49ers betting on wild cards

This is my Saturday column assessing the 49ers’ draft. SANTA CLARA – Chris Culliver is the 49ers’ wild card this season. The 49ers did not draft a cornerback until the end of the fourth round on Saturday. They took Dontae Johnson, who started more games at safety for North Carolina State last season than he started at cornerback. He’s a developmental project. So, pencil in Culliver as the 49ers’ starting…

May 10, 2014
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Seven-round 49ers mock draft

Here is my final seven-round 49ers’ mock draft: 18: Darqueze Dennard, CB, Michigan State. The 49ers trade pick Nos. 30 and 77 to the Jets for No.18. If Dennard has been picked, the 49ers will take Justin Gilbert, CB, Oklahoma State. If he has been picked as well, the 49ers will take Kyle Fuller, CB, Virginia Tech. 26: Marqise Lee, WR, USC. The 49ers trade pick Nos. 56 and 61…

May 7, 2014
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Your mission, Mr. Baalke…

This is my Wednesday column predicting what Trent Baalke will do in the upcoming draft This is not a column telling Trent Baalke what to do in the upcoming draft. We know what he has to do. He knows what he has to do. This is a column predicting how he will do it. What we know: The 49ers have two major needs. Just two. Wide receiver and cornerback. Michael…

May 7, 2014
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NFL’s impressions of the top-50 draft prospects

One of the best reporters in the country, Bob McGinn, spoke off the record with NFL personnel executives and scouts and got their impressions of the top-50 prospects in the upcoming draft. Here is a brief excerpt about cornerback Bradley Roby from McGinn’s report: “When you talk about quickness, speed, athletic ability, change of direction, he’s got all that. Then he just gets beat every game. It’s mental.” To read…

February 23, 2014
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Baalke’s conundrum

It seems Trent Baalke is in a tight spot. The obvious move for him to make this offseason is to cut 6-foot-1 cornerback Carlos Rogers and replace him in the first round of the upcoming draft with a younger cornerback roughly the same size as Rogers. There are two problems with that move. 1. With the Seahawks’ defensive dominance last season and in the Super Bowl, imagine how many general…

February 11, 2014
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Top 10 cornerback prospects in college football

Here are ten cornerbacks to keep an eye on this coming college football season. The 49ers may draft one or two of them next April. 1. Bradley Roby, Jr., Ohio State (5-11, 193, No.1): Video | Stats 2. Jason Verrett,  Sr., TCU (5-10, 182, No.2): Video | Stats 3. Aaron Colvin, Sr., Oklahoma (6-0, 181, No.14): Video | Stats 4. Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Jr., Oregon (5-10, 190, No.14): Video | Stats…

May 2, 2013
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