SANTA CLARA – Jim Harbaugh was interviewed by Bay Area reporters Friday afternoon. Here is a transcript. Q: What do you think of the rookies and undrafted guys so far? HARBAUGH: So far so good. They’ve done a great job studying. Coaches have done a great job bringing them up to speed in the last two weeks. Excited to see then competing out here today. Q: What is the status…
This is my Sunday news story on Day 3 of the 49ers’ draft. SANTA CLARA — The 49ers waited until the final day of the draft to address almost all of their biggest needs. First, a speed receiver. The 49ers used the sixth pick of the fourth round to take Bruce Ellington from the University of South Carolina. Ellington immediately becomes the 49ers’ fastest receiver, and their shortest receiver, too….
Here is my news story on the 49ers’ first round selection, Jimmie Ward. SANTA CLARA — The 49ers had clear needs at cornerback and wide receiver coming into the draft. The 49ers chose to address strong safety in Round 1. With the 30th pick, the 49ers drafted Jimmie Ward, a 5-foot-11, 193-pound strong safety from Northern Illinois University. But he most likely will not play strong safety for the 49ers…
I interviewed San Jose State head coach Ron Caragher over the phone last week. Here is the transcript. Q: Most of the top QBs in the upcoming draft went to non-major-conference colleges. Is that a coincidence, or is college football evolving? CARAGHER: Quarterbacks can come from all different types of colleges. Even a backup like the guy from USC – Matt Cassell – made it with the Patriots. At USD,…
I interviewed 49ers’ third-string quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson over the phone last week. Here is the transcript. Q: Which colleges offered you scholarships when you were coming out of high school? BETHEL-THOMPSON: When I came out of high school, I was convinced I was going to Stanford. I didn’t know the recruiting process very well at all. I committed to Stanford without them committing to me. I went through much of…
SANTA CLARA – Jim Harbaugh spoke to Bay Area reporters Friday afternoon. Here’s what he said about Colin Kaepernick. Q: Are you concerned about of all the players on your team who have been under investigation recently? HARBAUGH: It’s like a parent does. Do you worry? Do you think about it a lot? Yes. It’s the same thing you tell your own kids – there are consequences for all of…
Fact No.1: The 49ers were linked publicly to five big-name wide receivers during free agency — DeSean Jackson, Golden Tate, Emmanuel Sanders, Hakeem Nicks and Julian Edelman. The Niners signed none of them. Fact No.2: The 49ers have been linked publicly to three cornerbacks who are projected to get drafted in the second or third round of the upcoming draft — Bashaud Breeland, Jaylen Watkins and Stanley Jean-Baptiste. Fact No.3: At the…
Here is my Thursday column on Jim Harbaugh’s logic and Colin Kaepernick’s earning potential. I had to laugh at some of the things Jim Harbaugh said Wednesday at the NFL’s owners meetings in Orlando. Harbaugh said Colin Kaepernick is “one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL,” and he deserves the big bucks. “I think we all know what Colin’s earning potential is,” Harbaugh said. First, I have to laugh…
This is my Wednesday column. Yes, of course the 49ers should trade for Eagles’ wide receiver DeSean Jackson. Not even a discussion. On Tuesday, CSN Philly reported that the Eagles are shopping Jackson for a third-round pick, and that the 49ers are interested. Let me list the reasons the 49ers should make this trade: 1. The 49ers have two third-round picks, two second-round picks and a first-round pick. The 49ers…
The Miami Dolphins just tweeted that they have traded OT Johnathan Martin to the 49ers. The Dolphins will receive a seventh-round pick from the Niners in 2015 in Martin makes the Niners’ opening-day roster in 2014, according to CBS Sports. In a way, you saw this one coming. The Dolphins wanted to trade Martin. Martin played for Harbaugh at Stanford. The 49ers need a backup tackle.
Here is my Wednesday column. Here is the current stock report of six prominent 49er figures, letting you know if their stock is up or down. Jim Harbaugh: Stock down For eight consecutive years, his stock was up, up, up. That trend ended Jan. 19, the day Harbaugh lost the NFC Championship to the Seahawks the same way he lost the Super Bowl to the Ravens the season before —…
The day after reports surfaced that Colin Kaepernick wants a massive contract extension, Jim Harbaugh privately worked out Eastern Illinois quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who projects to be a second-round pick. What do you think this means? Do you think the 49ers are trying to put pressure on Kaepernick and to take away his leverage? Do you expect the 49ers will draft Garoppolo or another quarterback in the second round of…
Sports Illustrated recently interviewed Jim Harbaugh, and he denied that he wants a contract extension, that he wants more power and that there is friction between him and Trent Baalke. Here’s a Harbaugh quote from the interview: “I have never been a guy that wants to get extensions. If the guy at the top is getting extensions every year or two, it sends everybody else to the water cooler. The…
I just read an interesting column by Ann Killion, and I’m passing it along to you. An excerpt: “One source with inside knowledge of the team says that Harbaugh’s act has worn thin in the locker room, particularly among some key ‘face of the 49ers’ type players. While the team is winning, that’s not a problem. But a few losses could expose a widening rift.” To read the column, click here.
If the Dolphins make a bad decision and trade their top draft picks for Jim Harbaugh, who should the 49ers draft with the Dolphins first-rounder, No.19? If he’s healthy, I say the 49ers should take Marqise Lee. If Lee is not healthy, I say the Niners should take Allen Robinson. But if Kelvin Benjamin is available, the 49ers probably should take him. He’d give the offense two things it needs…
Jed York confirmed on twitter that he did fly to Miami today, but Trent Baalke and Paraag Marathe did not go with him according to York. York apparently will attend an NFL meeting in Miami on Monday, although I do not know what the nature of that meeting will be. I can’t find anything about it anywhere. Can you? One thing is for sure — if Dolphins’ owner Stephen Ross…
To those of you who say the 49ers should just pay Jim Harbaugh because of what he has done the past three seasons compared to how inept the club was with previous head coaches: You also should realize that Harbaugh and his agent had an opportunity when negotiating the initial contract to build escalators into the deal — pay Harbaugh more money if he achieved various landmarks during the first-three…
Here is my Wednesday column on Jim Harbaugh. Under no circumstances should the 49ers give Jim Harbaugh a contract extension this offseason. Let him play out the final two years of his deal. Or let him win a Super Bowl before giving him a raise. Apparently, Harbaugh wants to be the highest-paid head coach in the NFL. Hey, so do I, but I don’t deserve to be. Harbaugh doesn’t deserve…
Now that Cleveland Browns’ owner Jimmy Haslam has confirmed that his team had trade talks with the 49ers about Jim Harbaugh, here are eight questions 49ers’ owner Jed York might want to answer: 1. Why did you deny that the 49ers and Browns discussed trading Jim Harbaugh? 2. Why did this trade not happen? 3. Did Harbaugh veto the deal? 4. Who broke off discussions? 5. What did the Browns…
Assuming the 49ers and Browns really did have a trade in place to send Jim Harbaugh to Cleveland for draft picks, how many draft picks do you think were in the trade? One first round pick? Two first round picks? Do you think the Browns were willing to trade the No.4 pick in the upcoming draft for Harbaugh? What is Harbaugh’s trade value?
