Hypothetical, if the Niners draft Fleener at #30, would Delanie Walker have any trade valu

Originally posted by Youngb:

Originally posted by wysiwyg:

You don't trade Delanie.

If we draft Fleener at #30, it is because we got a good WR (Meachem, Garcon, etc) as FA and somebody jaw dropping isn't there.

VD came on at the end of the year and was THE monster in the playoffs. By his own admission, he didn't really get the offense until the end.

Walker was so clutch all year, as a "wham" blocker, special teams demon, and TE. That catch against DET was epic.

Fleener knows the offense. To draft him would take what the Pats did (Aaron / Gronk) and take it up a notch. Each brings something different. Fleener would be the big (6'6") redzone target. Vernon with his jump seam route.

Dare I say it but we'd be the first team to have a Slot TE (D-Love) instead of a Slot Wr. Since Delanie was a WR, it is not too much of a stretch.

I say do it.

That is what I've been thinking ever since Harbaugh joined. I know he was big into TEs and ours are extremely talented. Go 3 TE, all capable receivers, with Gore in the backfield. What are we gonna do? The D either goes big and gets burnt by the TEs or stay base and get steamrolled. The possibilities are endless. I'm excited for next year.

Its not that easy. Defense would double Vernon, cover Fleener with a Safety which leaves Delanie matched up with a CB and the defense can stay in base.

Delanie has never had even an aberage year and i dont think he can beat NFL DBs or he would have been drafted as a WR. All he really can do is that short slant acros the field and an occasional FB wheel type of route. I was really high on Delanie in he past but dude is not tall enough to catch jump balls over backers and DB and hes not fast enough to birn DBs. His routes and success highly depend on Vernon or another player clearing out, which isnt very difficult to replace at all.

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by susweel:
Whats with the love affair for Fleener ?

I seem him play at Stanford he wasn't anything special and thats with a QB like Luck.

A 6'6" guy who runs some of the best routes of any TE/WR in the draft, with tremendous hands, great agility and experience in a pro-style offense, not just any pro-style offense but Harbaugh's pro-style offense. Yeah, you're right, what's to like????



The real question is, will you again threaten to kick Baalke's ass if they do draft Fleener??

I doubt we take a TE in the first round when we have VD and DWalk.

This is going to be another draft pick which barely anyone will foresee.

if walker actually had trade value it wouldnt go down just because we took fleener. talent is still talent. and whos to say we dont run 3 TE sets or even four or five? harbaugh did it at stanford lol

why on earth would we use our 1st round pick on another TE...we have VD, and one of the best backup TE's in the NFL in Delanie Walker, and we have dire needs at WR.

common sense people.

Originally posted by Niners99:
Why on earth would we use our 1st round pick on another TE...we have VD, and one of the best backup TE's in the NFL in Delanie Walker, and we have dire needs at WR?

common sense people.

With all due respect, you really need to read more before you make posts like this....

There have been countless posts in the Zone recently addressing your question in detail.....and there are at least 10 excellent reasons why it would be a great idea to draft Fleener and run a 2 TE set....but I will leave you to do your due diligence...

Cheers!

To stick with the original thread, yes, I believe Walker would have trade value but probably not much more than a fourth round pick. Ironically, the knock on Walker coming out of the draft was his blocking....which has now become his strength. He is a good runner in the open field but doesn't have great hands and he is just 6 feet tall and about 230-240 lbs so he is not really a true TE...in terms of size anyway.

If the Niners were to draft Fleener, he becomes the "1B" TE to Vernon's "1A" and the two of them form a starting duo. Walker then likely becomes an H-back (which he is much better suited for physically) or even a wideout occasionally and shares some time with B. Miller at FB depending on the play call. He can line up anywhere and create more confusion for the opposing defenses.

If the team gets a good offer for a pick, the FO also has the option of trading him.

Cheers!

Originally posted by Joecool:
Its not that easy. Defense would double Vernon, cover Fleener with a Safety which leaves Delanie matched up with a CB and the defense can stay in base.

Delanie has never had even an aberage year and i dont think he can beat NFL DBs or he would have been drafted as a WR. All he really can do is that short slant acros the field and an occasional FB wheel type of route. I was really high on Delanie in he past but dude is not tall enough to catch jump balls over backers and DB and hes not fast enough to birn DBs. His routes and success highly depend on Vernon or another player clearing out, which isnt very difficult to replace at all.

they better hope their safety is 6'4'' or taller lol

Originally posted by Niners99:
why on earth would we use our 1st round pick on another TE...we have VD, and one of the best backup TE's in the NFL in Delanie Walker, and we have dire needs at WR.

common sense people.

I used to think like you but then people like joe cool and others talked about the potential of all sorts of mismatches we could create with fleener and that is not a knock against walker. you keep walker, you got the best group of tight ends on the nfl and then you could get a nice wide out in the third or fourth round. when i thought about those mismatches mayos penis tingling affliction got to me and i fell in love with the idea of getting fleener in the first round

why trade walker--he is an important cog in the offense---so much so that the wall street journal last season did an article about it

Originally posted by Youngb:
That is what I've been thinking ever since Harbaugh joined. I know he was big into TEs and ours are extremely talented. Go 3 TE, all capable receivers, with Gore in the backfield. What are we gonna do? The D either goes big and gets burnt by the TEs or stay base and get steamrolled. The possibilities are endless. I'm excited for next year.

4th at best. His greatest contribution last season (apart from the catch against the Lions) was his blocking. Most teams can get a good blocking TE with a 4th to 6th round pick. Billy Bajema was a very good blocker and he was a 7th, IIRC.

Folks yall are going overboard with this 3 tight end set theory.

and Walker has 0 trade value. 0

I don't think he would have much trade value. He is versatile, but not great in any area. But drafting Fleener and keeping Walker, would make it very easy to let Norris go. I think Fleener would easily be our #2 TE, leaving Walker to be a versatile back-up at both TE and FB.

Alot of higher quality players went for 5th round picks last year. Look at what Santonio Holmes went for. I dont see any trade value.

Originally posted by hofer36:
why trade walker--he is an important cog in the offense---so much so that the wall street journal last season did an article about it

One good reason, not much mentioned in this thread, is that Walker's contract will be up next year. The Niners may lose him without getting anything for him then. And, as was mentioned, if he's so good, then he'll have some trade value. I'm not sure of his value though, he disappeared in the 2nd half of the season last year, even before his injury.