SANTA CLARA – The Niners first practice of the 2012 training camp was padless – full contact doesn’t start until Sunday. Keeping that in mind, here are my impressions from Friday. THE GOOD TE Vernon Davis – Twice the coaching staff raved about the routes Davis ran. Last year, Harbaugh mentioned he wanted Davis to improve his route running, to make his movements more precise. Today, Davis was the most…
Here is the Niners’ current weekend interview schedule, which is subject to change. If you have any questions you would like me to ask, please leave them in the comment section below. Friday, July 27 between 12-1pm Head Coach Jim Harbaugh QB Alex Smith WR Randy Moss Saturday, July 28 between 12-1pm Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio DT Justin Smith LB Patrick Willis Sunday, July 29 between 12-1pm…
This is the final quintile of the Niners 25 best players. To read the previous quintile, click here. 21. Bruce Miller, FB – a Pro Bowl alternate in 2011, his rookie season. A very good blocker and a surprisingly good receiver for a fullback. 22. C.J. Spillman, ST – Led the team with 19 special teams tackles in 2011 (tied for fourth most in the NFL). Perhaps the best gunner…
Some readers have expressed concern regarding my minicamp analysis of Niners rookie wide receiver, A.J. Jenkins. I called him the biggest letdown of minicamp and one of the worst wide receivers on the field for those three days. Some readers said those statements were hyperbolic and lacked evidence. Below are my unofficial stats from last week’s minicamp. Hopefully, they clear up my statements from my minicamp review. Keep in mind…
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 – Here are some unofficial stats from today’s minicamp. Alex Smith completed 27 of 32 passes. In red zone drills he completed two touchdowns. For about an hour he didn’t miss a single pass. Most of his throws were short and intermediate ones to open receivers. Smith is clearly the most confident Niners QB when it comes to making decisions in the pocket. He was throwing the ball…
SANTA CLARA – Below is the transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s Tuesday post-practice interview, courtesy of the 49ers. Here are Harbaugh’s main points: Will Tukuafu is playing defensive tackle and full back in practice, like Isaac Sopoaga did last season. Vernon Davis has improved his route running and he’s having an excellent offseason. Rookie defensive end Cam Johnson did not attend practice due a minor procedure but he should be ready…
SANTA CLARA – This is the last week of OTAs for the Niners, and today was the one practice open to the media. It started like all their other practices – drills first, then scrimmaging, but one thing was different. Alex Smith flat out dominated the quarterback drills. Nearly every warm up pass to every uncovered receiver was perfect. Last year during training camp he’d miss a few passes as…
I’m waiting to hear from the Niners about media availability this week, but as a prelude to that here’s something for you to think about. We don’t know if the offense will be better this year, but let’s assume it is indeed better. How will it be better? Here are five ways. 1. The Niners got fast receivers who can beat single coverage – Randy Moss and Mario Manningham. At…
SANTA CLARA – The Niners called today’s practice a Veteran Football School On-field session. Most of the veterans showed up. Frank Gore didn’t, and neither did Mario Manningham or Brandon Jacobs, but that’s OK because VFS is voluntary. But Alex Smith showed up. He stretched with the offensive lineman and chatted with Alex Boone, one of his good friends on the team. Michael Crabtree showed up, too. He stretched next…
With rookie mini camps around the corner and OTAs around the bend too, let’s rank the Niners top-10 offseason battles in reverse order. 10. Michael Crabtree vs. his left foot. Will Crabtree win the battle against his left foot this offseason? He’s 1-2 in his professional career when he’s faced the foot in the summer. It beat him in ’09 when it sustained a stress fracture and held him out…
Before: Vernon Davis, Michael Crabtree, Delanie Walker, Kyle Williams and Kendall Hunter. Grade: F Why: Double-cover Davis and the Niners were dead on third down. Crabtree was rarely open enough for Alex Smith’s taste, Kendall Hunter didn’t have reliable hands and Smith rarely even considered throwing to Delanie Walker. Now: Subtract Walker, Williams and Hunter. Add Mario Manningham, Randy Moss, LaMichael James and A.J. Jenkins. Grade: B+ Why: If teams…
Now that the draft is over, I’m going to grade each area of the Niners offense, starting with the pass catchers. Before: Vernon Davis, Michael Crabtree, Delanie Walker, Kyle Williams, Ted Ginn Jr., Brett Swain and Joe Hastings. Grade: C- Why: Vernon Davis is a stud, so this group couldn’t have a failing grade. But everyone else is ordinary at best. Swain and Hastings probably won’t be in the league…
SANTA CLARA – The Niners first round pick A.J. Jenkins spoke to the Bay Area media in person for the first time this afternoon. He’s warm, talkative and humble. Also, he has huge hands. After the interview I told Kevin Lynch that Jenkins’ hands looked like E.T.’s hands. In a second interview a few minutes later Jenkins told the media this: “They used to call me E.T back in high…
SANTA CLARA — I give the Niners an F for their A.J. Jenkins pick at No. 30 in the first round, and here’s why. We all know the Niners’ biggest weaknesses are third down and red zone offense. They will not win the Super Bowl this season unless they improve those two areas. So, they needed to spend a first round pick on a player who would help the cause….
We’ve been doing a lot of Fleener talk around here recently. For the sake of discussion, let’s say the Niners don’t end up with the Stanford tight end in the upcoming draft because a team in the top-15 drafts him and the Niners don’t get a chance to trade up. What do they do then? They need a pass catcher who can make the big play to complement Vernon Davis…
Here’s why I think the Niners should let Alex Smith sign with the Dolphins, and then the Niners could sign Mike Wallace and Josh Johnson instead, and then let Johnson and Colin Kaepernick compete for the starting quarterback job in 2012. Last season, Alex Smith was a game manager who played his best when he was losing in the second half, and whose best attribute was not turning the ball…
A “well-placed source” told the great Matt Maiocco that the 49ers have an offer on the table for Alex Smith and they have no interest in signing free agent Quarterback Peyton Manning, to which I say, slow down, 49ers. That’s a lot you’re asking us to accept there. Let’s break that claim down bit by bit. First, Alex Smith has an offer from the Niners. Good for him, but we…
The wide receivers ran their 40-yard dashes this morning at the combine, and just like that, you can forget about Mohamed Sanu. He ran a 4.67 40-yard dash today at the NFL Combine, which means he’s slower than Michael Crabtree, which means the Niners probably aren’t going to drafting him. So, that narrows things down a bit. What else did we learn? Michael Floyd ran 4.47. He’s probably not going…
