Which two players on O and D are poised to make the biggest improvement?

brooks is gonna be a sack machine! And yea, crabs will definitely be our rising star.

Chilo and Balmer

Crabtree- With a full training camp and more chemistry with alex he could be a gamebreaker

Brooks- Hopefully more playing time, showed a lot of potential and talent this past year

Alex and crabs are a no brainer.. I think they will both have great seasons next year but I'd really like to see Josh Morgan come through and make a triple threat with crabs and vd.


On D I'd like to see manny Lawson come out with some Demarcus ware type numbers. Maybe 12+ sacks.

I'll put my money on Smith for the offense, because he went 18td's and 12int's in only 10 games. One would have to be crazy not too think he'll do better with the whole season.

And on D, I'd have to say whomever we have at either F/S or S/Safety. In looking at other teams D, I like what the colts, and vikings said when being interviewed separately on their defenses.

They pretty much agreed that they dont mind giving up underneath all day, they just wont get beat deep. I think if our Safety can prevent that big play deep, then the rest of our D will take care of itself.

You have to start to show the biggest improvement. I'll go with the Solari/Brown effect on Baas and Rachal. I also expect Balmer to contribute a lot more as a rotational player, but don't see him starting unless there is a DL injury.

Big men often just take a little more time to develop.

Originally posted by Kalen49ers:

Originally posted by jesserdumas2:

Originally posted by Kalen49ers:
I like Crabtree to make huge strides this year. Assuming we can fix some of the OL woes, I like Smith being able to get Crabtree the ball. I mean the dude as a rookie had ZERO offseason work with the team, ZERO pre-season game experience and ZERO work with the QB's to get the timing down and still had a good year.

I expect Crabtree to have a 1100+ yard season with 10+ TD's.

On the defense I like Ahmad Brooks. I think he can effectively be a starting OLB and can have a good 10+ sack season and also make other plays with FF's and maybe add an INT or two.

Do we have any knowledge about his pass-coverage ability?

Probably something he can work on for sure, however in his role he would be blitzing the majority of the time.

We know that Sing saying he "wasn't ready" probably refers the most to his inability to cover. This is something that will be a top priority this offseason; transforming Brooks into a complete OLB, instead of just a pass rusher.

His past role was blitzing the majority of the time. If he ever becomes a starter @ OLB, depending on who he supplants, he probably will not be blitzing all of the time.

Originally posted by global_nomad:
Crabtree and Brooks

Smith is pretty much a given, with the continuity with OC staying in place, and
having a full off season to prepare as the starter...

So, I'll have to agree with the choice of Crabtree on offense... Can't wait to see
what a full off season will do for this kid... I was pleasantly surprised at how well
he adjusted, even after getting on the field for the first time, so it's easy to think,
or imagine what he'll do for us with the full offseason under his belt... ;-)

Brooks would be a great choice too, providing we're able to lock him up long term,
but I'm excited to see T. Brown with another off season under his belt as well, but
those would be my two choices on Defense....

A9R4Life

Originally posted by global_nomad:
Crabtree and Brooks

these two. I would say Smith, but Im not sure if its his improvement or the emergence of a young and talented receiving corps.

Originally posted by KknighthawkK_9er:

Originally posted by Kalen49ers:

Originally posted by jesserdumas2:

Originally posted by Kalen49ers:
I like Crabtree to make huge strides this year. Assuming we can fix some of the OL woes, I like Smith being able to get Crabtree the ball. I mean the dude as a rookie had ZERO offseason work with the team, ZERO pre-season game experience and ZERO work with the QB's to get the timing down and still had a good year.

I expect Crabtree to have a 1100+ yard season with 10+ TD's.

On the defense I like Ahmad Brooks. I think he can effectively be a starting OLB and can have a good 10+ sack season and also make other plays with FF's and maybe add an INT or two.

Do we have any knowledge about his pass-coverage ability?

Probably something he can work on for sure, however in his role he would be blitzing the majority of the time.

We know that Sing saying he "wasn't ready" probably refers the most to his inability to cover. This is something that will be a top priority this offseason; transforming Brooks into a complete OLB, instead of just a pass rusher.

His past role was blitzing the majority of the time. If he ever becomes a starter @ OLB, depending on who he supplants, he probably will not be blitzing all of the time.

Nah, that reference from Sing was in re: to him setting the edge. With the additon of a FS who can cover, even like last year, the OLB's will RARELY drop back in coverage. They will be rushing the passer almost exclusively while playing the run at the same time. Dropping back in coverge is really a non-issue (even for Manny last year - his worst year to date in coverage).

Originally posted by hklar17:
Chilo and Balmer

...Agreed

Rachal needs to become an intimidating blocker that mauls D-Lineman in the run game and becomes more effective as a pass blocker

Balmer needs to be a force that can occupy two blockers and provide some pass rushing from the DE position, if Balmer cant get his s**t together this season then it's time to look for another DE and then write him off as another 'Reggie McGrew" and move one

I like hearing Chilo's name thrown around here. I agree that Ray Brown coming aboard should help that whole unit.

I also wanted to weigh in on people picking Crabtree as their most improved. I kind of thought he already was showing flashes of great ability and I think that will continue to grow evenly, that's why I picked Smith. But really, the same reason I picked Smith is the same reason you could go with Crabs. A full off-season of actual preparation for both of these guys should translate to more success on both of their parts. I'm hoping for a long and productive career-partnership out of them.

Originally posted by TheChozen:

Originally posted by global_nomad:
Crabtree and Brooks

I think its pretty obvious Crabs on O. Goldson could make a case on D.

I think Crabtree has all the talent needed to be a superstar in the NFL and have watched and wanted him on the niners since his first season at texas tech. I feel he just needs to get the mental aspect of the game down and he will be a beast out there. With a full off-season with the same system and a taste of what the nfl is going to be like, I think he is on the verge of a huge season.

On defense, I feel Goldson can do a ton of damage on opposing offenses this up coming season. He came on very strong towards the end of the season and let's not forget, that was his FIRST full season as a starter. It takes time for almost all players to fully "get it" and I think with his speed and knack for the ball, we are looking at a very productive season for Dashon ......7 round mock draft coming just as soon as webzone let's me make a topic since I just joined

Originally posted by NeeJ49er:

Originally posted by hklar17:
Chilo and Balmer

...Agreed

Rachal needs to become an intimidating blocker that mauls D-Lineman in the run game and becomes more effective as a pass blocker

Balmer needs to be a force that can occupy two blockers and provide some pass rushing from the DE position, if Balmer cant get his s**t together this season then it's time to look for another DE and then write him off as another 'Reggie McGrew" and move one

based on them sucking or not even playing much

they are poised to make the biggest improvement?

On defense, I really hope that it is Tarrel Brown. We really need him to play at a high level. I would be thrilled if he did well enough to start opposite Spencer and force Clements to move to safety. I actually think that it will be Brooks however. He's always been a raw talent. He will be a great player next season.

On offense, we will see the most improvement from Crabtree. No question. He will be a 1000 yard receiver in 2010.

Others will improve. Alex will improve. Especially with some upgrades on the OL. Chilo should improve. Morgan should improve.