McShay: Guard Iupati might be a first-round reach for Niners

This guy is likely one of the most sure things in this draft. After Suh and Berry, I feel like you can make the argument that Iupati is the most likely to have immediate and long term success in the NFL. You don't pass on someone that appears to be this much of a sure thing b/c his position indicates he should be slotted a few picks later.

Originally posted by ninertico:
Mayock, who's opinion I value more, said that he's a top twenty pick today.

Good enough for me!

J/K, but finally a top analyst agrees with the Zone!

Tico... By the time the draft rolls around he'll be a top 20 in every mock, even that dipstick Kiper will be all over his jock.

We need to grab him at #13 and worry about 16/17 when we get there. Hopefully we win the coin toss, get #16 then all we have to worry about are the Seahawks and the Giants taken the best OT on the board.

Originally posted by DaveWilcox:

Originally posted by ninertico:
Mayock, who's opinion I value more, said that he's a top twenty pick today.

Good enough for me!

J/K, but finally a top analyst agrees with the Zone!

Tico... By the time the draft rolls around he'll be a top 20 in every mock, even that dipstick Kiper will be all over his jock.

We need to grab him at #13 and worry about 16/17 when we get there. Hopefully we win the coin toss, get #16 then all we have to worry about are the Seahawks and the Giants taken the best OT on the board.

Damn straight!

Already am set for mock ver. 3.0. Just like Windows, I keep coming out with service packs until we get it right.

http://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/draft_query.cgi?pos=G&round_1=1&round_2=1&tm=all&year_1=1967&year_2=2009&conference=any&type=

The link above shows the earliest drafted guard in the 1st rd.

17 is a perfect spot for Iupati

I am going on record now I would be thrilled with a RT at 13 and Iupati at 16/17. Sure we might have two rookies starting on the OL, but with good coaching and some on the job training we will have a good young starting OL by mid-season. And from there our whole offense gets better.

Originally posted by DaveWilcox:

Originally posted by ninertico:
Mayock, who's opinion I value more, said that he's a top twenty pick today.
Good enough for me!

J/K, but finally a top analyst agrees with the Zone!

Tico... By the time the draft rolls around he'll be a top 20 in every mock, even that dipstick Kiper will be all over his jock.

We need to grab him at #13 and worry about 16/17 when we get there. Hopefully we win the coin toss, get #16 then all we have to worry about are the Seahawks and the Giants taken the best OT on the board.

I actually I'm sitting here watching Path to the Draft and Mayock was asked who is the best OT in the SR. Bowl and he said "Iupati". He said he can play all five line positions and down the line will be a tackle. It was the 1/28 segment with Cory Chavos.

I dont know much about the draft, but with all the press this kid is getting imagine if he has a monster to very good combine.... Could he go in the top 15?

Originally posted by SunDevilNiner79:

Originally posted by smileyman:

Originally posted by WillistheWall:
f**k it we don't have any beastly guards. Trying to change his position to what we need is a bunch of bulls**t and we've gotten burned in the past trying to do so. KEEP HIM AT LEFT GUARD IF WE PICK HIM, AND DON'T CONSIDER IT A REACH IF HE TURNS OUT TO BE A PRO BOWL OLINEMAN. BECAUSE THOSE ARE HARD TO GET, AND WORTH THEIR LARGE ASS WEIGHT IN GOLD. Okay?

I'm not even the biggest Iupati fan but he' is a good guard and Baas pissed me off so badly at times last year I wouldn't definitely be happy with an upgrade like Iupati.

Rachal is a stud and will be a great guard for the future. Baas is ok--we could definitely use an upgrade but he would make a good backup. We need a stud RT and a guard to replace Baas. We can get the guard in the second if we need to, but the tackle we need in the first.

I agree. RT is the priority and Rachal will develop into a great guard.

It doesn't matter that RT is the priority. You can find a RT in the 2nd or later on if you develop one, or you can sign one in FA. Pashos isn't a bad player. He's not great but he's not bad. We could resign him. Or Solari could find a diamond in the rough. But when you have a chance to get a pro bowl OLineman, you do it. How many pro bowlers do we have on our OLine? Zero. How many do we have at other positions, 5. So if you have a chance to get a pro bowl guard, and you know he has a shot at being a pro bowl guard rather than a decent right tackle, you play him at guard because that's where he's going to play the best. We need good players still. You can always find a decent player to fill a hole. I'm not even saying draft Iupati, I like him a lot, but not as much as everyone else. But if you pick him don't make him change positions as a rookie and screw with his development. Just don't do it, because it's not worth the risk, and we could use a beast in the middle. You all act like we just had problems for the right side, but that's not true. We had Frank/Coffee stopped in the backfield A LOT from pressure up the middle. Our QB often times couldn't step up in the middle of the pocket, resulting in sacks, INTs, and throw aways.

Furthermore, everyone says Rachal is a beast, but he didn't come on until the end of the season. Where was Chilo vs GB, or Houston, or MN, etc? Nowhere to be seen. He has a lot of potential and if Solari can coach him up he can be a damn good player, but he's not there yet, and if we can get another badass guard to make his job easier then we should do it. Then we can actually get some yards when we run up the middle.

Originally posted by smileyman:

Originally posted by WillistheWall:
f**k it we don't have any beastly guards. Trying to change his position to what we need is a bunch of bulls**t and we've gotten burned in the past trying to do so. KEEP HIM AT LEFT GUARD IF WE PICK HIM, AND DON'T CONSIDER IT A REACH IF HE TURNS OUT TO BE A PRO BOWL OLINEMAN. BECAUSE THOSE ARE HARD TO GET, AND WORTH THEIR LARGE ASS WEIGHT IN GOLD. Okay?

I'm not even the biggest Iupati fan but he' is a good guard and Baas pissed me off so badly at times last year I wouldn't definitely be happy with an upgrade like Iupati.

Rachal is a stud and will be a great guard for the future. Baas is ok--we could definitely use an upgrade but he would make a good backup. We need a stud RT and a guard to replace Baas. We can get the guard in the second if we need to, but the tackle we need in the first.

Um, I have hopes that within the next year or so Rachal may develop into a reasonably decent guard. And I have had patience with him, as you must with young players. But, Smiley, calling him a stud at this moment in time is an offence against the English language.

On the subject of Iupati, this business of it being too high to draft a guard and all the rest of it makes me laugh. A percentage of the first round are going to bust and a further percentage are going to be a disappointment. We all know this. Iupati is unlikely to be a bust (although there are no guarantees with the draft) and it seems very possible that he will be a perennial Pro Bowler at our weakest position. We can:

snap him up

pass on him because he is a guard and watch how he plays for the Cowboys for the next decade

trade down if we find a trade partner, pick up an extra lowish pick and gamble he doesn't get taken first.

He may well end up, with the benefit of hindsight, being one of the best players to come out of this draft. Lets grab him. And play him at guard. One problem: sorted.

Please reach for him!

The guy will be a stud. I'd love to reach for a sure thing

dont f with positions.. look at robert gallery

Originally posted by English:

Originally posted by smileyman:

Originally posted by WillistheWall:
f**k it we don't have any beastly guards. Trying to change his position to what we need is a bunch of bulls**t and we've gotten burned in the past trying to do so. KEEP HIM AT LEFT GUARD IF WE PICK HIM, AND DON'T CONSIDER IT A REACH IF HE TURNS OUT TO BE A PRO BOWL OLINEMAN. BECAUSE THOSE ARE HARD TO GET, AND WORTH THEIR LARGE ASS WEIGHT IN GOLD. Okay?

I'm not even the biggest Iupati fan but he' is a good guard and Baas pissed me off so badly at times last year I wouldn't definitely be happy with an upgrade like Iupati.

Rachal is a stud and will be a great guard for the future. Baas is ok--we could definitely use an upgrade but he would make a good backup. We need a stud RT and a guard to replace Baas. We can get the guard in the second if we need to, but the tackle we need in the first.

Um, I have hopes that within the next year or so Rachal may develop into a reasonably decent guard. And I have had patience with him, as you must with young players. But, Smiley, calling him a stud at this moment in time is an offence against the English language.

On the subject of Iupati, this business of it being too high to draft a guard and all the rest of it makes me laugh. A percentage of the first round are going to bust and a further percentage are going to be a disappointment. We all know this. Iupati is unlikely to be a bust (although there are no guarantees with the draft) and it seems very possible that he will be a perennial Pro Bowler at our weakest position. We can:

snap him up

pass on him because he is a guard and watch how he plays for the Cowboys for the next decade

trade down if we find a trade partner, pick up an extra lowish pick and gamble he doesn't get taken first.

He may well end up, with the benefit of hindsight, being one of the best players to come out of this draft. Lets grab him. And play him at guard. One problem: sorted.

Thank you.

Originally posted by DaveWilcox:

Originally posted by valrod33:
http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/49ers/archives/2010/01/mcshay-guard-iu.html

Todd McShay: "It's hard because I'm struggling to decipher whether he can actually play tackle in the NFL. Here's the thing: I think he can be an absolutely dominant guard, and they moved him out to left tackle in one point in practice. From the right side to the left side and going from inside (the offensive line) to outside, you're asking the guy to make two moves in terms of footwork and the side of the ball and being asked to be on the perimeter. He struggled in that aspect of it. But every other thing he did this week - I think he was arguably the most dominant lineman here. And I do think he could step in right away and start at guard in the NFL and be perennial Pro Bowl player. I just don't know whether he's going to be a great fit at tackle. That's the reason I would hesitate to say he's definitely in the middle of the first, but I could definitely see him 22-32 - somewhere in that range. And if you're only looking for a tackle, then you've got to make that decision if you feel strongly about it. But I would say right tackle would probably be as far as I would go."

McShay will come around and so will every other draft pundit. After the combine Iupati will be on everyones mock, and it won't be as a 2nd rounder. McShay is basing this opinion on watching the coaches move him around in practices, from ROT ot LOT.. Of course he is not going to look stellar at OT.. He just hasn't had enough reps.. And in the end if all he ever ends up being is a perennial pro bowl guard. What is wrong with that?? It's not like our roster is filled with pro bowl guards.

We don't know what Scotty thinks about guards.. All we really know is that he didn't resign Smiley. Iupati from all accounts is in a whole different classification and should not be evaluated as a run of the mill guard. Hopefully Scotty is in Mobile and seeing this in person and getting earful from Solari, Sing and Brown.

Scotty, Are you listening.

Does the name Branden Albert ring a bell?

I'm becoming convinced this guy should be our pick at 16/17. Adding Spiller & Iupati would be a STRONG 1st round.

Originally posted by GMniner805:
I'm becoming convinced this guy should be our pick at 16/17. Adding Spiller & Iupati would be a STRONG 1st round.

Agreed. That would be huge for this team. I would guarantee we would make the playoffs.

Originally posted by English:

Originally posted by smileyman:

Originally posted by WillistheWall:
f**k it we don't have any beastly guards. Trying to change his position to what we need is a bunch of bulls**t and we've gotten burned in the past trying to do so. KEEP HIM AT LEFT GUARD IF WE PICK HIM, AND DON'T CONSIDER IT A REACH IF HE TURNS OUT TO BE A PRO BOWL OLINEMAN. BECAUSE THOSE ARE HARD TO GET, AND WORTH THEIR LARGE ASS WEIGHT IN GOLD. Okay?

I'm not even the biggest Iupati fan but he' is a good guard and Baas pissed me off so badly at times last year I wouldn't definitely be happy with an upgrade like Iupati.

Rachal is a stud and will be a great guard for the future. Baas is ok--we could definitely use an upgrade but he would make a good backup. We need a stud RT and a guard to replace Baas. We can get the guard in the second if we need to, but the tackle we need in the first.

Um, I have hopes that within the next year or so Rachal may develop into a reasonably decent guard. And I have had patience with him, as you must with young players. But, Smiley, calling him a stud at this moment in time is an offence against the English language.

Did you watch him at the end of the season? It was like a light clicked on and he suddenly got it. The last four or five games he was a dominant guard. Didn't allow any sacks since week 10, no QB pressures since week 13, and 1 QB hit in that time. We went from not being able to run behind him and needing Baas to pull constantly to being able to run behind him on a consistent basis. Mark my words--the guy is going to be a great guard, even more so now that we have Solari coming in to town.

Originally posted by English:

On the subject of Iupati, this business of it being too high to draft a guard and all the rest of it makes me laugh. A percentage of the first round are going to bust and a further percentage are going to be a disappointment. We all know this. Iupati is unlikely to be a bust (although there are no guarantees with the draft) and it seems very possible that he will be a perennial Pro Bowler at our weakest position. We can:

snap him up

pass on him because he is a guard and watch how he plays for the Cowboys for the next decade

trade down if we find a trade partner, pick up an extra lowish pick and gamble he doesn't get taken first.

He may well end up, with the benefit of hindsight, being one of the best players to come out of this draft. Lets grab him. And play him at guard. One problem: sorted.

I'm all for snapping Iupati. If I was running the draft I'd go Trent Williams at 13 and Iupati at 17 and then take a look at our other needs in the rest of the draft. However I'll be shocked if that's what this FO does.