The 49ers picked up an additional 2010 first-round draft pick last week, and GM Scot McCloughan said today it is possible the club will not still own it when next year’s draft rolls around.
Of course, that means there is a possibility the 49ers could trade the pick. That noted, McCloughan said the 49ers have not talked with Julius Peppers (or the Panthers) or Terrell Suggs (or the Ravens).
“There’ve been no discussions with any of those,” McCloughan said. I’m assuming he means “any of those franchise players,” including Rams safety O.J. Atogwe.
McCloughan said Peppers’ name never came up a week ago when he and Panthers’ GM Marty Hurney discussed the trade that sent the 49ers’ second-round and fourth-round picks to the Panthers for their No. 1 next year.
When asked if he has contacted Peppers’ agent, McCloughan said he hasn’t even spoken to Hurney about it. Peppers is not an exclusive franchise player, thus the 49ers can negotiate with him. But McCloughan said he would “do it the right way” and keep everything above board with the Panthers.
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The team is going through its rookie minicamp today. Very few of the veterans are in attendance, however, Shaun Hill and Alex Smith are on the field. The competition continues for the starting quarterback job.
When Singletary was asked if this minicamp means anything in the competition for the 49ers’ starting job, he answered, “Oh, it matters every day.” Singletary said he speaks every day with offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye and QBs coach Mike Johnson to evaluate Smith and Hill.
There is a chance there could be a winner declared at the end of the offseason program, heading into training camp. Smith said that would be the best-case scenario for all involved.
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Two undrafted rookies with a lot of potential are running back Kory Sheets (Purdue) and tackle Alex Boone (
Sheets ran the third-fastest time at the combine (4.39), yet he went undrafted. His agent told him that the Purdue “coaching staff screwed you.” Obviously, Sheets did not leave Purdue on the best of terms. He said former Purdue coach Joe Tiller gave him “no help” throughout the process with NFL teams.
But Sheets said he’s learned from it and he holds no grudges.
The problems stemmed from the aftermath of Purdue’s loss to Northwestern when Sheets criticized the offensive game plan, as well as the play of QB Curtis Painter. He was then banned from speaking to the media, and he went undrafted.
Boone was arrested 3 ½ months ago in
“It’s better now,” Boone said. “Obviously, that happened a while ago and I’m trying to make the best out of it. I have a new look on life.”
Boone seems contrite, adding that he realizes there are consequences for his actions. He said he’s happy to be with the 49ers. He said as soon as the 49ers offered a free-agent contract, he accepted the opportunity to play for Singletary.
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There were a lot of questions in recent weeks about Alex Smith’s shoulder. Obviously, if he were having problems with his shoulder, he wouldn’t be out there throwing. I asked him just a few minutes ago about how things are coming along.
“It’s good,” Smith said. “It’s definitely better than where I was a month ago, which was better than where I was a month before that. I’m still making progress with it. I just think the continuation of me lifting and getting stronger, and continuing to throw and get those reps is just going to continue to get my arm in shape. I feel really good. Really close, I think. Totally putting this out of my mind. So, it’s good news. I feel good.”
On how it felt after the first mini-camp:
“It felt good. The one thing I felt a little bit of was just soreness. I think just getting back to kind of that endurance. Just throwing back to back-to-back days and multiple practices, and that kind of a pitch count. (I was) feeling some soreness and I think that’s just one of those things with throwing more and continuing to strengthen it. I’m getting that back.”
On how much he’ll be throwing in mini-camp:
“Good question. I’ve got no restrictions. I’ll be out there, so whenever they put me in I’ll be out there. So, I don’t know how much volume it’ll actually be. I guess we’ll see after today.”
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