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Spencer wins #2 corner spot
Sep 7, 2009 at 7:33 PM
- Dajanksta
- CrankyJanke
- Posts: 67,760
I'm watching the miami game b/c frank gore is probably watching it too hehehehe
Sep 7, 2009 at 7:34 PM
- Afrikan
- Veteran
- Posts: 21,470
Originally posted by Gore_21:
FROM CBS SPORTSLINE RAPID REPORTS:
One reason 49ers coach Mike Singletary might have elected to start CB Shawntae Spencer over veteran Dre' Bly is that Bly isn't very physical. Bly has acknowledged that he's not an enthusiastic tackler, and he allowed 254 yards after completions last season, according to Football Outsiders Almanac. That was seventh worst in the league.
thankx....this is what I was speculating earlier... when I saw Bly let a RB get right past him in preseason I was worried that he might be to fragile to tackle these huge RBs we have in our division....
but its nice to have a gambling type cb on passing situations.... I believe Bly will get us a number of turnovers this year.
I think we as a fan based have been spoiled with DBs that can tackle and have took it for granted..... from Plummer & Webster to Spencer and recently Nate and Walt....
Also with Micheal Lewis injured, imo, it is important that we have another person on the starting D to tackle consistently.....I'm not too confident with Roman against the run..... but with Goldson, Nate, and Spencer we have a physical secondary.
[ Edited by Afrikan on Sep 7, 2009 at 19:34:53 ]
Sep 7, 2009 at 7:42 PM
- rtj03
- Veteran
- Posts: 668
Originally posted by susweel:
Start both of them and bench Clements.
Exactly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sep 7, 2009 at 7:44 PM
- HessianDud
- Veteran
- Posts: 22,995
Originally posted by Afrikan:Originally posted by Gore_21:
FROM CBS SPORTSLINE RAPID REPORTS:
One reason 49ers coach Mike Singletary might have elected to start CB Shawntae Spencer over veteran Dre' Bly is that Bly isn't very physical. Bly has acknowledged that he's not an enthusiastic tackler, and he allowed 254 yards after completions last season, according to Football Outsiders Almanac. That was seventh worst in the league.
thankx....this is what I was speculating earlier... when I saw Bly let a RB get right past him in preseason I was worried that he might be to fragile to tackle these huge RBs we have in our division....
but its nice to have a gambling type cb on passing situations.... I believe Bly will get us a number of turnovers this year.
I think we as a fan based have been spoiled with DBs that can tackle and have took it for granted..... from Plummer & Webster to Spencer and recently Nate and Walt....
Also with Micheal Lewis injured, imo, it is important that we have another person on the starting D to tackle consistently.....I'm not too confident with Roman against the run..... but with Goldson, Nate, and Spencer we have a physical secondary.
great points. The more I think about it, the more sense it kind of makes. Spencer has experience, Bly is past his prime, and Brown isn't quite ready. Bly is going to be a very valuable situational player in the secondary, and Brown has a good future. I think your points about Spencers tackling are right-on.
Sep 7, 2009 at 8:07 PM
- 9erfanAUS
- Veteran
- Posts: 16,281
Wow this is a bit surprising.
I didn't even think that Spencer was in the running. I thought Bly had it locked since he started all 4 preseason games.
Anyways, feeling good about the DB's.
-9fA
I didn't even think that Spencer was in the running. I thought Bly had it locked since he started all 4 preseason games.
Anyways, feeling good about the DB's.
-9fA
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:07 PM
- matt49er
- Veteran
- Posts: 7,456
Originally posted by 9erfanAUS:
Wow this is a bit surprising.
I didn't even think that Spencer was in the running. I thought Bly had it locked since he started all 4 preseason games.
Anyways, feeling good about the DB's.
-9fA
that's the weirdest part....why didnt they start spencer at all in the preseason?
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:09 PM
- AKfanster
- Veteran
- Posts: 2,827
Originally posted by NCommand:
Yeah, there is NOBODY who could have predicted this one. That said, the only thing I can think of is that both Spencer & Clements are our biggest and most fysical corners so I'm "hoping" we plan on playing AZ very very very fysical at the LOS b/c if not, we are going to get crushed. The AZ WR's play very fysical anyways but seemed to be even more amped last year against us as we were 2-0 against them the year before and were seeking some revenge.
I was surprised to hear this also. I would have never guessed Spencer would pull this out. I thought he was close to taking over the job before he got hurt, but since then alot of things have changed. The biggest, IMO, is the overall depth we have at CB.
Good point about size also, Spencer is easily 2-3 inches taller than Bly and Brown. But 49ers.com has Brown listed at 193lbs to Spencer's 190........so I don't know if Spencer is really "bigger" than Brown. Does anyone know who the faster CB is?
In addition to several other match-ups, I'll be paying close attention to Spencer's upcoming assignment against Quan.
Also, I highly doubt we'll see Clements playing press coverage. I'd love to see it, God knows I hate watching him line up 10-12yds deep EVERY FREAKIN PLAY. I just don't remember ever seeing him play up close to the LOS.
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:10 PM
- 49wyztoscore
- Veteran
- Posts: 7,048
Yeah Spence was solid before his injury. I think he will do great and he's taller so he matches up well against the Tards.
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:11 PM
- hondakillerzx
- Veteran
- Posts: 19,098
i dont think its that surprising, spencer was always a good corner for us, he just had a few injuries, when he's healthy he's very good
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:12 PM
- SF2AZNiner
- Veteran
- Posts: 3,695
Congrats Shawntee I always liked that cat I think he can handle this!!!!
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:17 PM
- Bobbi9698
- Veteran
- Posts: 3,071
Very astute choice by Singletary IMHO. Hope he stays healthy.
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:17 PM
- dj43
- Moderator
- Posts: 35,654
I admit I am a bit surprised by this news but I am not shocked.
When Spencer was healthy, he was a very good cover guy and the best tackler in the secondary. He has always been very good in run support. Unlike some corners who just come up and flop down in front of some big 'ol guard pounding at them, Spencer had a knack of being able to split the blockers and get to the ball carrier. His tackling technique is excellent.
His problem was that two years ago he had a hamstring injury that slowed him all season long. He played through it and accepted the criticism without ever mentioning he was playing on one leg. He could have used that as an excuse but he isn't that kind of guy. Also, if opponents found out he was injured, they would have thrown at him even more. Then last year he was healthy and playing very well as the nickel, even challenging Harris as a cover back, and tore the knee.
So it is good to hear this news because it sounds like he is playing back to his pre-injury days. If that is true, he will make a lot of believers on this board.
When Spencer was healthy, he was a very good cover guy and the best tackler in the secondary. He has always been very good in run support. Unlike some corners who just come up and flop down in front of some big 'ol guard pounding at them, Spencer had a knack of being able to split the blockers and get to the ball carrier. His tackling technique is excellent.
His problem was that two years ago he had a hamstring injury that slowed him all season long. He played through it and accepted the criticism without ever mentioning he was playing on one leg. He could have used that as an excuse but he isn't that kind of guy. Also, if opponents found out he was injured, they would have thrown at him even more. Then last year he was healthy and playing very well as the nickel, even challenging Harris as a cover back, and tore the knee.
So it is good to hear this news because it sounds like he is playing back to his pre-injury days. If that is true, he will make a lot of believers on this board.
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:21 PM
- adrenaline
- Veteran
- Posts: 12,011
Good for him. I've been hoping this guy bounces back. I trust in Singletary, he knows defense and what he says goes. We still have a solid four core of corners. Clements, Spencer, Brown and Bly. I just hope all our corners play physical.
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:23 PM
- NCommand
- Hall of Fame
- Posts: 123,300
Originally posted by AKfanster:Originally posted by NCommand:
Yeah, there is NOBODY who could have predicted this one. That said, the only thing I can think of is that both Spencer & Clements are our biggest and most fysical corners so I'm "hoping" we plan on playing AZ very very very fysical at the LOS b/c if not, we are going to get crushed. The AZ WR's play very fysical anyways but seemed to be even more amped last year against us as we were 2-0 against them the year before and were seeking some revenge.
I was surprised to hear this also. I would have never guessed Spencer would pull this out. I thought he was close to taking over the job before he got hurt, but since then alot of things have changed. The biggest, IMO, is the overall depth we have at CB.
Good point about size also, Spencer is easily 2-3 inches taller than Bly and Brown. But 49ers.com has Brown listed at 193lbs to Spencer's 190........so I don't know if Spencer is really "bigger" than Brown. Does anyone know who the faster CB is?
In addition to several other match-ups, I'll be paying close attention to Spencer's upcoming assignment against Quan.
Also, I highly doubt we'll see Clements playing press coverage. I'd love to see it, God knows I hate watching him line up 10-12yds deep EVERY FREAKIN PLAY. I just don't remember ever seeing him play up close to the LOS.
True. As I was typing this, I wonder of Spencer will be the starter ONLY for this game? Brown also is a fysical CB too but doesn't have the experience (yet) that Spencer has so he has the edge. All this talk of fysical play but Clements plays 10 yards off all pre-season? Perhaps that means a flip come the regular season? One key element of a dominant 3-4 if strong, aggressive and fysical corners. This helps disrupt timing plays and allows your CB's to run CB blitzes.
For instance, if Clements is playing 15 yards off the LOS all game and suddenly he walks up to the LOS, it's much easier to see a CB blitz. But if he's up at the LOS all game, being fysical, he can run a CB blitz off that aggressive style anytime. Successful 3-4 defenses do this. We don;t.
We are either going to play aggressive or very vanilla (and Spencer is the safest choice over a young Brown and a take-a-chance Bly).
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:25 PM
- BrianGO
- Veteran
- Posts: 10,300
Originally posted by dj43:
I admit I am a bit surprised by this news but I am not shocked.
When Spencer was healthy, he was a very good cover guy and the best tackler in the secondary. He has always been very good in run support. Unlike some corners who just come up and flop down in front of some big 'ol guard pounding at them, Spencer had a knack of being able to split the blockers and get to the ball carrier. His tackling technique is excellent.
His problem was that two years ago he had a hamstring injury that slowed him all season long. He played through it and accepted the criticism without ever mentioning he was playing on one leg. He could have used that as an excuse but he isn't that kind of guy. Also, if opponents found out he was injured, they would have thrown at him even more. Then last year he was healthy and playing very well as the nickel, even challenging Harris as a cover back, and tore the knee.
So it is good to hear this news because it sounds like he is playing back to his pre-injury days. If that is true, he will make a lot of believers on this board.
Well said.
Spencer has always been a good NFL cover corner, and in recent years, he has shown more and more ability to tackle.
Like you said the injury that slowed him down made him look bad on a few plays. That combined with a deep pass he gave up against Larry Fitzgerald a few years back, has caused people to say he sucks etc.
Before Walt's injury, I believed that Brown and Spencer were going to seriously challenge Harris for his starting job. I am not surprised Spencer is starting.