Now that the NFL Scouting Combine is over, let’s try to predict what the 49ers will do this offseason. Here’s my best guess. I’m eager to read yours. FREE AGENCY OUT: Dashon Goldson, Isaac Sopoaga, Ricky Jean Francois, Larry Grant, Leonard Davis, Tramaine Brock, Clark Haggans and Ted Ginn Jr. Goldson wants too much money, and the 49ers want a free safety with cornerback skills. Jean Francois signs with the…
Many of you have asked me for my best guess about what the 49ers will do in free agency and the draft. This is my first best guess. I’ll make subsequent best guesses in the coming weeks. The 49ers will cut David Akers and Parys Haralson to create cap space to give the franchise tag to Dashon Goldson. Goldson probably wants a five-year contract worth about $8 million per year….
Greg Cosell spoke about the Super Bowl on KNBR Thursday morning. Here’s what he said. Q: What did you think of the 49ers’ final four offensive plays? COSELL: Here’s a perfect case where because the plays failed, everybody thinks that they’re bad play calls, therefore something was horribly wrong. The first play was perfectly understandable because Gore had just run 33 yards and he was not in the next play….
The 49ers lost the Super Bowl 34-31 on Sunday. Here are the grades for the offense. Offensive line: A-. This group struggled in the first half when Haloti Ngata was healthy. They couldn’t open up any holes for Frank Gore, who had 11 carries for just 29 yards. And Anthony Davis gave up a sack on third and goal from the eight yard line. But the 49ers’ O-line dominated in…
This is my Saturday article on the gradual construction of the 49ers’ roster. By GRANT COHN After the 2004 season, the 49ers were the worst team in football. They had practically no talent, they had won two games, and they had one Pro Bowler, long snapper, Brian Jennings. This season, the 49ers are going to the Super Bowl and they have arguably the most talented roster in the NFL. Nine…
SANTA CLARA – Delanie Walker spoke at his locker Friday afternoon. Here’s what he said about Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick. Q: What’s the difference between catching passes from Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick? WALKER: It’s a little different going from Alex throwing a nice firm ball to going to Kap, he throws a little heater. It gets on you real fast. Q: Do you feel like you’ve adjusted? WALKER:…
SANTA CLARA – Delanie Walker spoke at his locker Friday afternoon. Here’s what he said about Jim Harbaugh. Q: Harbaugh is intense on the sidelines. What do you guys think about that? WALKER: He’s not yelling at us. He’s yelling at the referees. We’re excited when we see that. We see our coach is fighting for us. Q: He’s got a lot of slogans. Do those work on pros? WALKER:…
ATLANTA – The 49ers beat the Falcons 28-24. The 49ers are going to the Super Bowl. Here are the grades for the 49ers’ offense. Offensive line: A. Mike Iupati gave up a sack and was flagged for a holding penalty, but the other four offensive linemen played almost perfectly. Collectively, they helped the 49ers average 5.1 yards per rush. Running backs: A. Frank Gore got the 49ers’ offense going in…
SANTA CLARA – Delanie Walker spoke at his locker Wednesday afternoon. This is what he said. Q: Is it going to be important to establish you and Vernon in the passing game against the Falcons? WALKER: Most definitely. Crab’s been doing that, so I’m pretty sure they’re going to have to stop Crab. And that’s going to give everybody opportunities to make plays. Q: You guys do a lot of…
SANTA CLARA – This is the transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s Monday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. How did DT Justin Smith make it through the game? “Good. Played well. Came out of the game as clean as possible.” And did you expect him to kind of pick up where he left off? “It looked good in practice and the feedback that we were getting from him was…
SAN FRANCISCO – The 49ers massacred the Packers 45-31 on Saturday night. Here is the grade for the 49ers offense. Offensive line: A. Joe Staley gave up the one and only sack. He injured his arm in the game and did not play particularly well. But the other four offensive linemen sure did. Mike Iupati, Alex Boone and Anthony Davis all were terrific run blockers. Jonathan Goodwin only had one…
SANTA CLARA – The 49ers’ first round pick, A.J. Jenkins, did not catch a pass in the regular season. He was not a contributor. This afternoon, Jim Harbaugh was asked if Jenkins can contribute in the playoffs. Here’s what Harbaugh said. Q: Where is A.J. Jenkins in his development? Can he contribute in the playoffs? HARBAUGH: Do I think he can? Yes. Do we need him to? Yes. We need…
SAN FRANCISCO – The 49ers stomped the Cardinals 27-13. Here are the grades for the 49ers offense. Offensive line: B. They gave up hardly any pressure this week, which was impressive because the Cardinals defense is ranked 10th in the league in sacks. The 49ers’ offensive line did not create much running room, though, and that’s becoming a trend. The Niners gained 129 yards on 37 carries – just 3.5…
SANTA CLARA – Greg Roman spoke in the media tent Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said, courtesy of the 49ers. Opening statement: “Good afternoon, we’ve got a tough opponent this week, Arizona. Their defense, we have a lot of respect for, we know pretty well. You saw what they did to Detroit a couple of weeks ago. They’ve got good players, some guys we really think are among the…
SANTA CLARA – Delanie Walker spoke at his locker Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said. Q: If Vernon Davis doesn’t play, will you start at tight end, or will Garrett Celek? WALKER: I’ll take Vernon’s (position), and when we go with two tight ends, he’ll take Vernon’s and I’ll do the same role I usually do. Q: What do you think about Vernon’s availability? WALKER: I’m not sure, but he…
This is the transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s Wednesday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. How was your Christmas? “Happy Holidays. Yeah, warmest holiday wishes to everybody. Yeah, excited to be back. Big week for us. And looking forward to a great week of preparation.” Can you give us any update on WR Mario Manningham? His status? “Yeah, he’s not going to be available the rest of the way.”…
Brent Jones spoke on KNBR Monday afternoon. Here’s what he said. Q: On a 1-to-10 scale, how much of an alarm meter would you ring on Sunday night? BRENT JONES: I think it’s a 10. The thing that scares me the most is the defense. There have been four games this year – the Vikings game, the Giants game, the Patriots game and this game where we just flat-out got…
As you all have probably heard, Mario Manningham tore the ACL and PCL in left knee against the Seahawks and he’s out for the rest of the season. The 49ers now have lost their No.2 and No.3 wide receivers (Kyle Williams tore up his knee against the Saints). The remaining wide receivers on the 53-man roster are Michael Crabtree, Randy Moss, Ted Ginn Jr. and A.J. Jenkins. How do you…
SEATTLE, Wa. – The Seahawks crushed the 49ers 42-13 Sunday night. Here are the grades for the offense. Offensive line: F. Even though this group only gave up one sack, they gave up pressure the whole game. Kaepernick was running for his life and he took some big hits after throws. In the fourth quarter, Anthony Davis lost his cool and took two cheap shots on 190-pound cornerback Jeremy Lane,…
This is what Greg Cosell said on KNBR Thursday morning about the 49ers win over the Patriots. Q: Should the 49ers consider themselves lucky they beat the Patriots? There were so many fumbles they got back. COSELL: They won the game, but you know what struck me? The second half the Patriots went to their speed no-huddle and the Niners’s defense got tired and they couldn’t rush the quarterback –…
