Part III of the Lions-49ers matchup series. Calvin Johnson vs. the 49ers secondary: Carlos Rogers, Tarell Brown, Chris Culliver and Dashon Goldson. It’s almost impossible for any secondary to match up with Calvin Johnson, perhaps the best athlete in the NFL. He puts you in a bind. How many snaps can you afford not to double team him? Double-teaming him leaves the rest of the Lions’ skill players – Brandon…
SANTA CLARA – Carlos Rogers spoke in the media tent Wednesday afternoon. He said Randy Moss looks much faster than he did in training camp, and Rogers explained what makes Packers’ wide receiver Greg Jennings tough to cover. Here’s a transcript. Q: Were you just as curious as everybody else to see what Randy Moss had left when he showed up in April? ROGERS: Yeah, I was, but once I…
The 49ers play the Green Bay Packers in five days. In the meantime, I’ll break down two key matchups a day. CB Carlos Rogers: 6-0, 192 pounds, 31 years old, 4.44 40-yard dash vs. WR Greg Jennings: 5-11, 195 pounds, 28 years old, 4.42 40-yard dash Jennings plays every wide receiver position, but over his final five games last season he lined up in the slot on roughly 65% of…
Here are my grades for the 49ers preseason game against the Denver Broncos. QUARTERBACKS: B. Alex Smith and the first-team offense was 1-for-4 on third down and 0-for-1 in the red zone (Peyton Manning was 2-3 on third down and 2-2 in the red zone). Smith did complete 5 of 7 passes, including a deep TD to Vernon Davis. Smith also had one fumbled snap, one delay-of-game penalty and two…
SANTA CLARA – Starting cornerback Tarell Brown has been one of the hardest workers in training camp, but he had a rough practice on Thursday against the scout-team offense. Twice Brown got beaten by undrafted rookie wide receiver Brian Tyms – once for a touchdown, and another time for a 15-yard completion. A few plays after the 15-yard completion, Brown gave up a first-down reception on third-and-five to another undrafted…
SANTA CLARA – When Michael Crabtree speaks to the media – he rarely does, but on Wednesday he did – he’s detached, like he’s watching himself talk. He keeps an ironic distance from the interview. It always seems like he has another private thought and you’d love to know what it is, but he’ll only give you 25 percent. He looks at you through sleepy, mysterious eyes. These are all…
SANTA CLARA – Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick both made a few beautiful throws against the second- and third-team defenses in Monday’s practice. Smith hit Vernon Davis (covered by reserve linebacker Mike Wilhoite) on a deep route for a 25-yard gain, and then on the very next play Smith hit Randy Moss (covered by reserve cornerback Anthony Mosely) deep down the left sideline for a 30-yard gain. Smith’s best throw…
SANTA CLARA – Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio talked about what makes NaVarro Bowman and Carlos Rogers so good, the Niners cornerback competition and how good the defense can be this year. Here’s a transcript, courtesy of the 49ers. What are some of the things that have allowed LB NaVorro Bowman to emerge as an All-Pro, as such a young player, in his second year, last year? And also, you have…
SANTA CLARA – Wednesday afternoon Carlos Rogers discussed what he’s taught the younger cornerbacks, what Randy Moss has taught him and what he makes of the newest Niners cornerback – Perrish Cox. Here’s a transcript. Q: What is this group of cornerbacks like? ROGERS: They’re very talented. These are young guys who are asking me: “What should I do? What should I be thinking on this play?” Perrish Cox (is…
SANTA CLARA – Perrish Cox has been getting beaten on the outside pretty consistently so far in training camp, and today he was getting beaten on the inside during team drills by Kyle Williams. Cox’s main value to the team is his ability to play the “nickel back” – the cornerback who covers the slot receiver. The Niners have one very good nickel back – Carlos Rogers – but they…
SANTA CLARA — It’s very early in training camp, and I’m no expert, but the undrafted rookie wide receiver from Northern Illinois, Nathan Palmer, is good. He may be better than A.J. Jenkins right now. Palmer caught five passes today by my count, including one 50-yard reception in a seven-on-seven drill. In a one-on-one drill he beat Pro Bowl cornerback Carlos Rogers. After the play, Rogers walked over to Palmer…
Let’s rank the Niners best players. Since we’re killing time before training camp, this is the kind of mind doodling we do. I already wrote a blog on the top five Niners. I ranked them like this: 1. Justin Smith 2. Patrick Willis 3. Aldon Smith 4. Vernon Davis 5. NaVorro Bowman. In a way the next five are more interesting than the top five because they’re less obvious. You…
Here’s my minicamp review. Keep in mind, it was a non-contact minicamp. No pads, no tackling. It was basically two-hand touch. So I’m focusing on the players involved in the passing game – quarterbacks, wide receivers, tight ends, cornerbacks and safeties. BEST OFFENSIVE PLAYERS Vernon Davis: He got open almost every time in one-on-one drills. He caught a few touchdowns every scrimmage. After he scored I often heard defenders say…
SANTA CLARA – Jim Harbaugh spoke to reporters after Thursday’s practice. He was thrilled with how his team performed in this minicamp, and he detailed what he liked so much. Here’s the transcript of his interview, courtesy of the 49ers. Opening Statement: “Very excited. That was an A++ practice today, and that goes for the whole Mini-Camp. It was outstanding by our guys. Tremendous effort, and really over the…
SANTA CLARA – Yesterday Alex Smith was the star. Today it was Colin Kaepernick. The Niners backup quarterback threw three touchdowns and only a few incompletions all practice. His best pass was a 20-yard line drive to Kyle Williams in the end zone. Williams was tightly covered by Donte Whitner. Kaepernick threw the ball so hard Whitner didn’t have a chance to bat it away. Earlier in a red zone…
SANTA CLARA – Alex Smith threw two touchdowns and converted one third down in Tuesday’s afternoon practice. He threw his first touchdown to Vernon Davis. The offense lined up in the red zone, Davis ran toward the end zone and Smith threw the ball high over Davis’ back shoulder. Davis leaped in the air, caught the pass and landed on his back. It was the catch Wes Welker couldn’t make…
SANTA CLARA – Carlos Rogers hasn’t practiced for most of the Niners’ offseason program. Today, Jim Harbaugh said Rogers has been “working through something,” which means he’s injured. Rogers spoke after Harbaugh about that injury and about the offseason in general. Here’s what he said. Q: Are you working through an injury right now? ROGERS: Just strained my right calf a little bit in the workouts, toward the beginning of…
Nothing’s going on at Niners headquarters this week, we’ve broken down the offense, now let’s talk about the defense. It’s the best defense in the league – we know that. It has no weak links. Last year I wrote that Dashon Goldson was the weak link, and that was pretty silly, I admit. The entire starting lineup is strong. We know there are two great players – Justin Smith and…
The 49ers signed 25-year old cornerback and return specialist Perrish Cox this morning to a two-year contract. This could signal the end for Carlos Rogers and Ted Ginn Jr. in red and gold. Cox will most likely compete with Tramaine Brock for the third CB job, while Chris Culliver and Tarell Brown will start. On special teams, Cox could take Ginn’s job as the primary returner. He returned punts and…
The 49ers just franchise-tagged Dashon Goldson, a move that will cost the team about $6.2 million in 2012. Will the Niners re-sign any more of their free agents before free agency starts? It seems pretty clear at this point that Carlos Rogers will “test the waters” and see what other teams can offer him. Same with Ted Ginn Jr., and Adam Snyder, and maybe even Joshua Morgan, too. If there’s…
