Concerned about the Secondary??

After it was announced Rodgers was going to be cut,I admit my eyebrow raised a little.Partly because we have 3 starters possibly leaving.If that be the case,we only have Reid,who I love,Cully coming off injury and Brock left.

What about the nickel spot?

When i thought about FA,I take into consideration our history,n believe big name replacements wont happen.

Then I thought about the draft,lol load up on 3-4 db's n let em battle it out in camp for spots??eh idk.

So then maybe some cheaper, off-the-beaten-path,hope to become great,vets mixed in with rooks??I shrug my shoulders with that approach.Will that catch up to us at the worse possible moment??

I personally hope whatever we do works.Im not shook,and trust that our braintrust will handle it n we'll be ok.However,3 holes in your starting secondary for any team is cause for concern,even with our front seven imho.

Thoughts??

my thoughts are after what happened last year with goldson leaving and being replaced people should relax and not worry about it

meh

It will be a point of emphasis in the draft, I'm sure. Brock has his starting spot secure. Cully will compete for the other, likely with a FA signing and a draft pick. Cox and Wright can always be brought back for cheap. We'll be fine.

Originally posted by SofaKing:

It will be a point of emphasis in the draft, I'm sure. Brock has his starting spot secure. Cully will compete for the other, likely with a FA signing and a draft pick. Cox and Wright can always be brought back for cheap. We'll be fine.

Point of emphasis,great point.1 FA and a pick at corner.How bout at the SS spot??

Originally posted by VDpwndMjenkins:
Point of emphasis,great point.1 FA and a pick at corner.How bout at the SS spot??

I expect that we'll pick up a mid-range FA and a draft pick there as well

Originally posted by VDpwndMjenkins:
Point of emphasis,great point.1 FA and a pick at corner.How bout at the SS spot??

Assuming Whitner walks, I think the 49ers will take a similar approach to how they brought him to the team in the first place. Wait for the initial wave of high-priced FA's to sign, then get the best value with what's left over.

Nate Allen is a name to keep in mind. Baalke coveted him in the 2010 draft, and cameras showed him visibly upset when he got picked by Philly. We could sign someone like him to a modest deal, and draft a SS on day 2 as insurance.

Although Whitner had important pre-snap responsibilities, I think I am more worried about the nickel CB position being adequately filled than the SS position. None of Brock, Wright, or Cully were used in the slot, if I recall correctly. Putting a rookie there will have major growing pains, especially in Fangio's scheme that asks the NB to read and react accordingly.

I'm not worried. Like SofaKing said, if Whitner leaves I see the team signing a veteran safety in the same fashion as Whitner.
In regards to Rogers, Nolan Carroll is a cheaper, better replacement. The question will most likely come down to whether he thinks he'll be a starter on this team (Cully/Brock competition), if he wants to play on a winner, or if he wants big dollars. Carroll has plenty of experience playing nickle as well.

little concerned.. but our secondary hasnt been the strength for a while, so it isnt too bad. With Reid back there only getting better, and Brock continuing to progress, i think by the end of the year we'll see something special. I just hope Culliver comes back to his old form.. If we draft a top tier safety with Reid/Culliver/Brock we will have a very young secondary that could be something special in the next 3-4 years.

Originally posted by SofaKing:

Originally posted by VDpwndMjenkins:

Point of emphasis,great point.1 FA and a pick at corner.How bout at the SS spot??

Assuming Whitner walks, I think the 49ers will take a similar approach to how they brought him to the team in the first place. Wait for the initial wave of high-priced FA's to sign, then get the best value with what's left over.

Nate Allen is a name to keep in mind. Baalke coveted him in the 2010 draft, and cameras showed him visibly upset when he got picked by Philly. We could sign someone like him to a modest deal, and draft a SS on day 2 as insurance.

Forgot about Allen,and a Day 2 pick up seems sound.

I was all for trading up for a WR,but if neither Brown or Whitner comes back,stand pat n BPA at CB or S would sit better now.Ill eat my crow lol

I'm not too worried about it. I'm assuming that the cap space freed up by Rogers release will allow us to bring back either Whitner or Brown.

I think Whitner should be the priority. He provides veteran leadership. Brown is solid, but we are better situiated with Culliver and Brock at CB. Brown isn't a nickle CB and he is undersized on the outside.

So I think we bring back Whitner and spend an early draft pick on a nickle CB.

Originally posted by VDpwndMjenkins:
After it was announced Rodgers was going to be cut,I admit my eyebrow raised a little.Partly because we have 3 starters possibly leaving.If that be the case,we only have Reid,who I love,Cully coming off injury and Brock left.

What about the nickel spot?

When i thought about FA,I take into consideration our history,n believe big name replacements wont happen.

Then I thought about the draft,lol load up on 3-4 db's n let em battle it out in camp for spots??eh idk.

So then maybe some cheaper, off-the-beaten-path,hope to become great,vets mixed in with rooks??I shrug my shoulders with that approach.Will that catch up to us at the worse possible moment??

I personally hope whatever we do works.Im not shook,and trust that our braintrust will handle it n we'll be ok.However,3 holes in your starting secondary for any team is cause for concern,even with our front seven imho.

Thoughts??

Not worried, Reid is legit. Brock and Culliver are the likely starters on the outside and the draft is deep in CB's, if anything I expect the secondary to be a lot faster next season, a lot more explosive. As far as Whitner goes, it'd be nice if he was brought back but if not, I see some good quality mid-level free agents that could hold down the starting spot for a couple years while the 49ers develop a safety prospect behind them.

Not worried at ALL.

Culliver will compete for a starting role with Morris and perhaps Cox and Wright as well. Then you have to factor in a 2nd or 3rd tier FA and the draft. Fangio may have to play more press and keep the defense simple but if the rookie we bring in at S/FS has Reid-like abilities and work ethics, we're good. We may take a short-term step back but it may pay dividends come playoff time. We NEED coverage/range players badly...this secondary has been abused in the playoffs.

Plus look at the talent Baalke brought in recently: Cooper (7th round), Brock (UDFA) and Cox (off the streets who played well for us in GB), etc. Morris has a year of development under his belt now as well.

Originally posted by SofaKing:
Assuming Whitner walks, I think the 49ers will take a similar approach to how they brought him to the team in the first place. Wait for the initial wave of high-priced FA's to sign, then get the best value with what's left over.

Nate Allen is a name to keep in mind. Baalke coveted him in the 2010 draft, and cameras showed him visibly upset when he got picked by Philly. We could sign someone like him to a modest deal, and draft a SS on day 2 as insurance.

This. Fully on the Nate Allen bandwagon if Whitner isn't brought back. He's not a guy who's going to be landing a huge deal and because he's 26, could be amenable to a short 2 year contract, playing on a highly talented defense to boost his standing and then hit up one final big contract when he'll only be 28.