49ers training camp report: Day 14

SANTA CLARA – Here are the highlights of the 49ers’ fifth non-padded practice of training camp.

THE GOOD

1. TE Vernon Davis. One of those days no one could cover him. Made seven catches during team drills, and scored a touchdown against safety Jimmie Ward during one-on-one drills in the red zone. Ward jumped to swat the football, Davis jumped much higher and caught the football, barreled through Ward on the way to the ground and hopped over Ward’s prostrate body on the way to the huddle.

2. TE Vance McDonald. Seemed open almost every play, and caught the first six passes thrown his way before dropping the seventh. Hey, nobody’s perfect.

3. TE Blake Bell. Stuck his left arm out and made a one-handed catch in front of starting free safety Eric Reid during one on ones. “Now spike it on him, boy!” wide receivers coach Adam Henry shouted after the play. Bell did as he was told.

4. RB Jarryd Hayne. Jumped as high as he could to catch a pass with his fingertips over the middle during 11 on 11s. This would have been the catch of the day if not for Bell’s one-hander.

5. QB Colin Kaepernick. Completed 17-of-23 passes during 11 on 11s, and 7-of-8 passes during 7 on 7s. Of his seven incomplete passes, three were dropped. So he really threw only four bad passes all afternoon. But he didn’t throw any deep passes, which are the ones he has struggled to complete this offseason.

THE NOT SO GOOD

1. CB Shareece Wright. Gave up a touchdown catch to Torrey Smith in the red zone during 7 on 7s. Smith ran a fade-route to the back-left corner of the end zone and Wright never turned his head to find the football. Easy catch for Smith.

2. CB Keith Reaser. Made back-to-back mistakes during a two-minute drill. First, defensive coordinator Eric Mangini called an all-out blitz on second-and-goal from the 20, leaving Reaser and the other corners on islands without any safety help. Before the blitz could reach Kaepernick he lofted a pass to the end zone for Anquan Boldin, who was covered by Reaser, and Reaser just grabbed him. Pass interference. Next play, first-and-goal from the one-yard line, Kaepernick sprinted to his right and threw a touchdown pass to McDonald, who was covered by Reaser. “Good work, Keith!” Quinton Patton shouted after the play.

This article has 137 Comments

  1. As I posted in the other thread, one thing I can say for sure about Hayne from his rugby league days, he has a very good leap on him to get above a crowd and make a catch.

    1. Yeai was watching his highlights today. The guys such an athlete. Crazy game, wish i understood it.

      1. He played Rugby League, it’s a simple as it gets, far less complex than the NFL….
        now if he’d have played Rugby Union then your comment would be valid…..

        1. I didnt mean crazy as in complex, more that it seem like a very exciting and fun game. And i dont know the rules and workings of the game and i wish i did.

        2. Heck, we Yanks are just catching up to the news that a difference exists between Rugby League and Rugby Union; don’t expect many cogent comments!
          My Texas-born brother-in-law has recently taken up an interest in Cricket. No,….really, and not as a player. Told him that he didn’t have to go to extremes, that the Niners aren’t going to be THAT bad!! I asked him how he could keep track of all the “action” what with being distracted by things like the sound of the grass growing or the passage of the Sun in it’s arc across the sky. I’m going to have to roust him out for a rousing round of Bocce Ball. But no insults to him as I hope to stay a week in September with them at their vacation home on the Big Island.

            1. I’ve watched paint dry…. cricket is far more exciting, and not the silly wham bam thank you man one day game, I prefer the full 5 day event…. just awesome…. and as we have just beaten the Australians it’s even better at the moment!!

  2. I’m going to assume that it was Ward’s prostrate body VD leapt over. If you can see his prostate from the sidelines, Ward has more injury time coming.

  3. What unit was Hayne operating with on that play Grant? I like Coach Henrys’ enthusiasm, and Patton is getting rather cocky….

  4. Grant, based on your description of Vernon’s TD against Ward, it sounds like it wasn’t so much a case of Ward being out of position but just out-muscled/ out-jumped for the ball (a la Brandon Marshall). Am I interpreting that correctly?

        1. And if Ward made an interception everyone would be complaining that Davis is past his prime and needs to be traded. These are world class athletes on both sides of the ball and sometimes they get beat. It doesn’t matter who is playing but 100% of the guys on the field have been beaten at some point. Quit making like it’s the end of the world because one world class athlete beat another.

      1. What could they expect to get for a player that makes his livelihood on his feet and one of them is encased in a turtle shell?

        1. It’s not so much that Scooter as it the potential outlook Scooter. Tomsula and Mangini want their CBs (including the NCB) to be able to all over the field and the current favorites in Johnson and Reaser are able to do just that while Ward is just a NCB. I would say that he could just slide over to FS and be the backup behind Reid, but the drafting of Tartt throws a wrench in to that scenario as well.
          If Tartt is named the backup FS while Reaser and Johnson remain ahead of Ward at the NCB position, then I could forsee the team dealing Ward.

          1. I think if Ward doesn’t win the nickel job then he will be the backup nickel and backup FS, with Tartt the dime back and backup SS.

            I think what this team wants more than anything is to be strong up the middle (nothing ground breaking in my thinking there – Baalke says it all the time). They place a lot of importance on the safety position.

            I don’t think it is likely they will give up on their 1st rounder just yet. Its not like he’s AJ Jenkins. He actually won a starting role as a rookie and as I posted below, gradually graded better and better each week.

            1. Tartt is currently listed as a FS Scooter. Also, I doubt the team wants last year’s first round pick to be a backup NCB.
              Jenkins was a bust so the comparison between him and Ward doesn’t add up. Ward has potential; it just may no longer be with this team.

              1. Tartt may be listed as a FS right now, but if they let Dahl go I expect he will be the main backup behind Bethea.

                No, I doubt they want their 2014 first round pick to be the backup NCB/ FS. I’m sure they’d like him to be the starter. But if he doesn’t win the starting job I don’t think the front office will turn to each other and say “well dang, that’s it, time to get rid of him. No, I don’t care if he’s a better backup than the alternatives; he was a first rounder, its either starter or bust for him.”

              2. The backup position behind behind could also go to McCray.
                You still seem to missing my point on the team possibly trading away Ward if he doesn’t beat out Johnson and Reaser for the NCB position while also winding up behind Reid and Tartt on the FS depth chart. If both scenarios happen, then I wouldn’t be surprised if Baalke sits down with Ward, goes over the current situation, and then ask if he wants to be traded to a team where he has a better chance of being a starter.
                It isn’t so much as whether Ward is a bust or not but whether he still fits into the teams’ plans going forward.

              3. Your original point is you wouldn’t be surprised to see him traded. You then threw the caveat in of if he doesn’t win the backup NCB/ FS roles, he could be traded. I assume based on that you believe he won’t win either the backup NCB or FS roles.

                My point has been I think if he isn’t the starter, he’ll be the backup, at least at one of those positions.

                The last paragraph of my previous comment was in reference to your previous comment where you said “Also, I doubt the team wants last year’s first round pick to be a backup NCB.” If he doesn’t win the starting job, I bet that is exactly what they want him to be.

                If he isn’t a starter it could be the team sits down with him and asks if he’d like to leave. But I doubt it. If he isn’t starting at the beginning of the season I doubt they will believe he could never start for them again. That he has no future role for the team. Because if they do that they are giving up on him. And I don’t see why they would be willing to give up on him just yet.

      2. Just like we should have traded away Jerry Rice after his first season because he couldn’t catch, right?

        1. You’re obviously ignoring the reasoning behind what I posted on purpose so talking with you is meaningless.

  5. Anyone watching the 2011-2014 49ers East game right now? Typical Greg Roman. Has a nice little beginning to the game (15 plays), then gets cute, runs his (Olympian) WR into a 9-yard loss and an injury, then calls a 3-yard pass on 2nd and 19. Thrilled he’s gone.

  6. Ward scares me. The dude is a liability in coverage. Why did we draft him? Glad we had a good consistent day on offense. I’m cool with Kap’s excellence at short and medium passes . The long ball with come . It takes time to read the body language of wrs. He has never played with simpson or smith before.

    Good report – i have a good feeling tonight.

    1. I understand the concerns, and obviously getting out-muscled for a ball by Vernon today won’t help alleviate them. But I think a lot of the negative concerns about his coverage ability come from that game against Marshall. Aside from that game he wasn’t bad. And that was just on three plays – the rest of the game he was ok.

      Not trying to suggest he was good, but he wasn’t as bad as common perception suggests. I’d just try and avoid putting him 1-on-1 with really big receivers, especially in the red zone.

      1. Knowing what you know now, do you think it was wise to pick ward in the first?

        Someone posted a PFF stat indicating ward gave up a 100+ qb rating his rookie year.

        Btw, I am not convinced he can cover the quick slot guys either of which we have several in our division – tyler locket , tavon austin.

        1. Knowing what I know now, I have no idea how wise an investment it was. He’s played a total of 8 games in his career. I’d like to see how he goes over the next couple of years before deciding whether it was a good pick or not.

          Regarding his 100+ QB rating allowed, that’s what happens when you have a game like the one he did against Marshall and don’t record any INTs. People were saying Bethea couldn’t cover any more when he was signed and quoted QB rating allowed too.

          1. I think it’s safe to say he’s a Free Safety, best in center field and coming downhill….

            1. Right now, you are probably right. In the future? Who knows, maybe he becomes quite adept as a nickel back.

        2. Rollo by the start of the 2017 season the 49ers top 3 safeties will be Ward, Tartt and Reid and with Reids concussion issues the starters will likely be Tartt and Ward. I believe they very well may be the top safety combo in the the league. Many here forget that Balkke drafted him to be his safety of the future.

      2. I was thinking the same thing about playing him against bigger guys but that’s disappointing for a first round safety…. Didn’t he have a pretty high passer rating on him last year? Not stating that as fact just thought I remembered that

      3. For folks who want to see some really good film breakdown of Ward’s strengths and weaknesses (and development across the 2014 season), read this link on http://www.49erswebzone. The pages 13 thru 23 discuss and use screen grabs to demonstrate Ward’s play.

        http://www.49erswebzone.com/forum/niners/181749-offseason-all22-film-study/page13/

        The main film analyst is user thl408 and he does a fantastic job of analyzing. He also posted a 2014 film summary on page 23 that I’ll reproduce in this post.

        “That does it for the study on Ward as he was lost to injured reserve before the next game.

        Strengths:
        – Getting physical at the line of scrimmage with smaller slot WRs
        – Understanding where his help is and funneling WRs towards the help
        – Recovery speed

        Weaknesses:
        – Inconsistent pattern match coverage
        – 180 degree turning and running;

        If his end role is that of a slot CB, then he needs to show improvement to matchup against teams that like to slide their #1 WR into the slot in 3WR sets. If his end role is that of a FS that occasionally drops down to cover the slot, then he already has what it takes to play the CB role. He never lined up at FS so that’s an unknown.

        His mistakes when it comes pattern matching are all mental, which is correctable once he plays more in the system, if Mangini keeps the same pattern match principles, which he most likely will. His technique in press alignment, jamming and running with the WR needs to improve if he is asked to play in that manner. In most instances, he was given safety help over the top, which he uses well. This is a scheme oriented aspect of Fangio’s defense – how safeties are used to help CBs – not a knock on Ward.

        Omitting the Bears game where BMarshall ate Ward for lunch, Ward had a solid year in my observation. His moments of failure were noticeable on the TV telecast, but his moments of success often resulted in the QB not targeting him. He also had zero splash plays. All of which can lead to the perception that he was having a poor season. Overall, he showed he belonged, as long as he wasn’t asked to cover WRs/TEs that are 6’3+, but since he was very rarely asked to go 1v1 with no help, it’s a bit hard to gauge his true cover skills as a CB.

        1. Thanks Adusoron. This is exactly the type of balanced analysis of his play that is often missing when people consider his rookie season.

          This in particular is what people often fail to realise:

          “His moments of failure were noticeable on the TV telecast, but his moments of success often resulted in the QB not targeting him. He also had zero splash plays. All of which can lead to the perception that he was having a poor season.”

          The perception of how he fared does not match the reality for the most part.

      4. Davis burned Brock last week too. Its not like any of our DB’s have done well with TE’s or bigger recievers. I am not surprised VD beats Ward. Its a big problem since we’ve lost Willis in coverage. Seems like we are placing a lot of hope on Tartt or Reid to cover big TE’s.

    2. Jimmie Ward’s PFF grades for his first 6 games last season (sorry, can’t find grades for his last two games):

      -0.9 vs Cowboys
      -2.9 vs Bears (aka the Brandon Marshall 3 TD game)
      -0.7 vs Cardinals (aka the John Brown TD game where Eric Reid made a bad read)
      -0.4 vs Eagles
      +0.3 vs Chiefs
      +0.3 vs Rams

      I don’t know what his PFF grades were for the second Rams meeting or his brief stint in the Saints game. But according to PFF he only had one really terrible game, and he was improving as he got more experience.

    3. Roliotomasi – agree with you about Kaep and throwing deep passes. There’s a reason why they are low percentage throws – they are hard to execute and it takes time to get in sych with the WRs. I am happy with the changes the coaching staff is making to the team’s practice routine – quickening the time in/out of the huddle, no coaches on the field during offensive drills therein acclimating the QB to making on field adjustements and an emphasis on working the short and intermediate passing game. With Reggie Bush in the backfield and the Niners depth of the tight ends, this will be found money during the season.

  7. Reaser has come back down since OTA’s, but he is basically a rookie, who hadn’t played in a year.

  8. So ward, wright and reaser all got burnt today is that right? Hmmm I wonder who called that one? I’ll wait for one of you lames to say it’s only practice and not in games. Well sorry to break it to you that’s going to happen in the regular season too. And no it’s no it’s not a mirage. Jimmy ward sux. Just like the rest of our corners. I bet stupid Baalke is wishing he would’ve drafter Kevin Johnson or Marcus peters right now instead of kentwan balmer 2.0 aka armstead. Bunch of idiots our gm and York are. I’m waiting for one of you BLIND faithful to say something crazy like wait til they play one game. I don’t need to. I’m telling you how it’s gonna be. 4-12. Thanks Jed.

    1. Let me guess, any time the D has a good day in practice you also told us how the offense was going to suck this year, right?

    2. Oh, you are the long suffering “fan” who has endured those 2-14 seasons so it makes you so much better than everyone else.
      Guess what? I endured those 2-24 seasons in the 70s, so by your definition, Im twice as much a fan as you are.
      Long suffering? No, you are more like- long winded insufferable.

      1. And you’re more like the glass is half full when in reality there’s nothing in the glass at all.

        1. So our terrible o line… The one that gave Kap time to complete all those passes?? Since you probably never played a down of football in your life, understand if the o line sucks the offense will suck. That’s football. Why can’t you just be happy the offense is clicking right now and playing well.. That’s the nature of intrasquad practice, it’s impossible for both sides to look great!

    3. Blah, blah, blah. Dude, lighten up. You’re trying too hard to make your point. The fact of the matter is….we don’t really know how well our CB’s are going to perform this season. It takes time for a defensive backfield to gell. But, based on Baalke’s track record with the entire defensive backfield over the last 4 years, I am putting my money on our pass defense being better than middle of the pack!

      1. I’m speaking of the guy with the stupid name, NinerTruther, who thinks he knows DB’s better than Baalke.

  9. Grant,

    Perhaps you can ask the special teams coach if he has considered using J. Hayne on the punting team as the running back/blocker (sorry don’t know the correct term).

    If he is able to block well enough, it would be great to see him get an occasional direct snap as a surprise play. Especially considering his open field running ability. Maybe Bush will have that role though?

    Also, i wonder if he can tackle well enough to be on both coverage teams as well. i would imagine that a guy that can be on both coverage teams and receive all kicks/punts would be worth using a roster spot on even if he never plays on offense.

    Also, i hope they are continuing to practice long passes “against air” with Smith and Davis, perhaps getting Simpson and White in there as well – basically, any of the speed guys.

    if they did 5-10 passes about half way through practice and 5-10 more at the end of practice, hopefully they would be warmed up enough to minimize the risk of injury and also not have Kaep throw his arm out by throwing too many long passes in a row.

    just some thoughts.

    1. Actually, I hope they do not have to punt, because that would mean they scored.
      However, I am intrigued by the direct snap, and Hayne would be a logical candidate. Still, if I could surmise, a better choice would be Bell, since he has QB XP and had run the ball many times at OK

      1. Not having to punt does not necessarily dictate a score on their part. It might also mean a turnover.

        1. I just do not assume there will be a turnover, because that would sound defeatist. The quarter or half could end without a punt, too.

          1. Well, if they go for it on 4th and one from inside the 10, I do not mind. I would rather they go for it and not settle for a FG.

    1. You know why he said that? I think 21 Cowboy players have injuries, and they are dropping like flies.
      Garret cannot afford to lose more players.

    1. Grant, thanks for another BP piece.

      At risk of stating the obvious… Tartt in sub packages should work fine covering most TEs. The key will be stopping the run in that package. I expect teams to test the Tartt defensive package by running against it.

      I’m confident Tartt can cover ground and hit. Its the phone booth stuff I’m curious about.

      If the 49ers can stop the run with Tartt in for the MLB, the concept should work. I’m excited to see how it works out.

      1. Grant covered the areas of concern that will affect winning or losing, and identified key players and their roles. Good analysis, and he provided good insights.
        My only slight difference in emphasis would have been to mention the O line cohesion and competition, since that is one of the biggest question marks so far.

    2. I think you write good pieces for the BR. It shows what you are capable of when you put your mind to it.

  10. So was the day one of those where the TE’s were awesome, or was the coverage by the ILB’s and CB’s that bad? Or some of both. Sounds like the Oline is coming together, didn’t hear of any sacks like we did in the first practices.

  11. There has been a lot of deep analysis for a day when:

    “The 49ers were out of pads and in shells on Thursday, which usually augers a good day for pass catchers like wide receivers and tight ends.” … Barrows

    1. “Here are the highlights of the 49ers’ fifth non-padded practice of training camp.” … Grant

        1. During the off season, we said we could not wait for TC. Once TC came around, we could not wait for preseason. Now that we are in the preseason. we cannot wait for the real games.
          Fans are a tad impatient.

  12. HT Waits pointed out that the receivers often show well when practicing in shells, necessitating that the DBs don’t. Remember also that getting torched in practice isn’t practice at getting torched, it’s a lesson in what to avoid. So getting crisped-up in practice or in pre-season games is part of the development process, that by the way is likely to last into September in these modern CBA times. Established veteran stars like Boldin, Davis and Smith should be schooling young guys like Ward and Reaser in practice. It is what the young guys take from that and do about it that will matter.
    Despite the silly (imo) “bust” talk, I think Ward may be the best cover guy among Ward-Tartt-McCray and Dahl.

    1. BT, that’s a Matt Barrows quote. I’m not that perceptive, and the last time I got to see practice was the year The Jet retired and Brodie was the QB.

    2. > So getting crisped-up in practice or in pre-season games is part
      > of the development process, ..

      That’s so right. We fans attach too much importance to player performance in these practices. 90% of the player evaluation by the coaches is done outside our view.

      Here’s a nice piece by Greg Gabriel, a former scout, on an important and painful event coming up, roster trimming.
      http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/the-process-of-cutting-the-roster/
      “Many believe that how a player performs in a preseason game is the determining factor. In some cases it is, but often the decision is made on how a player practices and how he responds to class room work. Coaches what players on the squad that can be trusted, meaning they know their assignments. You will see some players cut in the next few weeks who may have made some big plays but don’t know or understand the play book. Because of that, a coach can’t trust him enough to play him. Often, these are the type of guys you see on a practice squad; players that have the physical tools, but need the extra practice time to really know and understand their assignments.”

        1. You’re welcome, Cubus!
          It’s good that football is back. Soon regular season will start, and it will be time to test all my off-season hypotheses on Niners’ coaches and schemes and player evaluations :)

  13. Am I the only one who thinks analyzing and reporting on one on one drills is rather kind of pointless? If its not happening in 11 v 11, padded even more so, then to say someone had a great day making 1 v 1 plays holds no value, 1 v 1 is not football, its what 3 friends do in the street when they’re board, someones the qb and then you got a guy who runs a route and a defender, been doing it for years.

    1. Its funny I think we all agree and yet we’re drawn to reports like a moth to the flame because we can’t wait for the season to start.

  14. Grant I posted a comment above about Jimmy Ward in reply to Scooter and others that included a link to film analysis. Can you clear it through the “awaiting moderation stage?”

    1. At least pare back the extraneous events that put wear and tear on the turf. And yeah, it’s pretty basic stuff and we shouldn’t be hearing about it at all. Fix it now. If even one Preseason game is effected noticeably, someone should quite literally lose their job to send a message to the survivors/ replacements.
      Would Apple open a brand new store with all their Gee-Whiz gear if the roof leaked?

      1. If Sunday’s game is canceled, it wouldn’t be the first time for the NFL in preseason.

        Holding major events to the detriment of the playing field is part of the York cash flow plan.

        The practice fields are fine, so there has to be some kind of adverse effect that the stadium is having on the field. Kezar had it’s painted mud, Candlestick had it’s Kitty Liter, and Levy’s has it’s concerts on rootless grass.

          1. The grass growing underneath Swift fans feet did not have the proper root structure within the mud that anchors the sod atop the soil-sand base. Therefore the new grass that they began installing Tuesday has been structured in a more conducive fashion, in theory….

    2. Consider that the new sod was planted week ago. Consider that, according to the article below, it takes about two weeks to establish shallow roots and up to six weeks to establish deep roots. I’m sure the sod looks beautiful, but to have behemoths play tackle football on it tomorrow, well, I’ll let you draw your own conclusion. Either York was clueless when he decided to use Levi’s this way, or he just didn’t really care about the consequences. My take is that money is more important to him than the wellbeing of the players.

      http://www.evergreenturf.com/How-Long-Does-It-Take-for-Sod-to-Take-Root.php

      1. Check your schedule. I thought the game was tomorrow until my live in Sharks fan pointed out that it’s Sunday.

    3. Imagine the Super Bowl being postponed due to a bad field that isn’t related to inclement weather.

  15. Being an expert on grass, I do not see how replacing the sod constantly can help the roots grow and Knit together.
    This is the primary site for the 49ers, not the venue for TS concerts and monster trucks. Jed needs to stop scheduling extraneous events or the sod will never be allowed to grow. Stop making the bottom line more important than having a decent field to play on. They did not have to allow TS to play at Levis, let her play in about 6 different venues that would have been available in the bay area. This insatiable greed is going to hurt the Niners.

    1. I’m not sure if you really are an expert on grass or not, but if you are, what are your thoughts on using hybrid turf, which is effectively real grass reinforced by synthetic fibres? It is used quite a bit in the English Premier League.

      My understanding is it can be very useful for fields where they struggle to get the grass to take root. Also good for regions that struggle with extreme cold weather, but that’s not really an issue for the 49ers…

        1. To be honest I have no idea whether any NFL teams use it. I know quite a few of the top EPL teams do though.

      1. Being a landscape contractor, and repairing and maintaining a school’s playing field for years, I can assert my expertise about turf.
        That hybrid turf sounds intriguing, and since it does work, why not?

  16. I love grass, and it is the better surface to reduce injuries compared to astro turf, but if the footing is terrible, more injuries can occur.
    Why is Jed risking a catastrophic injury to the Niner players just because he wants to make more money?
    If they plan on replacing the sod 8 times, synthetic turf would be the better option.

  17. They finished replacing the grass that had probably been in place since the season ended on August 12th. Evidently the replaced field hadn’t taken root. The new field will be in place 10.5 days when they play Sunday night.

    There is another concert coming at the end of August that will require the second replacement of this preseason. They plan on replacing it two more times during the regular season, and again before the Superbowl. Imagine what the field will be like for the Superbowl if the 49ers have home field advantage throughout the playoffs and win.

    If Dallas isn’t happy they can refuse to play Sunday.

  18. Stray topic (yeah, another one):
    I just saw some excerpts from Borland’s interview. The NFL expecting him to take a drug screening a month after he retired is appalling, and in the absence of some reasonable justification from the league certainly smacks of intrigue and a potential set-up. His instinctive suspicions were well founded, and I’d say his decision to take the test and take an independently administered test at nearly the same time (for independent results) was prescient. As disappointed, shocked, and in some cases p.o.’d as the team, teammates and fans might have been, the League seems even more angry and apparently retributive. You see, the NFL fears Chris Borland’s message, and there’s nothing more dangerous than a bunch of rich folks fearing that someone is threatening their money stream. Is Chris the NFL’s Karen Silkwood?

    1. The NFL is so concerned about CTE, they scheduled Thursday Night Games with only 3 days rest.

      1. When it comes to schedule safety the NFL tends to concede on non-monetary issues (padded practice limits) but stands firm on revenue related issues ( preseason and Thursday night games).

        – Thursday games should be banned… or restricted to teams coming out of a bye week

        – Two preseason games is enough

        – No out of conference travel after Monday night games

        1. – Two preseason games is enough

          – No out of conference travel after Monday night games

          These are the two I disagree with B2W. Preseason games allows guys like Haynes, White, and McCray to show whether they are worthy of a roster spot or not while your second option could still result in the 49ers having to travel to say New York after a MNF game.

          1. Sorry, I meant No out of [division] travel after Monday night games.

            I think weeks TC and two PS games are ample time to evaluate players.

            Even if it was significantly harder to evaluate players with two less PS games. its an equal burden for all teams. It doesn’t affect competitive advantage.

        2. The NFL should enact reforms. They should act magnanimously by giving up the revenues to the preseason games. They should cut the preseason by one game and use that extra week to schedule 2 games within 3 weeks. With the Thursday night games, there could be 10 days between games.
          They should divide the revenues from the first preseason game to pay rookies and the reward the marginal players by giving 100 seats each to the players who will not make the team. Establish a health care fund from the second preseason game, and a retirement fund from the last preseason game.
          Protect the starters from injuries in meaningless preseason games by designating that the starters have to sit and cant play, yet still get paid.
          Heck, why not establish guaranteed contracts and lifetime health benefits? It is only fair and the stigma of past players suffering and failing will eventually become a distant memory.

          1. sebnynah, thanks for the feedback. I have my own NFL reform list, but its too dang big for this space. A few tidbits…

            – Sports reporting from a consumers rights point of view
            – Revenue transparency
            – Debunking the player contracts = ticket prices oversimplification when elasticity of demand is the driving factor
            – Pointing out the massive cultural capital that goes into developing the NFLs product (the players)

            and so on…

            It will never happen, but as Bugs Bunny once said, “one can dream, can’t they?”

      1. Grimey
        Borland felt that if he refused/ignored the test that the NFL or surrogates would opine that he was hiding something, so as to discredit him in order to minimize his public influence.
        What possible interest could the League have had in his biochemistry since he’s retired and no longer within the legitimate authority of the NFL, or the NFLPA? He was within his legal, ethical and reasonable rights to privacy to refuse to even respond to the league’s ‘demand.’
        He’s now turned the tables on Park Avenue and is calling BS on them. Orale!

        1. Given the way the NFL managed the false report about 11 of 12 balls being +2 psi low, Borland was wise to protect himself from “character leaks”.

        2. Yeah I read the article. He also got his own independent test done as well. He seems like he’s willing to fight and he should. Goodell is the worst commissioner in sports and clearly doesn’t care about the players. I hope somebody takes him down.

    2. I was also disturbed by reading that he was told to find a fall guy in case he got in trouble.

  19. I’m not very good at math. How many days are available for grass to root after the next concert?

    “Country music star Luke Bryan is scheduled to perform at Levi’s Stadium on Aug. 29, and a new field is scheduled to be installed for the 49ers’ final exhibition game on Sept. 3 against the San Diego Chargers. ” … MM

    Update: The 49ers seem to have committed to enough grass to replace the field eight times this season.

    1. As you probably know, their first home game is Sunday, 9/14 (Vikings). As I posted earlier, it takes about two weeks to establish shallow roots and up to six weeks to establish deep roots. So if they plant sod on 9/4, the sod will not be established by 9/14. I don’t think I’ve heard of a football franchise anywhere that operates this way. It’s really disgraceful.

      1. The point I was making is that it seems they plan to replace the field between the last concert and the last exhibition game with the chargers. How can that work?

        1. Sorry, I was just jumping ahead a bit and made the assumption they would have to lay sod again after the Chargers game. You are right wondering about the field for the Chargers game. I don’t see how it can work. You would think that one or more players might get injured. Remember when Mike Davis slipped on the field during practice a while ago? And I was thinking the same will be true for the Vikings game.

          1. Maybe they will use an “overnight sod” thats so thick that the players can’t rip it.

            1. They come in big rolls that uses forklifts to lay it down. It is not like a standard landscape roll of sod. It will not come up easily, but the surface can be ripped and gouged to produce divots.

  20. One way to help the grass grow is to use Marijuana grow light technology. Approximately 100 to 160 lights could cover the field.That way, the turf can even grow at night, which will aid in root growth.
    Another way to help the turf is to protect it from saturating rain. A tentlike collection system with drain lines could protect the field a lot better than tarps.

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