Guess Who’s Back… Back Again… Besides Tom Rathman?
James is back people… sorry for the hiatus. I recently moved back to California and upon doing so have been without internet for most of the last month and a half. This dilemma is over and I have since been able to secure a reliable mode of getting online on a consistent basis. Not as though anyone really missed me I’m sure, just wanted to let you guys know that I will once again be more of a constant here at 49ersnews.com.
So another season in the NFL has come and gone, at least for the teams who were not fortunate enough to make an appearance in the postseason festivities that are currently underway in various cities across the country.
For the San Francisco 49ers the events that have transpired since the early parts of September mean that the team, once a proud and highly regarded franchise in the league, has missed the playoffs for a club record sixth consecutive season. Much to the chagrin of the fan base and one would hope the ownership this team has been in complete and utter disarray for most of the last six years; right abut the time in which Dennis Erickson and Terry Donahue took over as head coach and general manager respectively.
There appeared to be a light at the end of the tunnel once the club made amends for their blunder and jettisoned the two men, naming Mike Nolan the new head coach, one who seemingly had a knack for aggressive defenses and had surrounded himself with what seemed like competent assistant coaches. This was also not to be however as has been witnessed since this event took place and the four and a half failed campaigns with Nolan at the helm.
Once again the team seems to have righted itself, at least in the now, as they have recently named one time interim head coach Mike Singletary as head coach with a new 4-year contract that will pay the man 10 million dollars over that span. This was the right move on all accounts and one would be hard pressed to find anyone who disagrees with that sentiment. Singletary compiled a 5-4 record in his late season stint calling the shots from the sideline and his ability to rally his players and their overall trust in him were both likely key to him securing such a position.
All signs seem to point to changes for the better with Singletary in control and we need look no further then the recent news that he has interviewed and hired former 49ers fullback and running backs coach Tom Rathman for the same position which the genius Erickson removed him from upon the end of his first season in San Francisco. The new head coach as made it quite apparent that he intends to instill a more powerhouse offensive style which will set up the pass, a return to the conventional wisdom and philosophy of the late, great Bill Walsh. “I want to be able to impose our will on the other team at the end of games,” said Singletary.
In order to accomplish this he first removed offensive coordinator Mike Martz from his post almost immediately after the season concluded. This was viewed by some to be a hasty and altogether negative move being that the team will soon be introducing it’s sixth OC in as many season, something many pundits have pointed to as a major reason for the teams lack of success in recent years. This was however a decisive shift in coaching personnel, one which I believe will pay dividends in the end for the organization.
There are many questions which have yet to be answered since the 49ers last game on December 28th. Can Singletary hire a good offensive coordinator, someone who can and will install his offensive vision and philosophy with this team? Will he have the ability to effectively evaluate talent when free agency and the draft arrive in the coming months? Is he going to be an effective leader for his team and continue what he has started in the second half of this season? There is no way to answer these questions with any true form of certainty however if his performance over the nine games he coached are any indication, a time in which he truly earned his position, then he has a better shot at attaining these goals then anyone else the team could have hired to succeed him.
I think we we're really lucky to win that game... the defense wasn't great. They let gradkowski and campbell chuck ...
hey pundit, are we gonna get to see some highlights again this year?? i think most fans that visit this ...
The 49ers look flat on offense with the exception of gore. Nate Bynam has dropped 2 balls on one ...
Don't miss any of the action this year at the SBG Global 
Mike we need Peppers! He’s still got some left in the tank and we haven’t has a stud pass rusher since Haley years ago. We can solve that RT position thru the draft. I know we can’t get both so I’d rather get the sack specialist.
I would rather have the sack specialist. Haven’t had one since Haley. We can try to fix that RT spot thru the draft. Peppers would be a great addition!
I would rather have Peppers. We havent had a sack specialist on our team since Haley. We can probably find a good lineman thru the draft. If we cant get Peppers than try to get that lineman but Peppers would be a great addition!
Peppers!
Man we havent had a sack specialist since Haley. If we can get Peppers that would be a dream come true!
Sorry for the reposts, thought it didnt go thru, guess it did.
I always thought highly of Peppers. Hell yeah we need a stud pass rusher. This Panthers blogger got me thinking ’cause I don’t follow that team. Here’s what he had to say about Peppers…
January 12, 2009 / 5:00 pm / If I’m another NFL franchise you don’t want Julius Peppers. He is like Hancock. A superhero with strength and speed, but he never shows up…unless you play the Lions or the Cheifs. He pads his stats against bad tackles and is no where to be found against even a decent O-line. Just look at the tape of the Panther/Bronco game and see how Denver’s rookie tackle pushed him all around.
Anyone know if there’s any truth to this?? Possible smokescreen to push away potential buyers??
Did a little research: Peppers sack numbers since 2002….
2008 – 14.5
2007 – 2.5
2006 – 13
2005 – 10.5
2004 – 11
2003 – 7
2002 – 12
PANTHERS ARE IN THE NFC SOUTH: ATLANTA, TAMPA BAY, & NEW ORLEANS.
How’s their OFFENSIVE LINES?? I think Peppers lines up at RIGHT DE. If that’s so he’s going up against left tackles. Dunno the quality of this divisions LT’s. Still he’s lining up week in, week out vs the opposing teams best tackle.
Peppers had a down year in 2007 & average in 2003. But in these past 7 years he’s had over 10 SACKS IN 5 OF THOSE. So based on these numbers I’d have to say Peppers is a solid pass rusher & don’t know what’s with all the hate by this blogger.
I would go EITHER WAY Joe. Thing is Gross is WITHOUT A DOUBT ONE OF THE TOP TACKLES IN THE NFL MISSING ONLY 1 GAME IN HIS ENTIRE CAREER. HE’S 99% SURE FIRE STUD WHO WILL FILL A BIG NEED FOR US WHO’S THE TOTAL OPPOSITE OF JJ DURABILITY WISE.
Peppers is an established pass rusher & he seems solid. It’s a toss up for me. I’d be psyched getting ANY ONE of these guys!!!!
Reminder: Gross has MISSED 1 START IN 5 YEARS (It’s actually 6 looking this up on NFL.com) THAT’S FREAKIN’ PHENOMENAL. He’s a starter in the Pro Bowl this year & has been named the starter on the ALL PRO team.
In his Rookie year in 2003 Carolina started him off at right tackle where he only ALLOWED 3 SACKS! He was solid at RT for their Super Bowl run that year when they won it. And as a Rookie NEVER MISSED A SNAP. That year as a rookie he was selected again as an All Pro. This guys work ethic sounds undeniably solid. I don’t see him wasting anyone’s money at all. I predict he will be highly productive for any team.
Mike, Carolina never won the Super Bowl… they lost to New England 14-6 that season. No worries, just was not sure where you found that info.
On Peppers I am not sold nor do I think that 49ers are. I would much rather draft someone like Orakpo and have him for years to come, also he is of course younger then Peppers and will have many more productive seasons ahead of him then Peppers at this point.
Joe, as much as I agree that there should be someone else in place other then McCloughan, believe me when I say that no amount of complaing and no matter how many people feel the same, the front office is not going to cut him loose with that in mind. If it were that easy, Nolan would have never been retained to start last season. He is going to have to fail to field another winner for at least one more season before they fire him. Again though, as Axe said, he has made some good moves as well as some bad ones… we’ll see how the offseason and 2009 regular season progress. I do feel that he might be on a short leash however, especially if Holmgren and Shanahan take a year off and are ready to come back in 2010.
My bad James. I don’t know what I was thinking. Just a brain fart. Yeah they were IN it (SB) but didn’t win it.
Check out Everett Brown/FL STATE if you get a chance. He’s my choice for OLB pass rusher. He’s climbing up the charts fast & is a top 10 on some updated mocks. (I don’t know much about Orapko.) In fact Walter’s scouting has Brown as the #2 rated pass rusher behind Orapko. Brown has never missed a game in college. I don’t think Orapko makes it to #10.
WALTERS:
http://www.walterfootball.com/draft2009DE.php
1 highlight clip on Brown:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXJJ14HL5EE
James – if you paste a link, does the whole post get lost sometimes?? I just sent one a few minutes ago.
Yeah my bad on the Carolina deal. They were in it (SB) but didn’t win it. Had a brain fart.
If you get a chance check out Everett Brown. He’s my choice for pass rush OLB. Walter’s scouting updated their site & he’s now their #2 rated pass rusher behind Orapko. I don’t think Orapko makes it to #10. (I don’t know much about Orapko.) I sent a highlight link on Brown but it never made it. Brown’s never missed a game in college & has great stats. Great 1st step, explosive, has solid repertoire of pass rush moves (all very effective) + defends the run well. Every fan I’ve heard from who’s watched FL STATE says he’s been a beast all year long. Great character guy as well.
Sorry for the double post.
Talking about Gross IS amusing, but a moot point if they choose to not bring Jake Delhomme back. If they don’t bring him back then they will be able to get Peppers AND Gross. Gross WOULD BE EXACTLY what the niners need and I hope I am really wrong about this one, but I don’t think Gross leaves Carolina.
Mike in MD… hammer on the nail, Everett Brown is a BEAST…. im a fan, the guy has speed an can get to the QB….Personally I would like to see the 9ers make a run an sign Peppers, i know Orapko is younger but for ‘1″ i dont see him there for us, “2″ if Orapko is there for us i like Peppers. Peppers has been proven an can be a Immediate Impact… It takes most D-Linemen a year or so to catch on! Picture this Smith an Peepers putting pressure an a ballhawking FS T. Mays “opion” dat can also lay down the hammer! Two hammers in the Secondary M. Lewis an T. Mays…. Im getting to Excited over here let me slow my role!
T. Mays 10th overall
Sadly Taylor mays is not coming out this year i say we trade down and draft BJ Raji from boston college to play NT
Mays has decided to return to Southern California for his senior season!! “This news sucks”………Samra not a bad idea trading down gettting extra pick an signing BJ Raji…..also wouldnt mind grabbing “safe pick” ILB USC Rey Maualuga…..
14.5 sacks last year, picking Peppers would be the smarter choice. He is PROVEN and these so called studs coming out of college are somewhat of a gamble. Lets say we pick the kid Orapko with our number ten and he turns out to be a dud, man would we be looking stupid. I would welcome a proven pass rusher and I think a new start with another team would make Peppers even better. As far as McIdiot James, yea I keep hearing that the dumbfuck had some good moves as well. Only the bad ones outweigh the good BIG TIME. I will give him Willis and Gore as his good moves. Dont know what else good hes done but youll be reaching hard as that point.
Alrite Mark Sanchez just announced he’s going pro i say we pounce on him like a tiger on a helpless baby deer if Sanchez is around at pick 11.
Regarding Mcidiot of course we dont want his dumb ass over here, I like his concepts and he has hit gold with Willis and Gore but Alex Smith is a bust no buts or ifs about it, Vernon Davis is a good blocker with speed but bad hands he sucks for a 1st round pick him and Walker are about par. Mcidiot made a big mistake in last years draft I mean all our picks suck except Morgan and Rachal (who was a reach in the 2nd). I hope hes on a short leash cause I dont want him just like everyone else.
Mack Sanchez is a dud Im a USC fan and Im more into Graham Harrell as a project QB, disappointed Mays isnt coming out I thought we had him for sure, we shouldnt trade down I think we are in a good spot and should let things play out.
I want either Boldin, Bryant, Peppers, or Gross as FA pick up but I wouldnt mind Crabtree if hes at the 10th spot, from now to the combine anything can happen, just hope its all positive for the franchise.
Hey James you think theres an chance the Chargers may release Turner because this OC search sucks so far, Linahan is the somewhat solid option out of all of them.
The NFP finally put out a Draft section that includes both their past & present articles. Great stuff.
West – this is for you my Draft junkie brotha!!
http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/draft-2009/
Scot McCloughan Grades per Player:
‘05 DRAFT (by round)
1 Alex Smith F
2 David Baas B-
3 Frank Gore A
3 Adam Snyder C+
5 Ronald Fields C
5 Racheed Marshal F
6 Derek Johnson WHO?
7 D. Holly WHO?
7 Marcus Maxwell D
7 P. Estes F
7 Billy Bajema C
‘06 DRAFT
1 Vernon Davis C-
1 Manny Lawson C+
3 Brandon Williams F- (I hated that guy)
4 Michael Robinson B-
5 Parys Haralson B
6 Delanie Walker B
6 Marcus Hudson D
6 Melvin Oliver D
7 Vikiel Vaughn WHO?
‘07 DRAFT
1 Patrick Willis A
1 Joe Staley B+
3 Jason Hill B
3 Ray McDonald C+
4 Jay Moore WHO?
4 D. Goldson B-
4 Joe Cohen WHO?
5 Tarell Brown B?
6 Thomas Clayton ?????
‘08 DRAFT
1 Kentwan Balmer D
2 Chilo Rachal B-
3 Reggie Smith ????
4 Cody Wallace WHO?
6 Josh Morgan B+
These grades are my own worthless opinion. I gave them based on the round they were drafted in and the amount of playing time they saw.
FREE AGENTS (the ones I can remember in no particular order)
Jonas Jennings F-
Michael Lewis B-
Allen Rossum B+
Nate Clements B+
Takeo Spikes B+
Walt Harris B
Shaun Hill B+
DeShaun Foster C+
Justin Smith A-
Dontarrius Thomas WHO?
Tully Banta-Cain D
Isaac Bruce A-
A. Franklin C
Barry Sims C-
Donald Strickland B-
Dominique Zeigler B
I think McCloughan has better luck on the free agent market than the draft. We also will never know how much influence Nolan had or didn’t have on any of these pick-ups.
If fans around the league were to grade their own GM, MOST of their lists would probably look very similar to this one. The main problem with the 49ers over the last couple of years isn’t so much a lack of talent, it’s the lack of a proper coach who has the ability to motivate, and an instability on the offensive side of the ball. I’m not trying to defend Scot McCloughan, I’m just trying to say that Patrick Willis and Frank Gore aren’t the only good decisions he has made. There is also a shitload of bad ones, too. Show me a GM in the NFL that has hit a homerun on every draft choice and every free agent pickup. Nobody can, because there just isn’t any.
Pretty accurate grades Axe. F- that’s hilarious!
The NUMBER 1 MISS THAT PRACTICALLY KILLED THIS TEAM IS……….
THE FRANCHISE QB, ALEX SMITH!!!!
Just imagine this should have been 4 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE in the books. If everything would have gone to plan (right guy, surround him with solid pieces, proper coaching & mentoring, etc) he should be a legit stud VET QB by now who has arrived. But noooooo, this has set us back another 3 years minimum. At least we’re not the only ones who’s had these problems. (See Boller in Baltimore, Young & Leinart struggling with their teams but both still have a chance, Campbell who just deteriorated downhill the last half of with the Skins, etc.) We need to get that sore spot right this time for damn sure & learn from those mistakes.
I would not be happy if we used the #1 pick on Sanchez he aint no Manning or Brady thats for sure he aint even Matt Cassel. I wouldnt be suprised if we took a RB with that first pick. It makes all the sense in the world doesnt it. Hey Axe nice list you put up there but one mistake Daven Holly was a pretty good CB before he got hurt this year he is on the Browns now.
DRAFT NEEDS
O-LINE
RB (ONLY CAUSE WAT SING WANTS THIS TEAM TO BE A RUN FIRST TEAM)
QB
DL
DE
WR
Axe, agree with most of your grades. I wouldve graded Rachal, Robinson, and Staley a little lower than what you had. Rachal just hasnt played enough and didnt stand out that much. I give him a C. Robinson is ok at best. Doesnt break any tackles. Speed is average. To be honest, I would like to see him released if Clayton can prove hes a better blocker, hes definitely a better runner. I give Robinson a C. You gave Staley a B plus, just dont see it. Hes not overpowering anybody, hes not bad and hes not great, I give him a C plus. Kentwan Balmer has been a joke, I rate him as a F minus minus. As far as FA’s, Barry Sims rates a fucking double FF. Shaun Hill is a C plus. Clements is a C plus. Man your too easy on these guys. As far as GM’s goes, yea alot of them dont hit on everything but you think with the fucking #1 overall you would get a decent pick. He totally screwed that up along with Nolan. Not to blame everything on McIdiot because Nolan had alot to do with that shit too. Thats why I said they BOTH should of been fired!