Rationale for letting Goldson, Sopoaga go and not sign other FA's

Goldson wants too much money. Sopoaga is getting older and is paid too much. RJF we should resign but somebody will probably pay him more than he is worth.

Originally posted by GNielsen:

Originally posted by MntIdaGold:
Personally I am terrified of having a rookie FS and Whitner covering the lid. Rookie safeties have a giant step to overcome to be ready for what Brady, Bress, Manning and the other elite quarterbacks will throw at them in schemes and disguises. Combined with Whitner being a complete liability in coverage I see our defense struggling mightily if it we can't generate more of a pass rush than late last season. In a perfect world I would cut Whitner, sign Goldson, draft an elite safety talent and hedge the bet with another veteran safety signing.

Why do people have to keep pointing this out: The Niners won a Super Bowl with three rookies and one second year guy who had never started. There are at least five safeties in the league right now who stepped right in their rookie year and were productive. Yes, Whitner is not good in coverage. So, let's have a FS who is real good in coverage to make up for that.

The comparison to the '81 SB winning secondary leaves out the fact that Carlton Williamson played SS not FS, which is considered the QB of the secondary. In the present defense both safeties have the mirror responsibilities and switch the FS/SS roles from play-to-play. It's very difficult to find a safety who can be good at both roles. When Whitner is in coverage we have been consistently exposed. I personally am scared to death of having Whitner and a rookie covering the lid. Not attempting to discount or refute that your fact that five rookies have stepped into starting roles last yeas, this is a valid point, but it doesn't completely remove the tough task of finding a rookie safety who can play both roles and not get manipulated by a pro QB. In the end I wish we could find a way to keep Goldson, draft a rookie safety, play with Whitner one more year and then dump his ass next off season.

The thing is they can't be easily replaced by rookies and expect the team to be better. We're not doing anything in free agency so far. This is disappointing

Originally posted by socalniner:
The thing is they can't be easily replaced by rookies and expect the team to be better. We're not doing anything in free agency so far. This is disappointing

Free agency hasn't really even started yet...calm down.

Goldson was too expensive to keep. He's probably worth it, but as a whole there's a lot of money already invested in the defense.

Sopoaga is just a role player. He's no different the RFJ or Franklin. They are good pros that looked even better on a good defense, between Justin and Ray. RJF and Sopoaga will be overpaid in FA, just like Franklin was by the Saints. There are cheaper options available. Plus, we haven't drafted a true NT since we established the 3-4. Ian Williams (UDFA) was really the only NT prospect that the team has added. There are some vets floating around that could fill the gap and thee's plenty of draft prospects worth taking.

Originally posted by MntIdaGold:
The comparison to the '81 SB winning secondary leaves out the fact that Carlton Williamson played SS not FS, which is considered the QB of the secondary. In the present defense both safeties have the mirror responsibilities and switch the FS/SS roles from play-to-play. It's very difficult to find a safety who can be good at both roles. When Whitner is in coverage we have been consistently exposed. I personally am scared to death of having Whitner and a rookie covering the lid. Not attempting to discount or refute that your fact that five rookies have stepped into starting roles last yeas, this is a valid point, but it doesn't completely remove the tough task of finding a rookie safety who can play both roles and not get manipulated by a pro QB. In the end I wish we could find a way to keep Goldson, draft a rookie safety, play with Whitner one more year and then dump his ass next off season.

Yes, but Dwight Hicks was only a second year guy. I hear you, but the idea of 3 rookies and a 2nd year guy in the secondary would probably send most of the posters around here into convulsions these days. I share your concern at the difficulty of finding someone to step in, but I think a fast cover guy might actually make up for the lack of experience with better cover skills. I always hesitate to make pronouncements on what I would do like this because I have a lot of respect for the knowledge and professionalism of the guys that are actually paid to do this, but to me, it would make sense to move Culliver to FS, draft one of the top three corners with their 1st or 2nd pick, let Whitner go even though it would cost some money, and replace him with Adrian Wilson for a year while preparing a younger player with better coverage skills to take over at SS. That way you'd get strong coverage skills at FS, better coverage skills and more height at SS, and presumably better coverage skills with the new corner as well.

I just saw a segment with Sopoaga on NFL network talking about how he can throw....I watched him do this in warm-ups at the Superbowl it was crazy! Eric Davis said Sopoaga can throw 80 yards!

Eagles got a good player!