49ers @ Ravens preseason live blog

This is the live blog for the 49ers’ preseason game against the Ravens. I will update this with information and analysis from my living room.

4:34 The 49ers will receive the opening kickoff.

4:37 Bruce Ellington is the starting kick returner. He runs the opening kick to the 49ers’ 27.

4:39 Carlos Hyde explodes up the middle for seven yards on first down.

4:43 The 49ers drive down to the Ravens’ 7 yard line in just five plays, but Jewel Hampton gets stopped at the line of scrimmage on back to back plays and the 49ers have to kick a field goal. 3-0 Niners. Carlos Hyde carried the ball three times on that drive. He gained 7 yards, then 24 yards, then 8 yards. It seems he’s worth his salt so far.

4:54 The Ravens easily drive down the field against the 49ers’ defense and score a touchdown — Bernard Pierce punched it in from 2 yards out. Keep in mind that Aldon Smith and Patrick Willis are not playing. Chris Borland is starting in place of Willis. Borland bit on a play action pass and gave up a 17 yard catch. The 49ers’ run defense gave up a 6 yard run, a 5 yard run, a 7 yard run and another 6 yard run. Jimmie Ward gave up a 12 yard catch to Jacoby Jones on third and five.

4:58 Blaine Gabbert is in the game for Drive No.2.

5:04 Quinton Patton gets flagged for offensive pass interference on third-and-five and the 49ers punt. Stevie Johnson drew a five yard holding penalty and made a six-yard catch on third-and-five. Carlos Hyde gained just five yards on back-to-back runs behind the right side of the 49ers’ offensive line. Joe Looney and Jonathan Martin got pushed backward.

5:10 Tank Carradine just tossed the Ravens’ left guard to the left and sacked Tyrod Taylor on first-and-ten. That was the final play of the first quarter.  That looked way too easy.

5:16 The Ravens drove down to the 49ers’ 13 yard line. Then Jimmie Ward blitzed from the slot and tackled Bernard Pierce for a four-yard loss. Next play, Michael Wilhoite blitzed up the middle and sacked Tyrod Taylor. The 49ers have been practicing those blitzes all training camp. The Ravens made the field goal — they’re leading 10-3. Quinton Dial forced a fumble once and burst into the backfield twice on that drive. Dial and Carradine have looked terrific so far. Borland has not looked so good.

5:21 Snyder is in for Iupati on Drive 3.

5:22 Jonathan Martin is playing left tackle. He just got flagged for a false start on second and ten.

5:22 Jewel Hampton drops a screen pass on second and 15.

5:23 Gabbert sails a pass over Patton’s head on third and 15. Gabbert did the same thing on first and 10. That was the first three-and-out of the game for either team.

5:24 Chris Borland makes a terrific tackle on the punt return.

5:25 Quinton Dial forces another fumble and this time the 49ers recover. He is earning himself a key role on this team.

5:30 Gabbert just got picked on second-and-eight. He stared down Derek Carrier who never got open.

5:35 Jimmie Ward was all over Jacoby Jones on third-and-seven and the pass falls incomplete and the Ravens punt. The 49ers’ run defense instantly improved the moment Quinton Dial entered the game. He’s playing Ray McDonald’s position.

5:39 The 49ers just went three and out again. Hampton gained just two yards on first down, Chuck Jacobs dropped a pass on second down and Gabbert threw a pass behind Jacobs on third-and-eight. Jacob caught the pass but gained just seven yards. The 49ers had to punt. Hampton and Gabbert have been horrible so far.

5:43 Nick Moody tackled Justin Forsett after a gain of just one yard. Nice tackle by Moody.

5:50 The Ravens just kicked another field goal and they’re winning 13-3. Lawrence Okoye tackled Justin Forsett after just a one-yard gain on second-and-three from the 49ers’ five. Tyrod Taylor threw a fade pass into the end zone on third and two and Chris Cook never found the ball, but the receiver caught it out of bounds.

5:54 The first half just ended. Blaine Gabbert was 3-for-11. Jim Harbaugh said that Carlos Hyde “ran extremely well.”

6:10 Chris Cooks intercepts a pass while playing zone coverage. He had his eyes on the quarterback all the way and never had to turn and find the ball. Still, good catch.

6:20 Bad first series for Josh Johnson. He misses a deep throw to David Reed, then he throws into triple coverage for Derek Carrier. The 49ers punt.

6:23 Dontae Johnson breaks up a deep pass on third-and-7.  He turned his head and found the ball and dropped the interception.

6:31 Josh Johnson fumbles the snap and the Ravens recover. The play before, Bruce Ellington caught a pass in the flat and gained 16 yards.

6:37 Justin Tucker makes a 55-yard field goal and it’s 16-3 Ravens. The 49ers gave up an 8 yard run and a 10 yard run, and Darryl Morris gave up a 5-yard catch and a 17-yard catch on that drive.

6:42 The 49ers go four-and-out and will punt once the fourth quarter begins. Jewel Hampton missed a block on third-and-3 and Josh Johnson got sacked. That’s the second block Hampton has missed in this game. He has been terrible.

6:52 Corey Lemonier sacks Tyrod Taylor. Lawrence Okoye is injured on the play.

7:00 Tyrod Taylor throws a 7-yard TD pass to Jeremy Butler who was being covered by Kenneth Acker. The Ravens have possessed the ball almost two times longer than the 49ers. The Ravens lead 23-3.

7:06 Chuck Jacobs appeared to injure his right knee on the kick return. He’s being carted off the field.

7:11 Bethel-Thompson throws a pass right to Ravens’ CB Dominique Frank and he intercepts it. Bethel-Thompson threw a pass to Frank a few plays earlier but he dropped it.

7:15 It’s the two-minute warning and the 49ers’ defense has given up 230 rushing yards.

7:17 Game over. 49ers lose 23-3. Carlos Hyde was the only offensive player on the 49ers who showed any explosiveness or excitement in the first half.

This article has 424 Comments

  1. Ted Robinson is one of the all-time greats. Tim Ryan is the worst of all-time. This is football.

    Ellington looks thick.

      1. Guys get injured on Special teams too. The reason to do it is it’s good practice for situational football and coaches with chutzpah go for it on 4th and 2 at the 10 yd line.

  2. Was that mostly the starting Ravens D-line? Except for the last couple plays was pretty much domination by our oline

  3. New players, same old pathetic playcalling in the red zone.

    Is Jewel Hampton the imposing back that deserves the ball near the goal line after Hyde looks unstoppable throughout the drive?

    “SMH”

    1. Was still a good drive and its preseason, don’t want to give too much away…hopefully

  4. Why is the nfl network replaying the hall of fame game bills vs giants whene it says in programming schedule 49ers vs ravens live. What the hell is going on?

  5. If that is what our defense will be like, then we’re in a lot of trouble, especially with the way Roman is calling the plays.

  6. Please explain, Mister Harbaw,
    why the Niners are committing penalties
    in the red zone. Making life easier for opponents…

    Ravens 7, Niners 3

    Back out on the field, Kapernicus;
    prove your point; show us your stuff, fella.

  7. I’m not home to watch the game but it sounds like Hyde is killing it and our defense is looking suspect.

  8. Refs are calling it tight on the outside- Seahawks will have a hard go of it if they stay this tight

    1. Gabbert looks horrible. If Josh Johnson can’t outplay Gabbert, he doesn’t deserve to be in the NFL!

  9. McDonald is looking pretty good, will be interesting too see how many two TE sets they use this year.

  10. Ellington looks like our Kick Return specialist. Hyde will be 2nd RB behind FGore.
    VMac actually made a catch! (lol)
    Stevie J is looking pretty good. Already caused two PI penalties.

    Dial plays a little to high nullifying good leverage. Borland out of sorts on 1st series.
    It’s the first preseason game – hey, football is back!

  11. I always thought you don’t blitz in the preseason- just a unwritten courtesy, I must be mistaken?

  12. I’m so mad! For some reason the NFL network in Los Angeles isn’t showing the game.

    1. priest,
      NFL Network had been advertising the game all week and is now showing a different game.

      Try your CBS affiliate they are televising game in the central valley.

  13. If which out looks this bad in regular season it’s going to be a rough first half. I hope he’s takin it easy.

      1. It’s not all him- the Dline looks pretty shacky and they aren’t keeping it clean for them

  14. Haha. Tim Ryan said JMart was involved in Bountygate! More idiocy from the all-time buffoon.

  15. The over reactions in the 1st half of the 1st preseason game are absolutely cracking me up.

    1. TB is always on the look out for long shot bargans. The problem is that they mostly turn out to be a waste of time. Wouldn’t have been a bad idea except for the cost in this case. Draft pick not so much but the guaranteed contract is a killer. Colt McCoy part 2 except Gabbert is twice as expensive as dead money against the cap. You would think they would have learned from last years mistake.

    1. Hey! There’s still hope. It’s more likely that Romo will be hoisting up the Lombardi in February, but that mean it can’t happen.

    2. We do know this, Ravens 2nd stringers are head and shoulders better than ours.
      Too bad Kory Faulkner is gone, I would have liked to see him in 2nd half.
      Gabbert hasn’t looked comfortable at all.

      Jonathan Martin was getting pushed around in the 1st half. ABoone / Org will be coming to the table very soon.

  16. Really hoping Johnson gets a legit shot at the #2 qb job. Gabbert is not looking good at all.

    1. Seriously. Don’t be prisoners of the moment. It’s the first game of the preseason.

        1. oh sorry I forgot that all starters in the nfl play lights out 24/7 every snap of the preseason. give it a rest and be patient…

        1. We expect good play. Hampton has been terrible, Gabbert has been Gabbert, Ward and Borland looked lost most of the time, and the presumed front-runners at NT, ILB, and C seemed to be overwhelmed. And let’s not even discuss the secondary as a whole.

  17. I think it is fine to question whether gabbert should be a #2. He has never looked good for the past three years. To keep him just due to his guaranteed salary would be silly.

    1. Why does the front office give a Q B who hasn’t shown anything his entire career a guaranteed salary. It will be like last year with McCoy. They have to go with him because they have no other alternative. These guys seem to lock on players before the fact. They see something they like and assume it will negate all the players existing negatives.

  18. This is the first preseason game. I kind of think we are overreacting. There are going to be mistakes blown, assignments, etc etc. That’s why we have preseason.

    1. “Overreacting”? I don’t think so. This is why: The evaluation of these players by the coaching staff started at kick off. Don’t tell the coaches that they are “overreacting” by pointing out/and evaluating the poor blocking or passing of X and Y player.

      You bet these guys are being graded as we read these comments. These players are not playing for fun..they are playing to earn a spot on the team, and they stake their future in every play, and so do the coaches which are evaluating them.

  19. I’m enjoying this game. Some backups look pretty good. some are not. there will be some tuff decisions about who makes the team.

  20. I thought Skov looked good. That said, he was primarily playing against backups.

  21. Baalke has made some great moves since he has been here. Trading for Gabbert was not one of them.

  22. You’d think that after 2 years in the roster, Hampton would have learned to block a rushing LB, and or to follow his blockers. So far a pretty dismal performance by him. What a waste…

  23. Look this is a game to look at individual play. Therefore commenting on players whether they’re good or bad, is acceptable. Doesn’t mean the season and team is lost. And I’m talking to the clowns who are bagging on those talking about stank players.

  24. Jewel looked much better last year. Well, i’m sure we’ll see him in the following PS games. He will have to step it up if he expects to make the roster

  25. Harbaugh seemed to have trouble not expressing his Gabbert frustration to Sideline Dennis, but it was evident just prior to the last series.

    1. I know the niners would love to gabbert develop and then cut JJ. but I kind of feel like Cutting JJ two years ago was a mistake. I hope they don’t make the same mistake again

      1. Lou,

        It was a mistake and it will be a mistake this year as well. McCoy looks better than Gabbert right not. Gabbert is what he has alway been. Garbage. Like I said, if Johnson can’t beat Gabbert out, he doesn’t deserve to be in the NFL.

  26. Note to Coach Harbaw:
    big brother Jim is still the man in charge.
    see him top 8-8 this year.
    My money says that
    you will be challenged to break even.

    1. If you had actually put any money on your nonsense last season, you’d be poorer than me Mr. Unsanitary Place Scratcher.

  27. Glenn Winston might be a guy to hold onto.

    6’1″ – 220 – 4.4 speed

    He’s had some issues, so might have a mean streak, and he can’t be much worse than Jewel.

  28. The entire crew and play by play guys are talking about what a great addition Stevie Johnson is going to be for the 49ers offense.
    Meanwhile on this blog ,some people are talking about him getting cut. Talk about way off.

    1. I’ve seen a number of guys saying that Johnson could be victim of the receiver depth.

  29. Grades so far…
    Qb – d pray we don’t have to rely on Blaine.
    Rb – Inc Hyde looks better than I thought in limited action so far but Hampton is not an Nfl rb still ?’s at the position.
    Wr – inc everyone that matters barely played
    OL- D there doesn’t appear to be much depth at the position. Bones position is improving.
    DL- B none of true starters played and Dial and tank flashed even if our “1st” unit was man handled.
    Lb- inc/D I learned Borland is limited as is lemonier
    Db’s inc/d starters didn’t play much but ward and cook didn’t impress…
    Coaching – incomplete just like how the niners always end their drives. Failing to finish.

  30. It looks like Baalke found us some real value on the D line in last year’s draft. Nice work!!!

    1. Looks like a secondary has some real depth. may not be the red haired child we were worried about a few months ago

  31. Blaine is a reclamation project. It’s going to take soe time to fix what was trashed in Jacksonville.

    1. He was trash to begin with. I was praying that the team wouldn’t draft him in 2011.

        1. Big whoop. So was Tim Tebow, Tim Couch, Vince Young…do I really need to go on?

    2. Looks as though Hammer got it wrong on Gabbert overtaking Kaepernick. Hell of a limb to go out on, but foolish….

      1. Not quite. It would help if you knew what was actually said before talking out of your @ss.

      1. They could just fuse Joe’s and Young’s DNA with a giant ape’s and come up with “Mighty Joe Young”.

        1. Mid,
          That’s my take as well.
          I’m leaning more towards Osgood than Lloyd.

          Lloyd (if he makes the roster) won’t get a many receptions with Stevie, Q, and Ellington making the roster. Osgood is a beast on ST’s and can provide some receptions if needed.
          Just doing the math and K.Osgood gives us more value.

  32. So seeing as the backup RB’s look a little shaky is there a chance Dixon could be re-acquired or is that a salary cap issue?

  33. Raiders are watching this game and saying , “oh, ok, we’ll take that guy off of waivers, and that guy, and that guy.

  34. All three of these guys are going to get cut – but I’m rooting for them:
    Lawrence Okoye
    Brandon Lloyd
    Josh Johnson.

  35. Well this was not a great debut for the team but it is preseason and we didn’t have most of our starters on D and some missing on O. I know this Boone was smiling the whole first half!!

    1. I know this Boone was smiling the whole first half!!

      More like roaring with laughter.

  36. Haven’t seen it on here yet, other blogs have reported that Aldon Smith met with the Comish today

  37. Snap judgements after watching 2 quarters of preseason 9er football.

    1. Gary Kubiak is an excellent OC. He will have the Ravens in top 5 in the NFL in scoring this year.
    2. Carols Hyde is going to be really good.
    3. Borland is too small and 2 steps too slow to play LB in the NFL. His best hope is becoming a standout special teamer.
    4. Blaine Gabbert is not a good NFL QB. He has all the tools and I’m sure he’s probably good in practice but he just doesn’t have the instincts for the position.
    5. Lemonier looks EXACTLY like Julian Peterson on the sideline. I had major deja vu moments when they showed him on the sideline.

    1. Oh, one other… Jewell Hampton can’t block. He better pick it up quick or his NFL career will be over.

  38. Okay, Mister Harbaw:
    you have 5-1/2 minutes
    to take this team 78 yards,
    score a touchdown, kick an extra point,
    and tell us we can still hope.

    If you fail to score or settle for three points,
    then you suck eggs, sir.

    I am the Super Bowl monkey
    (do you feel me? … on your back, Jack).

  39. Oh Geez. After Gabbert’s performance they’re going to cut JJ? I dunno. I’m more scared than with McCoy last year, and that gave me heartburn. And the right side of our OL? Fu-uh-uh-uh-unnkkkyyyy.

  40. DEPTH!!!!! What the hell? We are not as deep as i thought. Our 2’s and 3’s got their butts kicked! It’s one thingg that Grant and other Sports guys talk about how well our guys are playing, but its easy to play well when you know what plays are coming in PRACTICE! We just got put in front of another deep team, and got dumped. Oh well it is pre season, here’s to staying healty all year……

    1. Steel

      We didn’t get beat, we got outcoached…4th and one inside the 10 ? No guts, no glory….

  41. Disappointed with some players but encouraged about others:
    Gabbert- Ugly
    Looney- Pedestrian: we need Boone back ASAP
    Hampton- Practice Squad
    Borland- Looked Lost

    Purcell- Cut- he got dominated

    Hyde- Looked good
    Ellington- Looked good
    Reed- Biggest Surprise
    McDonald- Looked good
    Kilgore- needs to improve
    Skov- Looked pretty tough
    Okoye- another couple games like that and he will make it hard to cut him

  42. Pretty simple observations from me…First pre season game so not raelly a big deal….
    first off please cut J Martin he is sorry..Raports from camp and what I saw this guy is a joke does not belong in the NFL…
    Carlos Hyde might be a fantasy sleeper…..looked really good…
    Right side of the line was a joke..please just pay Boone and get Davis back not impressed with Kilgore at all….
    Very impressed with Quentin Dial..This guy looks lime the real deal…
    Bruce Ellington may very well be our #3 reciver by week 6 as crazy as that seems…
    I like Borland he just looks kinda lost just needs experience….
    Cook got another interception!

    1. J Martin is a back up at best.

      Kilgore can snap the ball but can’t pass or run block, he is a liability. Hampton is out of his depth. Both Hampton and Kilgore have been nurtured by the Niners for the past 2-3 years and so far they have nothing to show for. Both are awful…

      Agree with you on Hyde, Dial, Ellington and Borland. I think Okoye also did well. He will get plenty of time in the D line…and hope he gets better.

  43. I can also see why they picked on Martin in Miami. I would pick on him too if I were on this team. He is the kind of guy that has ” take my lunch money” written on his forehead.

    1. +10000….I would let him walk after this game and call Boone right away…Were not as deep as we thought on the o line…our back ups are soooooooory

  44. its obvious you need muscle and strength to play this game……our #2 QB really really sucks…

  45. We’ve looked like garbage every first preseason game since Harbaugh arrived, don’t read too much into it guys.

    1. Agreed- I was just more disappointed with some of the individual play not worried about the team

  46. Thoughts…
    – Boone has a little more leverage
    – Dial was great, but his talents would be better used 3-4 DE
    – I hope Ian Williams gets well soon!
    – I hope Anthony Davis gets well soon!
    – Hampton can’t pass block
    – I’m going to overreact like I do every preseason… and the 49ers will stuff the run once Justin and RayMac are in.

  47. Carlos Hyde looks like I advertised. Duke of Ellington is going to be a star in this league. Both these players look to have made the transition to the NFL look seamless….

    1. Whoa whoa the train Razor. One preseason game and you think they have arrived? A little too generous I’d have to say.

    2. Agreed re Hyde and Ellington. Another positive… if we get Ian back Dial would be at his more natural position behind Justin and RayMac.

    3. Carlos Hyde looks like I advertised.
      ————————-
      Wow what a call out, cause I sure didn’t hear anyone else say they thought he’d be good. If you actually were the only one that was one hell of a ledge you stepped out on when you suggest a second round running back would have success ya know because it’s not like the team thought he would be good too taking him in the second round and all.

      You must have a magic eight-ball or something.

            1. You’ll have to forgive me, I had no idea you two were the doyen’s of musicianship…..ROTFLMAO2

  48. O.K. Where was Brandon Lloyd? We keep drafting and signing the best players in the NFL…then we waive or trade them. ” Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expect a different result” As generous as any of us can be….tonight we suck.

    1. It might be huge on his chiropractor bill too. He may have twisted his neck looking back for the ball for once.

  49. I can’t believe how bad Gabbert looked. The Bay Area media reported he was crisp in practice, picking up the offense well. Hello, not so much tonight

  50. Could the Okoye injury be part of an elaborate plan to put him on IR again for the year?

  51. I would not keep players Bethel Thompson and Jewel Hampton on the PS. These guys are not going to be NFL players so I wouldn’t use up a PS spot for them especially if one of our young players on the cusp deserves it more.

    Even Okoye showed me more than these guys and we know his limited experience history.

    Jonathan Martin will not be on this roster if he has another lackluster performance like he had tonight. He was given ample opportunity tonight and looked lost for the most part.

    Borland looked as if his size was a detriment. Unless he’s the second coming of Sam Mills or Zack Thomas he has a way to go. He may be the third string LB this season and have a better chance to shine on ST’s.

    Tank, Dial, Ellington, Moody, Dontae Johnson and CHyde acquitted themselves tonight.
    I like that Harbaugh gave the young players good time to perform.

  52. I love it!! NEVER fails. Every year. We … *ahem*… the 49ers! come out looking flat in the very 1st preseason game and whuddya know?!?! The sky is falling. Every single player needs to be cut and or traded. The first born children of all the coaches must be sacrificed to pay for their insolence and their transgretions.The city of San Francisco/Santa Clara is besieged with unruly 49ers fans with torches and pitch forks chatting, “WE WANT ALEX!!!” as they drag the Mayors dead carcass through the streets while others begin to loot and pillage. THEN!!! Next week. Everything comes together. The 49ers put on a great showing AND!! like the snow’s of yester year … gone forever is this conversation from this Earth. I LOVE IT!!!!!

    1. Good write-up Jack, you hit it right on the head. At this point NT is my biggest concern. Did Dial or TJE get some snaps at NT, if so how’d they do?

      And yes Ellington looked great every time he touched the ball. He definitely has that element we’ve been missing here for a while, I hope the coaching staff utilize him correctly.

      1. Thanks Leo. I did see TJE get a few snaps in there and he did ok, but I only saw Dial at DE.

    2. Jack:

      Excellent write-up as usual, and I’m not saying that solely because I agree with each point you made. I’m saying that partially because I agree with with each point, but not sloely because of that.

      With regard to Johnathan Martin, I’m hoping that his play was a sign that he is still bothered by mono. He looked weak and lethargic. As for Borland, I’m willing to chalk it up to a combination of him being a rookie playing in his first game and him playing behind and next to a lot of second string players. I’d like to think that what he did behind Purcell, TJE, and Dobbs and next to Wilhoite is not indicative of what he can do behind Williams, Smith and McDonald and next to Willis. As for Gabbert, one can only hope that he is a work in progress. The premature calls for cutting him or permanently burying him on the depth chart are silly, but last night was not encouraging.

      On the other hand, I’m not sure we have much reason to expect that Purcell will improve. If Ian Williams isn’t ready to play soon, the 49ers could be in trouble.

      I think Alex Boone gained some leverage last night.

        1. Jack:

          While I don’t think Looney was as horrible as some have described him, I thought he was a definite step down from Boone at RG. I thought Martin was several steps down from Boone as the swing tackle.

          1. Claude,

            Interesting take. Definitely think Martin is a step down, but not sure about Looney at RG. Boone struggled quite a bit last year.

              1. Listen here stats hugger. Don’t make me lay the smack down on your candy @ss.

                Can you smeeeeellllllllll what the Jack, is, cooking!!!!!

              2. I didn’t get to pay as much attention as I would have liked to….but that’s just the price you pay for having 2 toddler boys.

                How did Kilgore look at Center? Did Martin get some snaps there as well?

              3. Jack:

                If you were a real fan, you’d agree with me. Now, shut your pie hole or I will challenge you to meet me at ninermd’s tailgate for an a$$-whupping. Of course, once you agree to meet me, I won’t show up until after everyone has gone inside for the game.

            1. As for Boone last year, I could never tell how much of the problem was him and how much was him covering for Goodwin. I have the sense (I never went back to verify with the gametape) that Goodwin was a bigger problem last year than anyone realized/acknowledged.

              1. If that’s your line of thinking, how in the hell do you evaluate Looney with Kilgore light pants to his left and J. You can have my lunch money Martin to his right?

              2. Fair question. As I said, it’s just an impression I was left with last year. As for Looney, I felt like he didn’t play at Boone’s level. Do you disagree?

                Let me rephrase. The right side of the o-line had problems last night. However you want to apportion the responsibility between Looney and Martin, it improves Boone’s leverage. I’m not saying that the 49ers are on the phone with his agents today giving in to his demands, or that they should be. I’m just saying that I think Boone’s bargaining position improved. I don’t think the 49ers will look at the tape and conclude, “Yep, it’s settled; we have Looney, so we don’t need Boone.”

                By the way, I thought Kilgore performed better last night than you have suggested he would. Did you see any problems with his performance?

              3. Kilgore/Looney/J.Martin got dominated by John’s Defensive Line. I want to see M@M/Looney/A.Davis for my final evaluation of Mr. Looney……

              4. Razor,

                As I mentioned to Claude and Jack down below, you should watch it again. The right side did not get dominated like you are saying. There were some missed blocks at times, but overall they held up pretty well.

                Now I’m by no means saying it was perfect and Boone would be a better option than Looney right now without question, but for the first preseason game with so many new faces playing together for the first time, they weren’t bad at all.

              5. No repeat performance for me. We’ll get another good evaluation when these gentleman go against the Broncos…..

      1. Claude,

        It doesn’t happen often but I’m in complete disagreement with your analysis on J. Martin. You weren’t the only one as I’ve read some comments ripping on him above, but after watching it again this morning I think people are barking up the wrong tree big time.

        Martin was excellent in pass protection both on the right and left. He did make two mistakes, the first being a missed block during the first drive on a sweep and the second was the false start when he had moved to LT. Other than that he was solid and I have no idea where the animosity towards him is coming from. Looney struggled a bit, especially on the 3rd and 1 during the first drive when he was driven back, but overall the starting Oline wasn’t playing that badly. They were especially strong in pass protection.

        Some other thoughts on the game:

        Gabbert threw the ball poorly but I didn’t see any of the duck and throw when facing on coming rushers which is what he was famous for in Jax. He made the proper reads for the most part but just threw the ball badly. He needs to focus on his mechanics this week.

        Jewel Hampton is not an option and if he is they are in big trouble. Looks slow and can’t block. Not a good combination. Hopefully he improves over the course of preseason.

        Josh Johnson was the best of the QB’s which isn’t saying much, but one thing that stood out to me was the playcalling for him vs. Gabbert. Every pass play called when Gabbert was the QB was a drop back. They didn’t move the pocket or run much play action with him. With Johnson, they called a couple of rollouts and had some misdirection which resulted in Ellington’s first catch of the night. Johnson looks like a better fit for the offense but it’s hard to say emphatically because they didn’t try to use Gabbert the same way.

        Ellington looked good in both KR’s and route running. He muffed his only punt return though so that is not going to help him in the eyes of Harbaugh.

        Defensively they got beat up front and gave up a lot of rushing yards, but the majority given up to RB’s came in the second half with the Dline gassed due to a lack of bodies. It is a concern but I’m not going to overreact when they had 4 healthy bodies by the end of the game.

        Borland bit hard on playaction a couple of times and one resulted in the FB blowing past him for an easy pass and catch. It wasn’t all bad though as he was active and made some nice tackles, especially on ST’s.

        Moody impressed me with his ability to diagnose the play quickly. He filled the hole well a couple of times and got some good pressure on a blitz that resulted in an incompletion. He looks night and day better to what he was last season.

        Ward was thinking too much at times especially on a 3rd down completion he gave up on the first drive. His assignment was the inside receiver, but he went to the outside receiver to give him a bump before diverting his attention inside which gave them an easy completion. He didn’t make many glaring errors but definitely isn’t there mentally yet.

        Dontae Johnson and Chris Cook both played well and were given more opportunities in press man than the others. It’s easy to see how they envision playing with these guys on the field making use of their size and physicality.

        Lemonier, Dial and Carradine all had moments where you could see some flashes of what they can be down the road. All had to play a lot of snaps and Lemonier and Carradine didn’t come off the field in the second half. Tough chore for the first PS game. Lemonier had one sack and another that was nullified by a penalty to Bubba Ventrone. Carradine looked unblockable at times but was noticeably winded by the 4th quarter. Dial is a load and very active with his hands causing two fumbles, one of which was recovered by the Niners. I’m very encouraged by what I saw from these guys last night.

        Looks like the team came away pretty much unscathed which is the most important thing. Worst injury looks to be Okoye who went down with no contact but was clutching at his ankle. Good thing is he walked off under his own power. Dobbs also injured an ankle but looks like nothing major and he was held out for precautionary reasons.

        Overall it was a mixed bag with the Oline holding up pretty well while the Dline got out muscled, but the score means nothing in these games. It’s all about individual performances and there were some good ones in this game despite the lop sided out come. They have to build off this now, hopefully get some people back this week and play more disciplined and consistent football next Sunday.

        1. I just read your article Jack, so I guess i disagree with your assessment of Martin as well. I think you need to rewatch it. He regularly pushed his man around the outside and didn’t get pushed into the QB as you’ve described.

          1. rocket,

            I haven’t had time to rewatch it yet, but burned up the DVR watching it live. I’ll review it again on TV and later when the all-22 is available, and maybe my opinion will change. Stay Tuned.

          2. rocket:

            There’s no way I’m going to rewatch a preseason game, but I will watch the next game with an open mind regarding Looney and Martin.

            1. What? You and Razor don’t have the time to waste going back over a preseason game? What kind of fans are you?

        2. Good Stuff Rocket. Yeah I thought the same about Martin actually. And I think its somewhat understandable at this point for the D-line to be winded being in there a majority of the game and with our offense not being able to stay on the field. My biggest question is can Dial play NT?

          1. They were being blown off the ball on the first series. They weren’t winded at that point.

            1. Jack,

              They got pushed around, no question, but it was obvious the biggest problem was Mike Purcell inside. He was getting manhandled. I thought Carradine and Dial held up pretty well most of the night.

              1. That entire first group was manhandled. Dobbs and TJE were pushed all over the place too.

          2. Thanks Leo. After reading Jack’s article, I went back and watched it yet again to make sure I wasn’t missing something and it just reaffirmed what I saw the first time. Martin was good most of the first half he played, especially in pass protection. He didn’t get much of a push on a few running plays which needs to improve, but he held up well on both sides and certainly wasn’t getting abused like some on here are trying to pass off. He missed his block on the 2nd down sweep on the first drive and false started once when he moved to LT. That was pretty much it for the negative aspects of his game. Not sure what they think they saw but it didn’t happen.

            1. Rocket – Since you’ve watched it so many times, did you get a chance to take a look at Kilgore?

              Also Wilhoite…

              1. Leo,

                Kilgore held up ok for the most part but gave up some inside pressure a couple of times.

              2. That’s a fair assessment, and Looney got worked on that play he singled out, but I thought Looney played pretty well after that. Barrows made a good observation on him playing too high though. He has to get lower.

              3. Wilhoite struggled a bit like Borland recognizing the plays, and didn’t hold up overly well in coverage on the few plays he was involved from what I saw.

            2. rocket:

              Fwiw, Matt Barrows agrees with you on Martin and me on Looney:

              That Hyde’s best runs went to the left isn’t a strong statement for right guard Joe Looney and right tackle Jonathan Martin. The latter, however, had a pretty good outing. Martin played both right and left tackle, and while he had a false start in the second quarter, he showed quick feet throughout.

              Looney was not as good. (Which is a reverse of training camp where Looney has been strong and Martin has struggled at times). He seemed to get too high on some of his blocks, which caused him to be off balance. He didn’t keep his block on nose tackle Brandon Williams at the end of the 49ers’ opening drive, which led to a one-yard loss for tailback Jewel Hampton.

              From http://www.sacbee.com/2014/08/08/6615273/film-review-stevie-johnson-strong.html

              1. Geez I put this post in the wrong place again. It should go here.

                That’s a fair assessment, and Looney got worked on that play he singled out, but I thought Looney played pretty well after that. Barrows made a good observation on him playing too high though. He has to get lower.

            3. I didn’t see the game, but with your comments being backed up by the article by Barrows, I’m feeling a bit more encouraged about J. Martin’s performance and as a potential backup option. Cheers, rocket.

              1. No problem Scooter. It was not a well played game by any means, but as so often happens during a live blog, group theory takes over and people find a whipping boy to dump on. In this case it was Martin but it was based on what people have read during TC and not his actual play in the game. He was one of their better performers on the night as a whole.

    3. Ah yes indeedy … that answers that. Hammer WILL continue to piggyback on Grant’s success to drive traffic to his own self-published blog.

      1. Jack owns 49erswebzone.com? That’s pretty cool.

        Jack: Why didn’t you tell us?

        E: Grant doesn’t have a problem with Jack linking to his articles on other sites. Why do you?

    4. Nice write-up Jack. I’m really encouraged to see McDonald and the two big DL from the 2013 draft playing well. There’s been a bit of talk in this forum about whether Baalke wasted those picks, so hopefully they continue to impress. If they do, that 2013 draft will start to look like another really strong one.

      Jack, do you think Ellington will see much time on offense this season?

      1. Thanks Scooter. If Ellington keeps returning kicks like he did last night I would have to think he’d be on the active game day roster. At that point you’ve got to think he’d get a few opportunities like Ginn did back in 2011.

  53. Holy cow! Depth? We are deep. One of the deeper teams on the league. We ( you guys) punish yourselves year in and year out this time of year. Makes me laugh. Never in the entire season will you ever see all those guys on the field at once. A backup can come in with 10 other starters and not miss a beat. 6 or 7 backups in with four or 5 starters and you’re not gonna get the results people. No team will.
    The Niners in the Harbaugh era, puts you guys through this every year. We get our practices on the practice field when prying eyes aren’t watching. We don’t go into preseason games with anything other than coming out healthy. Look at who played well and who needs coached up. I’ll copy and paste this for next year at this time. Tired of writing it every damn year!
    Some people were dogging the play calling in the red zone when Kap was playing. Really? The coaches obviously wanted to see Jewell Hampton in that situation. Good job coaches. It’s not a game people!

  54. Here are my over-reactions after game 1, keep in mind i watched during work so i could not rewind or focus as much as i would have liked.
    1. Hyde looks to be legit. He flashed great speed and strength. He also had a really good blitz pick up on Mosley (i think). I would have liked to see him get a pass or two thrown his way but his night was rather short.
    2. Hampton looked bad. He has a golden opportunity to make the team and he didnt show any glimpses of a player worthy of a roster spot.
    3. Boone needs to be back ASAP. Looney was man handled by just about everyone. Runs to the right side werent going anywhere.
    4. Tank and Dial showed enormous potential. Neither player was flawless but showed flashes of great DL play. Tank tossed a guard to the ground for an easy sack and Dial forced a fumble (2 maybe?).
    5. Purcell STINKS! I saw on multiple occassions where he was pushed 2-3 yards off the ball. The defense looked soft and he was a major factor to why. Every defense needs a NT to set the tone and stuff double teams. We’d be better off with Andy Lee in there.
    6. Kaep CANNOT get hurt. Gabbert is Gabbert. A solid college QB who cannot play in the NFL. Sorry. And johnson didnt show much either. Kap goes down we are toast.

    Thats just some of the things i noticed while watching. Keep in mind these are my over-reactions. Things could easily change after game #2. Go Niners!!

  55. I didn’t get to watch the game because I was busy with my boys’ pop-warner team but here is my assessment of tonight’s game;

    It’s preseason, ignore everything except the first two drives of the third game and even then you can pretty much forget anything you think you gleamed from those 17 plays. The coaches aren’t going to give teams anything to look at while they’re fleshing out their 3rd string.

      1. Oh sorry let me try harder:

        My assessment of tonight’s game Razor style:

        See I totally told you that (insert the name of any player that had at least an average game or better regardless of the level of competition they were facing) would be awesome! Oh and remember when I said that (insert the name of any player that struggled) would suck, see I told you guys! Id also throw in something about Iron Maiden or whatever generic sounding metal band you want to be associated with to make yourself sound hard.

        1. I can’t help it your boy Trent Murphy was not selected by the 49ers. You mad bro?

          Why do you insist on correlating my preferences with an agenda? Does it insulate you from your own shortcomings?

          Iron Maiden generic? Ha! You really are pathetic dude….

          http://www.nme.com/news/iron-maiden/78362

          1. Mary I might not also be a medical doctor but one thing I can prescribe for you is a big cup of shut the “beep” up.

              1. Meaning you know me from somewhere or are you some coward with a different screen name from years past? Either way its as pathetic as it comes when a dude uses a girls name as his screen name.

                Claude, thanks, priceless.

  56. Hyde looked good when he could use his quickness, but he still needs to run with more leverage to maximize his power.

    Tank looked good tonight. Active, even on plays away from him.

    Though I’m suddenly concerned about our regular-season pass rush. Aldon may be suspended for a number of games. Lemonier does not seem to have developed better technique in the offseason, Brooks is jumping offsides in practice–which is typical of a slightly older player trying to beat the snap, Cowboy and McDonald are older now… Other than Tank I don’t know who’s going to bring the hammer down on opposing QBs. This is a very important issue since our outside corners–Brock, Culliver, Cook, Morris–are a below average group for the NFL.

    1. I’m hoping all this chatter about 8 game suspensions are BS.

      There is no completely replacing Aldon. No matter how many games. it will have to be done with creativity involving multiple players.

      – Maybe Lemonier is saving his better moves for the regular season
      – There is always Skuta
      – Where Lynch was tonight?
      – In obvious pass situations, Tank could line up outside. He was a DE in college.
      – If Ian Williams is well enough to play, a fresh Dial (and even Okoye) could also pressure anywhere along the line.
      – Zone Blitzes, with Borland or Willis rushing and Brooks or Lemonier (or TJE…haha) dropping back.
      – Ward is an excellent blitzer in his college tape.

      1. Brodie: I hear you.

        I feel your pain.

        However, he’s on probation (fast track to hell) now and Tuna was right — he probably should have served his short sentence and avoided probation. If I were him I’d hire a travelling companion b/c he doesn’t make good decisions.

  57. Some things never change.
    1… The 49ers looked aweful in game 1 of the ore season.
    2… The “over reactions” by some are called out by…. Well over reacting fans.
    3… D’s is still stalking Alex smith and has full vengeance in its alien head.
    4… Predictions are bold and usually wrong.
    5… Out of 200 comments my dear old friend onelame finds my comment to reply to. Way to hang on onelame. Alex smith = 2nd tier. (Now it’s the same old thing) lol
    6…. We have some good looking youngsters coming up, and some horrible additions that need to be subtractions.
    Pre season game 1 has been fun, ladies and gentlemen.

    1. ….still on the Alex Smith hatewagon!!!…….you are right some never change….

  58. Kind of glad I didn’t watch the game as it sounds like it wasn’t great viewing. That’s pre-season for you.

    Have to say I’m a tad shocked by some of the extreme over reactions on here though. Cutting guys after 1 pre-season game? Seriously? And I’m finding it hard to convince myself we are doomed because our backups (actually, in many cases the backups of our backups, due to the number of injuries we are carrying) didn’t perform as well as another team’s backups in the first pre-season game where coaches keep the play-calling vanilla.

    Sure, it would have been fantastic if all of our guys had looked terrific and dominated. But lets not get carried away with the negativity just yet.

    1. Scooter,

      It wasn’t all bad. The first-team O drove the ball down the field but then they put Hampton in.

      VMac looked good, Hyde was a stud and Ellington was very good in the return game and the leading receiver.

      1. Thanks Jack. I followed the progress of the game on NFL.com and saw our first drive on offense went pretty well. Can’t be too upset that our 6th string RB to start training camp got stuffed by the Ravens first team D.

        Definitely encouraged to hear McDonald, Hyde and Ellington looked pretty good, and from the sounds of things Dial and Carradine were decent too.

        The main concern I have out of today’s game is the OL. Sounds like J. Martin was ordinary, and Looney wasn’t great either. Those two could be key backups this year (or potentially a starter in the case of Looney if Boone keeps holding out).

        Gabbert’s performance was also concerning, as you never know when you’ll need your backup QB to play. He’ll need to do a better job than he showed today. But then he’ll also have a better OL and running game to lean on during the season if he is needed.

        The run D was bad, but we were missing J. Smith and Ray McDonald. Who started at NT? Was it Purcell? Sounds like he was woeful from what I’ve read, and doubt he even makes the roster. No wonder the DL struggled. Hopefully Ian Williams can get healthy soon. With all the starters back, the run D should be fine.

        1. Scooter
          Through my eyes:
          In the 1st couple of series Purcell got moved off the LOS and over-ran some plays. He seemed to play a little better in the 2Q. TJE and Dobbs did not play well against run or pass. The tenor of the game changed with Dial in there. He looked strong and he was always in the way of the offense. Carradine looked strong too. Borland bit on run fakes and was out of position in coverages. Moody over ran some but also made a few plays. Secondary was erratic but Cook made a pick. Okoye showed power and aggressiveness and mixed it up pretty well.
          On the goal line play, any RB was doomed. The DT just shoved Looney to the side like a rag doll and clobbered Hampton in the backfield. That was a disturbing play to witness. Run game early couldn’t do anything at all to the right side while Staley and Iupati did get movement to the left side. VMac looked fast. Ellington looked promising on returns.

        2. Scooter,

          Looney wasn’t that bad. Yes he got beat on 3 & 1 on the first drive but so did Iupati on Kaepernick’s first pass attempt, allowing his man to get a good shot on Kaep. To me that is a bigger concern.

          As I wrote in my bad and good recap piece last night on 49erswebzone, Gabbert was very inaccurate, but he didn’t get much help either. He put one right between the numbers to Jacobs that was dropped and Hampton also dropped one on an inside screen.

          The most concerning take away from last night for me was the nose tackle position. Mike Purcell started and was beyond bad. On the opening drive Jeremy Zuttah was blowing him back into the linebackers on just about every run play and that continued throughout the game. If he stays the best option they are in trouble.

          1. No disrespect Jack, since any two people can see things differently, but “Looney wasn’t that bad.”???
            Oh yes he was.

            1. BroT,

              Differences in opinion are good. The comments section would be boring if we all agreed every time.

              From what I saw without rewatching it yet, my take was that he was about equal to Iuapati. While Looney struggled with a run block, Iupati stuggled with a pass pro.

              1. Iupati is definitely vulnerable in pass pro. Any kind of quickness inside gives him trouble. He was constantly off balance in our games against Atlanta the past couple seasons. No reason to sign him to a big deal–someone else will and we’ll get a compensatory 3rd rounder.

                Shaun Hill…I still wish we’d given him the $1.5 mil as our backup QB. The guy just knows how to run an offense. He may not take you to the Super Bowl, but he can win some games if your starter is out temporarily. Gabbert… ick.

                Looking at our receiving corps… SJ and Boldin MAY have two productive years left. If Crabs really does have a pop back in his step, he may become our most important long-term re-sign candidate.

                Boone… I wonder what kind of shape and conditioning he’s in. It sounds like he knew he’d be holding out since spring. Those big guys can quickly pack on a lot of weight. I hope by the time we do come to a financial arrangement that he’ll still be capable of helping us out.

              2. Early August, I guess. Still, I’ll need Looney to make a bunch of good, or at least steady plays to wipe out my memory of that 3rd&1 play in the RedZone. Appalling.

              3. >Ok, Razor, that was good.
                >Sully-
                So let Iupati go, then who plays LG? He has vulnerabilities, but he’s currently the best we’ve got.

            2. BT,

              I’ve rewatched it twice (I obviously have no life) and I agree with Jack. Looney wasn’t too bad overall, in fact the entire Oline was pretty solid. The issue was Gabbert’s inaccuracy and Hampton being the RB more than the Oline.

              1. I’m glad to hear that Rocket. You’re one of the several guys around here that I value their opinions.

          2. Jack, I definitely agree that if Purcell is our starting NT we are in trouble. But I just can’t see that happening. I can’t even see him making the 53-man roster. If Ian Williams doesn’t prove his health before the start of the season, I imagine Dial will be the starting NT and they will bring a vet in as the backup (Sopoaga?).

            Just goes to show how important that NT spot is though, even if they do play less snaps than the nickel DB.

            I’m now hearing a few people say Looney and J. Martin weren’t as bad as some early reports/ commenters suggested. As a run heavy offense the play of the OL is vital for the 49ers, so they need those two to be capable of coming in as needed and performing strongly. Hopefully come the 2nd preseason game they’ll dispel any concerns.

    2. Scooter…the annoyance of Niner fans over the performances of Gabbert and Martin as backups has to do with the argument some folks made that it was smart to trade for those two losers to help give us depth. It’s not only $3 mil that could have gone toward someone else’s contract–including someone already on the roster–it’s a waste of time for the coaches, and it’s giving up a couple late-round draft picks that SOMETIMES (e.g. Marcus Cooper) pan out.

      It’s not the end of the world. It’s just annoying.

    3. I’m sorry but if Gabbertt is our 2nd option. We are in trouble. It’s not like he’s a rookie. He looked aweful. And was making rookie mistakes. I agree it’s a stretch to want to cut some players after game 1, but Gabberttt is an exception. If not cutting him moving him to the bottom of the depth chart. He’s horrible as ever.

  59. I dunno ..
    during the Hatbaugh-era .. have the Niners ever beaten
    the Ravens ?

    Yeah .. ok ..sure this was preseason game #1.. but still

  60. I see the let’s-overreact-ridiculously-to-the-first-preseason-game movement is alive and well this year.

  61. Martin was terrible. He doesn’t have it at all and should be cut immediately. Snyder too. They better get on the phone and do some face saving with Boone. Otherwise we are totally screwed on the OL which sucked big time last night…

      1. I thought this was perfectly timed after your “Lets-overreact-ridiculously” post.

        I needed that smile this morning.

    1. Ghost,

      Way to enforce Claude’s post and for the record if that’s what you saw, you don’t have a clue what it is you are seeing.

      1. Rocket, you old slut, if you think that either of those pretenders can play quality line, then you need to take a remedial class in Pain Geometry.

          1. I remember Pain Geometry; I hated that class. It was right after lunch and I would get too sleepy to memorize the theorems. Plus, it was not nearly as interesting as Embarrassment Physics.

          2. Well Rocket I didn’t want to say anything but I’ve heard you have been known to get around

  62. What did you all think of the “Toyota Red Zone”? Please, God don’t let this be something we have to suffer thru during the network telecasts….

    1. Yup, the Toyota redzone overlay was a hot mess, and needs to be cut!
      Oops, sounds like I’m overeating (lol).

        1. That DID suck!
          .
          Seems like there’s nothing they won’t do to make a buck these days.

          Leave my football alone!!!
          .
          .
          .
          *ALOHA*

  63. Last nights game did clear up some things for me; Ellington’s first step is as quick as I’ve ever seen, Dial is going to be an absolute monster with those 14 foot arms, Lemonier is going to become Aldons best friend (after ‘cowboy’) , we’ve got a great bevy of receivers if we can get them the ball, and until Boone gets back, I’m not going to fret over what I’ll be choosing between football and fishing on Sundays this year

  64. What O.N. just said. Hey Oregon, know anything about Jacksonville down by Medford? That area in general? Thinkin gof retiring there.

    1. @Ghost

      Yeah, it’s a great choice for retirement…come up and spend some time

  65. On another note that was probably the worse commentating I’ve ever heard, even for a pre-season game. There were guys making plays and injuries happening, but Warner and old “No-name” over there were too busy talking about his past experiences as an undrafted QB, as if we all haven’t seen “A Football Life” before.

    Just awful.

  66. Leo:

    I think it was because NFLN didn’t have anyone onsite in Baltimore. It was clear that Wolfe and Warner were in studio (and that they had done very little to prepare), and NFLN had no one providing sideline reporting. I’m not sure that they even had a broadcast truck at the game. I guess NFLN didn’t want to pay for the local broadcast feed and didn’t want to pay to send a broadcast team to Baltimore. While I appreciated the opportunity to see most of the plays, the broadcast left a lot to be desired.

    1. The local broadcast had the radio guys. Robinson is a pro, but I’m not a fan of Ryan.

      1. Ryan’ timing was a little off last night in that he was stepping on Ted’ lines before he was finished with his sentences but (like the 1st preseason game) he will get better as he works with Ted.

        Ryan can be brutally honest. I remember some of his TV broadcast comments of 49ers games during the Singletary era having a bit of a sting. He definitely did not hold back in his description of Gabbert last. And I for one, thought he was right on.
        That being said, I think he will eventually complement Ted Robinson because of their divergent styles.

    2. Yeah pretty awful. I wish I could have watched the local broadcast. I actually like Ryan, but he’s often so negative when he talks about the niners.

      On one play I think I heard Wolfe call Dunta Thompson instead Dontae Johnson. It was irritating. I wish I would have had a list of names and jersey numbers, mainly for the rookies. I’ll be more prepared next time.

      1. I got the NFL.com preseason package for around $20. They carried the local SF broadcast. Hooked the laptop to the big screen and had a great time.

    1. Mid: I was actually happy with the Seahawk’s game. I thought Wilson was efficient and accurate after a few missed throws. Our OLine looks to be an issue. I think Wilson had 44 sacks last year. I hope that will get resolved . Percy didn’t play, nor did KamC or MLynch. We had many players still out from surgery, I think both sides had too many penalties. Some NFL analyst said that’s due to misplaced footing. They need to get that cleaned up. Denver looked to be tougher and more disciplined(?) this year — but we knew they would be facing the NFC-W this year and have added many pieces.. I missed the 45 min weather delay and actually didn’t watch the game until 10:00 on NFL

          1. Haha. That’s another story we don’t want hear, I’m sure. Jack, I appreciate your unbiased and experienced viewpoint when you critique teams. What did you see in the Seahawk game: the good and the bad? I just watched PC press conf. and he said we really played a sloppy game — Not happy. Thanks.

            1. Mary .. for me .. the good was …
              the SeaChickens got hammered !
              (it takes a little of the sting away from the Niners loss)

              1. MW: hmmm I wouldn’t call 21-16 a hammering unlike another game I watched earlier . . . but what do I know.

  67. Grant,
    Will you provide any coverage/news of the 49ers/Ravens practices beginning on Saturday?

    Of big interest to me is our Redzone play and the hope we suffer no major injuries.

  68. Exhibit 999 Grant Cohn knows nothing about football. Carlos Hyde looked awesome last night. Didn’t Grant say he was going to be a 3 yards and a cloud of dust guy because he comes from the Big 10? I’m sure Grant will say it was only preseason and it doesn’t matter which will be funny because of all the negative aspects he will bring up will matter. Lol! Smh!

    1. You like to see a young quarterback stand in the pocket like that and deliver a striker is one thing, but recovering after ralphing like that was well done indeed…..

  69. First pre season game means little. The one thing that stood out to me is that the Niners were not hurried at the offensive line of scrimmage, the simplified play calling showed. That is very good improvement. Hard to evaluate the offense due to limited plays. Hyde and Ellington seemed to be the real deal. Not going to harp on Blaine nor the right side of the line, next week they will need to get off their tail so that the tell of thier tale will be different. The defense sucked for the most part, but with so many non starters playing it comes as no surprise. First pre season game. geez

    1. Under,
      I agree about the overrated value of a preseason game from a fans viewpoint, but that thought won’t fly with players on the team that need to shine in preseason games if they want a better chance at making the roster.

      I watch preseason games because I want to see how our young/new players perform.
      Just like every game is graded during season, I have no issues with the commentators here (including myself) grading the player’s performances in preseason. It’s what keeps the blog interesting and intriguing.

      All of us give our opinion of players whether wrong or right around here. That has been an ongoing tradition here since this blog started.
      My opinion of players over the years have landed on both sides of the ledger while all the time knowing that my opinion doesn’t matter one iota to the 49ers FO.
      Many of us shoot from the hip after a game like last night and want certain players cut immediately. I know the FO (thank God) doesn’t listen, but at least it gives us a chance to vent.

  70. This game showed that the 49ers “are who we thought they were” … despite all the hype from training camp on big changes in the offense. Now, granted this is the first game of the pre-season and the 49ers were missing most of their starting defense and some key pieces on offense but a few disturbing trends from previous seasons were still in evidence.

    Offense:
    – Greg Roman continues in his belief that he can overpower an opponents short yardage defense by putting in extra blockers. It hasn’t worked. The 49ers have one of the worst short yardage conversion rates in the NFL over the past 3 years because Roman telegraphs the play he intends to run. I don’t care how many blockers you put on the line. If the defense knows what’s coming they can stop the play. Amazing that Roman hasn’t figured this out yet. Please, ditch the heavy sets on short yardage and at least give the defense something to think about.
    – The O-Line is not as good as everyone says it is. Staley is the only true stud. Mike Iupati still can’t pass block. Kap was pancaked on his first snap of the game when Iupati whiffed. Jonathan Martin couldn’t block anybody. Looney and Kilgore got no push.The rest of the backups were awful. So many plays I watched O-lineman with their backs turned looking into the backfield to see the carnage their missed assignments had caused. Things should get better when Davis gets back but still this was a poor showing. Alex Boone’s leverage just went way up.
    – Backup QBs. Ugh! Blaine Gabbert is who we thought he is. Good in practice. Terrible in games. Johnson can look good and then make a terrible decision or crucial mistake. McBLT looks like no more than a good camp arm.
    – On the bright side. Hyde and Ellington both look like football players. They were definitely the sole offensive highlights.
    – Bottom Line: Our backup offensive players were clearly inferior to Baltimore’s backup defensive players.

    Defense:
    – Harbaugh summed it up succinctly. They got pushed around. Purcell is clearly not an answer at nose tackle. Okoye flashed once or twice but he’s still a long way from being a real football player and am beginning to wonder if that marvelous body is tough enough to take NFL punishment. Dial looks like he could be a stud and Carradine also looked good, although they had to play so much they were obviously gassed at times. Dominant, I don’t know because Cowboy was the unstoppable monster on the line and he is clearly no longer the force he wasy. But if Williams can come back, the D-Line will probably be OK despite getting pushed around in this game.
    – Linebackers… Ugh! This was an ugly game for the backups that played. They got gashed in the run game and totally blew the coverage on several passes. Wilhoite was out of position on a couple of plays and missed a tackle. Skuta was overaggressive and bit on some play fakes. Lemonier had a sack but was handled in the run game. Borland looked slow and outclassed. None of the others did much. It’s clear the loss of Bowman is REALLY going to hurt and if Aldon is out many games, things could get really ugly with this group.
    – Secondary. They made some plays. Cook had the int. He also got lucky in the end zone when he wasn’t called for interference. Dontae had good coverage but dropped an int. Ward had a good tackle but got burned a few times. Saw some individual talent and playmaking, but this unit is clearly still a work in progress and we won’t really know what kind of secondary we have until well into the season.
    – Our backup front seven, in particular the linebackers, was clearly inferior Baltimore’s.

    Summary:

    The Good: Individual performance of Carlos Hyde, Quentin Dial, Tank Carradine, Bruce Ellington and flashes from Jimmie Ward, Chris Cook and Dontae Johnson.

    The Bad: As a unit, both the offense and defense played poorly. Great depth? Stacked roster? It certainly wasn’t on display in this game. Why is that? It’s the coaching staffs job to get these guys to play as a unit and they performed poorly. Our players got outplayed. Our coaches got outcoached. Is this group of players and coaches overhyped?

    1. You simply cannot get out coached in a pre season game. In January we will know if ‘they’ are overhyped.

      There’s no way you can conclude that much from the pre-season game when all they are doing is evaluating individual players and not trying to win whatsoever.

    1. He’s trying to find ways to downplay Carlos Hyde’s performance to and blame the loss on Stevie Johnson.

      1. Did Grant fly to Baltimore?

        Alot of the beat writers/bloggers are quiet. Maiocco has a few tweets but no major new info. A good day to take off, whether its here or Owings Mills/Baltimore.

        I visited a friend in Owings Mills. Got a week long transpo pass so I could explore Washington DC and Baltimore. The transfer spot for the MARC train was near Camden Yards, not far from the Ravens stadium. Maybe GC and MM are exploring the sites.

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