SANTA CLARA – Here’s what stood out to me during Wednesday afternoon’s padded practice. THE GOOD 1. Colin Kaepernick. Completed 22 of 32 pass attempts during team drills. He threw two touchdowns during an 11-on-11 goal line drill – one to Anquan Boldin and one to Asante Cleveland. Kaepernick also got intercepted on a deep pass in the end zone – Perrish Cox jumped and caught the ball over Quinton…
Here is the transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s Monday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. staff. Did it meet expectations as far as the work accomplished? “Yes, and higher than that. Went better than expected for our football team. We got better. There’s no question about it. I think it was even more so than what we thought. It all started with the two teams with the same mindset and…
SANTA CLARA – The 49ers had a light, leisurely practice in shorts and shells for about an hour and 45 minutes Tuesday morning. Here’s what stood out to me. THE GOOD 1. Colin Kaepernick. Attempted just 13 passes during team drills, but completed 10 including three touchdown passes: one to Anquan Boldin, one Stevie Johnson and one to Vance McDonald. Kaepernick’s first incomplete pass was intended for Bruce Ellington in…
SANTA CLARA — This is what Vic Fangio said Sunday afternoon about Jimmie Ward, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. staff. The nickel job, is that getting closer to being resolved in your mind? “[CB] Jimmie’s [Ward] doing a good job out there. We haven’t worked [CB] Perrish Cox in there a whole lot lately. We’ve been having him focus at corner. Just from the standpoint that he’s had a lot…
This is my Saturday column. SANTA CLARA – Eight training camp practices down, three to go before the 49ers play preseason game No. 1 and you see this for yourself. Until then, here are my top five takeaways from camp. 1. Colin Kaepernick is improving. It’s his fourth season in this offense and he has it down cold – that’s the first thing you notice. He shouts a million things…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s what stood out to me at Friday’s padded practice. THE GOOD 1. Colin Kaepernick. Completed 14 of the 19 passes he attempted during team drills. He threw three touchdown passes – one to Quinton Patton, one to Vernon Davis and one to Chuck Jacobs. This may have been Kaepernick’s best practice of camp. 2. Vernon Davis. Made five catches during team drills. One was a five-yard…
SANTA CLARA — Vic Fangio was interviewed in the 49ers’ auditorium Tuesday afternoon. Here is a transcript courtesy of the 49ers. What did you like from what you saw out at practice? “Not as much as I had been seeing. We messed up too many things today, I think, and I need to go look at it and see exactly what it was. A couple of them, I’m not sure…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s what stood out to me at the 49ers’ first padded practice of training camp. THE GOOD 1. Tramaine Brock. Broke up three passes today. First, he intercepted Kory Faulkner who was trying to throw to Stevie Johnson. Then, Brock broke up a pass intended for Carlos Hyde. And then, Brock broke up a pass intended for Kassim Osgood. 2. Michael Crabtree. Dropped one pass in the…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s what stood out to me at the 49ers’ second non-padded practice of training camp. THE GOOD 1. Brandon Lloyd. Made a 20-yard catch near the sideline during an 11-on-11 team drill. Colin Kaepernick threw the pass high. Lloyd jumped and caught the ball and got both feet inbounds. 2. Stevie Johnson. Beat Chris Culliver for a 15-yard catch during a seven-on-seven drill. Johnson sold the deep…
SANTA CLARA — Vic Fangio was interviewed in the 49ers’ auditorium Friday morning. Here is a transcript courtesy of the 49ers. You finally got to see DB Jimmie Ward on the field. Any reaction to seeing him out there running around a little bit? “He did fine. You know, he was also here last week where we had those three, they were altered practices, we didn’t have the full 22…
SANTA CLARA – Antoine Bethea was interviewed outside of the 49ers’ locker room Friday afternoon. Here is a transcript. Q: Do you feel like you’re catching on to the scheme? BETHEA: Yeah, most definitely. Coming into OTAs, you’re just trying to get your feet wet, get a good grasp on the defense. Now I’m more comfortable with the defense, so out on the field I can let my eight years…
Tramaine Brock will be one of the the cornerbacks in the 49ers’ Nickel defense; we know that. Who will be the other two starting corners? The main candidates are Chris Cook, Chris Culliver and the rookie with the broken foot, Jimmie Ward. If the foot recovers and Ward earns a starting spot, he would be the Nickelback, and Cook or Culliver would start outside opposite Brock. I’m guessing Culliver would…
SANTA CLARA — Vic Fangio spoke to Bay Area reporters Wednesday afternoon. Here is a transcript courtesy of the 49ers. Are these the first real looks that you’ve been getting of DT Tank Carradine since he got here last year? “Yes. Last year at this time he wasn’t practicing, and that you guys know, didn’t practice until some point in October, November. And he wasn’t physically ready to go then….
To get you prepped for Tuesday’s OTA, here are the 49ers’ top-five position battles. 1. Chris Culliver (6-0, 199 pounds, 25 years old) vs. Chris Cook (6-2, 212, 27) vs. Dontae Johnson (6-2, 200, 22) for No.2 cornerback Culliver is the favorite – the 49ers spent a third-round pick on him in 2011. But he tore his ACL a year ago and does not seem to have fully recovered yet…
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…
Here is my Monday column grading the 49ers’ draft. Before we grade the 49ers’ draft, we have to agree on a grading criterion. I propose a simple one: Are the 49ers better than the Seahawks now? That’s the only question that should matter. That’s a pass-fail question. The 49ers added depth. They addressed needs. They drafted 12 players. But are the Niners better than the Seahawks? The first player the…
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…
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…
