Analysis: 49ers' Positions of Need in 2011 and Prospects to Fill Them

Considering how disastrous things already appear to be, I feel obliged to address the Niner Nation with what I can immediately see as gaping holes in our team, but on top of that to also give you some prospects to focus on as players we should be looking at as potential draft picks come next April 2011. This team lacks disciplined players and speed on both sides of the ball, and I expect several cuts and several players to try to test free agency this year.

Altogether now, here are the positions of need going into the 2011 draft, as of now (in no particular order):

CB - Clements (who in the near future I would advise to eventually accept a move to FS) and Spencer are solid, but Brown is wildly inconsistent. Adams looks promising, but he's still in development.

C/G/T - We could use upgrades and/or depth at both the C and OG positions. Heitmann is again recovering from a leg fracture and who knows what he'll be able to do. Rachal has looked terrible and has only one year left on his deal, and at OT we'll need a competent backup for Davis and Staley. I'm not ready to trust Boone.

QB - Whether Smith turns it around or not, we need to start grooming a young stud for the future.

OLB - This could be our number one need overall. Haralson is inferior to Brooks in this regard and I would be open to trading him. Lawson's contract is expiring and if we lose him, we'll be down to nothing when it comes to pass rush. LaBoy I believe is only on a one-year deal too.

DE - we may lose Ray-Mac and I don't expect Demetric to return. Both their deals expire this year. RJF. however. should step in at both DE/NT to fill the hole somewhat there, but we still need an upgrade.

ILB - This is likely Spikes' last year, and we have no back-up for Willis, and will need a backup for Bowman too next season.

WR and S - We obviously need more speed. And in regards to FS, Goldson may not get a new deal with the way he's playing. His deal expires this year, and Reggie or Mays may take his spot. Lewis is gone after this year.

RB - We need a speed back. Even if he can't KR, we need that extra element. Westbrook only has a one-year deal.

NT - Will they franchise Franklin again? Regardless, it is absolutely imperative we get a NT of the future.


Pre-Draft Possible Depth Chart Focusing on Positions Where a Need Exists:
QB - Smith, Carr, (empty)
RB - Gore, Dixon, (empty), Caulcrick
WR - Crabtree, Morgan, Ginn, Williams, Zeigler
OL - Staley, A.Davis, Boone, Snyder, Baas, Heitmann, Iupati, Wragge, Rachal
DL - Franklin, Jean-Francois, J.Smith, Sopoaga, McDonald, (empty), (empty)
OLB - Haralson, Brooks, (empty), (empty)
ILB - Willis, Bowman, McKillop, (empty)
CB - Clements, Spencer, Adams, Brown, (empty), (empty)
S - Mays, R.Smith, C.Taylor, (empty)


Suggested prospects at each position of need I see for the 49ers: (three per position, to limit post length)

Wide Receiver:
Titus Young, Boise State
Matt Sczur, Villanova
James Rodgers, Oregon St.

Defensive End:
Cameron Heyward, Ohio State
Nick Fairley, Auburn*
Cameron Jordan, California

Outside Linebacker:
Akeem Ayers, UCLA*
K.J. Wright, Mississippi State
Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue

Inside Linebacker:
Kelvin Sheppard, LSU
Mike Mohamed, California
Casey Matthews, Oregon

Nose Tackle:
Phil Taylor, Baylor
Jarvis Jenkins, Clemson
Jerrell Powe, Mississippi

Guard:
Benjamin Ijalana, Villanova
Justin Boren, Ohio State
John Moffit, Wisconsin

Quarterback:
Colin Kaepernick, Nevada
Andrew Luck, Stanford* - Would have to finish very poorly for this.
T.J. Yates, North Carolina

Cornerback:
Prince Amukamura, Nebraska
Jimmy Smith, Colorado
Davon House, New Mexico State

Safety:
Ahmad Black, Florida
Rahim Moore, UCLA*
Deunta Williams, North Carolina

Great job as usual OTC!

Thanks OTC. It's a shame we're looking to April only 3 games into the season.

Doesn't ruin my College Football Saturdays though!

Two things...

Frist, i believe it is Kaepernick but i may be wrong.
Second why those three for you QB?
-Luck is easy, but TJ Yates and Kaepernick(who i like)? What do you think about Jerrod Johnson (who seems similar to Kaepernick), Pat Devlin, or the three other big names (Mallett, Locker, Ponder)

OTC, I heard that Luck is going to go back to Stanford for his Senior year. Do you think he will declare?

Thanks OTC, nice post.

Here where my thoughts from another thread.

QB (or Vet QB as if any are available) - Highest Priority
FB - Medium Priority (vet or draft... Norris has to be upgraded
C - Medium Priority (It would be nice to get a C who can push the middle)
RG - High Priority (Snyder/Rachal/Wragge... RG will probably be weak spot on OL)
DE - Medium Priority (Someone to work with Soap/McDonald/backup Smith)
ILB Depth - Lowest Priority (If Spikes leaves we have Willis/McKillop/Bowman)
OLB - Highest Priority (If Lawson wants big bucks he isn't getting it... he is great on 1st and 2nd down but doesn't get a pass rush)
CB - High Priority (Clements, Spencer, Adams.. Brown.. we need someone else)
FS - High Priority (Goldson playing like he has and wanting big $ = High Priority (R.Smith doesn't do much for me)

As of now if we don't address any of these issues in free agency I would go:

1st - QB
2nd - OLB (Pass Rusher/Every Down LB)
3rd - CB
4th - RG
4th - FS
5th - C
6th - DE
6th - FB
7th - NT Depth
7th - ILB Depth

OTC, where do you see us drafting? Because as of right now, with Mike Johnson as OC, and the team on the verge of imploding, I don't think Luck or Locker are out of the picture. Luck scares me also. I'm sure you know the track record for underclassmen QBs, and their NFL success. Outside Big Ben it's a scary statistic. What makes you think Luck can escape this?

Really like what I see of Titus Young.

I am not so sure that Smith will be back and if he is I really only seeing us keeping him or Carr. If he has a so so year would we pay him starter money with a long term contract? If he had a huge year would we pay him big starter money?

Originally posted by al49erfan:
Two things...

Frist, i believe it is Kaepernick but i may be wrong.
Second why those three for you QB?
-Luck is easy, but TJ Yates and Kaepernick(who i like)? What do you think about Jerrod Johnson (who seems similar to Kaepernick), Pat Devlin, or the three other big names (Mallett, Locker, Ponder)

You're right, it's Kaepernick. Thanks for the correction, I through this together rather quickly and didn't catch it initially.

Now as for Jerrod Johnson, I'm not sure yet. I need to see more of him before I can make any absolute evaluations of the kid. But as for Mallet and Ponder, I haven't been impressed with those two at all. Locker had one rough game, but I think he'll be fine and still has the makings of an early round pick.

Luck may not enter, but I'm just throwing out some names to keep an eye on in general. These are players we should be tracking the progress of to see if they can consistently put up good numbers the rest of this season.

Originally posted by OnTheClock:

Originally posted by al49erfan:
Two things...

Frist, i believe it is Kaepernick but i may be wrong.
Second why those three for you QB?
-Luck is easy, but TJ Yates and Kaepernick(who i like)? What do you think about Jerrod Johnson (who seems similar to Kaepernick), Pat Devlin, or the three other big names (Mallett, Locker, Ponder)

You're right, it's Kaepernick. Thanks for the correction, I through this together rather quickly and didn't catch it initially.

Now as for Jerrod Johnson, I'm not sure yet. I need to see more of him before I can make any absolute evaluations of the kid. But as for Mallet and Ponder, I haven't been impressed with those two at all. Locker had one rough game, but I think he'll be fine and still has the makings of an early round pick.

Luck may not enter, but I'm just throwing out some names to keep an eye on in general. These are players we should be tracking the progress of to see if the can consistently put up good numbers the rest of this season.

Man, got my hopes up!

Ayers is a freak .. we could use him

Originally posted by OnTheClock:

Originally posted by al49erfan:
Two things...

Frist, i believe it is Kaepernick but i may be wrong.
Second why those three for you QB?
-Luck is easy, but TJ Yates and Kaepernick(who i like)? What do you think about Jerrod Johnson (who seems similar to Kaepernick), Pat Devlin, or the three other big names (Mallett, Locker, Ponder)

You're right, it's Kaepernick. Thanks for the correction, I through this together rather quickly and didn't catch it initially.

Now as for Jerrod Johnson, I'm not sure yet. I need to see more of him before I can make any absolute evaluations of the kid. But as for Mallet and Ponder, I haven't been impressed with those two at all. Locker had one rough game, but I think he'll be fine and still has the makings of an early round pick.

Luck may not enter, but I'm just throwing out some names to keep an eye on in general. These are players we should be tracking the progress of to see if they can consistently put up good numbers the rest of this season.

Can i ask how locker, after going 4/20, is still going to be a top pick? Maybe its just me but im really not that high on the guy. He seems to have the same accuracy issues as other QB and is a one and done QB. One and done meaning make one read and then take off down field. Maybe thats me not looking at him properly because im not a scout. I honestly dont see the QB i see an athlete (started a safety for awhile when he was hurt). I see him like a Tim Tebow were i think its a big risk if you take him to be your QB of a future.

Originally posted by al49erfan:

Originally posted by OnTheClock:

Originally posted by al49erfan:
Two things...

Frist, i believe it is Kaepernick but i may be wrong.
Second why those three for you QB?
-Luck is easy, but TJ Yates and Kaepernick(who i like)? What do you think about Jerrod Johnson (who seems similar to Kaepernick), Pat Devlin, or the three other big names (Mallett, Locker, Ponder)

You're right, it's Kaepernick. Thanks for the correction, I through this together rather quickly and didn't catch it initially.

Now as for Jerrod Johnson, I'm not sure yet. I need to see more of him before I can make any absolute evaluations of the kid. But as for Mallet and Ponder, I haven't been impressed with those two at all. Locker had one rough game, but I think he'll be fine and still has the makings of an early round pick.

Luck may not enter, but I'm just throwing out some names to keep an eye on in general. These are players we should be tracking the progress of to see if they can consistently put up good numbers the rest of this season.

Can i ask how locker, after going 4/20, is still going to be a top pick? Maybe its just me but im really not that high on the guy. He seems to have the same accuracy issues as other QB and is a one and done QB. One and done meaning make one read and then take off down field. Maybe thats me not looking at him properly because im not a scout. I honestly dont see the QB i see an athlete (started a safety for awhile when he was hurt). I see him like a Tim Tebow were i think its a big risk if you take him to be your QB of a future.

That's the one rough game I'm talking about. I think Locker can bounce back. He has the rest of the season to prove he's better than that. I expect him to get invited to the Senior Bowl and fans will be able to better gauge him there.

I wouldn't give up on him just yet. Now, saying he's a lock to go in the first, I won't do that. When I say an "early pick" -- Right now I'm looking at the late 1st to 2nd round area. But I doubt he falls beyond that 2nd unless his season goes downhill and his combine workouts go terribly.

Originally posted by OnTheClock:

Originally posted by al49erfan:

Originally posted by OnTheClock:

Originally posted by al49erfan:
Two things...

Frist, i believe it is Kaepernick but i may be wrong.
Second why those three for you QB?
-Luck is easy, but TJ Yates and Kaepernick(who i like)? What do you think about Jerrod Johnson (who seems similar to Kaepernick), Pat Devlin, or the three other big names (Mallett, Locker, Ponder)

You're right, it's Kaepernick. Thanks for the correction, I through this together rather quickly and didn't catch it initially.

Now as for Jerrod Johnson, I'm not sure yet. I need to see more of him before I can make any absolute evaluations of the kid. But as for Mallet and Ponder, I haven't been impressed with those two at all. Locker had one rough game, but I think he'll be fine and still has the makings of an early round pick.

Luck may not enter, but I'm just throwing out some names to keep an eye on in general. These are players we should be tracking the progress of to see if they can consistently put up good numbers the rest of this season.

Can i ask how locker, after going 4/20, is still going to be a top pick? Maybe its just me but im really not that high on the guy. He seems to have the same accuracy issues as other QB and is a one and done QB. One and done meaning make one read and then take off down field. Maybe thats me not looking at him properly because im not a scout. I honestly dont see the QB i see an athlete (started a safety for awhile when he was hurt). I see him like a Tim Tebow were i think its a big risk if you take him to be your QB of a future.

That's the one rough game I'm talking about. I think Locker can bounce back. He has the rest of the season to prove he's better than that. I expect him to get invited to the Senior Bowl and fans will be able to better gauge him there.

I wouldn't give up on him just yet. Now, saying he's a lock to go in the first, I won't do that. When I say an "early pick" -- Right now I'm looking at the late 1st to 2nd round area. But I doubt he falls beyond that 2nd unless his season goes downhill and his combine workouts go terribly.

How does a player go from a sure-fire first overall pick to a likely top 64 pick, after 1 game? Do you think he ranks above Luck?

Colin Kaepernick has had pretty good stats since 07. He might fly under the radar.
Year Comp. Att Yards Comp % YPA TDs Ints
2007 133 247 2175 53.8 8.81 19 3
2008 208 383 2849 54.3 7.44 22 7
2009 166 282 2052 58.9 7.28 20 6
2010 73 106 924 68.9 8.72 6 1

So 67 TDs and 17 Ints... not to bad

As for Rushing he has
593 yards, 1130, 1183, and 451 so far this year. Has 47 TDs in the 3+ years. Pretty damn good numbers although you could question the opponents.