Herrion tragedy, engaged in shuttle diplomacy with young Alex Smith and dispatched underachieving and/or disgruntled veterans Jamie Winborn, Ahmed Plummer, Brandon Lloyd and Kevan Barlow elsewhere, the countdown was under way. In order during this increasingly colorful autumn, Nolan has been 1) chided for meekly running out the clock in the waning seconds of the first half against Philadelphia; 2) rendered helpless on the sideline in a 41-0 clobbering in Kansas City; 3) given a brief respite with a predictable victory over the woeful Raiders; and 4) left shaken by another brutal, one-sided performance against the San Diego Chargers, which was followed by an equally demoralizing loss to the Chicago Bears. So what happened next? The 49ers salvaged a season, providing more suspense than Shell and the paranoid Raiders. Smith matured by the week. Frank Gore emerged as one of the NFL's most versatile running backs. Nolan's simplified defense stiffened during the three-game winning streak against Minnesota, Detroit and Seattle. Even Antonio Bryant, whose verbal tantrums were eerily reminiscent of Terrell Owens, as the talented wide receiver threatened to become a major distraction, appeared to have a sock stuck in his mouth. "This is the first time in the year and a half since I've been here," Nolan said the other day, "when we ...