Why does Baalke seem get a free pass from serious criticism?

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by kronik:
Are you saying we should draft other players because other teams rate them high? Maybe, just maybe, our GM and scouts didn't like those players as much as YOU or the other people. Maybe, they like other players more.

Or, are you accusing the team of deliberately drafting crappy players and letting good ones go to other teams?

How about we stick with and support our own scouts and draft board.

It's hilarious. I've been listening to Arizona sports talk radio pretty much all day while working and all the local guys here are sucking off the 49ers for their draft, Baalke is getting so much praise for the picks he made, they're getting lauded for guys like Ward, Hyde, Borland, Martin, Ellington, Johnson.......some of the biggest Cardinals homers imaginable and meanwhile on here you've got people crying about the picks.

Now you got me super curious what they said, LOL. I like what they have built over there as well. They just need a little more work on OL and a stud QB.

Your cash and your jewelry is what Baalke expects

Originally posted by kronik:
Now you got me super curious what they said, LOL. I like what they have built over there as well. They just need a little more work on OL and a stud QB.

19:40 mark.

http://arizonasports.com/?nid=244&a=304849&p=17&n=May%2012,%202014%20-%20Hour:%202




And these two below are probably the biggest Cardinals homers that exist, one of them is Ron Wolfley who played for the Cardinals and does the broadcast for their games.


28:50 mark on this one.

http://www.arizonasports.com/?sid=&nid=244&a=304837

Originally posted by Robert:
If we take a look at Baalke's drafts 2010-2013, the trend is disturbing to say the least.

As it stands now, 2010 was his best draft in terms of long term contribution to the team (Bowman was a great pick; A Davis a gutsy good call, Iupati was an obvious but still good pick).

2011 looked epic before the recent run of legal trouble. A Smith may well have played his last game in a niner uniform. Kaep was a great pick, but everything I have read says that credit for that pick should really go to Harbaugh. Culliver and Hunter likely will be playing in other uniforms after this year. Miller is the only pick that has worked out.

The 2012 draft was THE WORST in the NFL that year. After James is cut / released, we will have zero players on our roster this year from the 2012 draft. That is pretty much unheard of. Yet…crickets…

In 2013, for all the firepower we had, we got one starting safety with concussion issues. The rest are all question marks including a couple of wildcards coming off injury.

Yet, I don't hear a chorus calling for Baalke's head in the media or from fans? Why? This team has been a quality corner or speedy wide receiver from winning the Lombardi for 3 years. Baalke has failed to deliver either, yet all I hear about is how Harbaugh, stuck with the same aging base of players year after year, is supposed to miraculous will his team Superbowl if he wants to get an extension, when Baalke has failed to refresh the talent of this team year after year, despite having ample opportunity to do so.

Where's the criticism? Where's the pitchforks? Why does Baalke get a pass year after year? What am I missing?

Complete lack of understanding regarding Baalke's other duties. He's MANAGED THE SALARY CAP by knowing which guys he can resign and which ones he can not only replace, but upgrade through the draft or trades. He's not only used the draft for players, but he's acquired talent through trades, free agency and expanded the roster through NFI/IR list

1.) Trades:
a.) Got 2-2nds for Alex Smith and keeps flipping those picks for more picks.
b.) Traded for Anquan Boldin for a 6th
c.) Traded guys who were going to get cut Cam Johnson and Parys Haralson for 7th rounders
d.) Traded for Stevie Johnson for a 4th rounder
e.) Blaine Gabbert for a 6th, Martin for a conditional 7th.
f.) Also had a ton of draft trades and acquired more picks.
g.) Only questionable trade was Colt McCoy

2.) Free Agency
a.) Let Goldson Walk, upgraded by Eric Reid in the draft
b.) Let Sopoaga walk, upgraded by Glenn Dorsey and Ian Williams
c.) Let Ricky Jean Francois walk, Tony Jerod Edie filled in nicely last year and has Okoye Free agent and Carridine, ready to blow up.
d.) Let Whitner walk, signed Bethea and has Jimmie Ward waiting in the wings
e.) Resigned Alex Boone, Joe Staley and Ian Williams to cheap contracts
f.) Can let Mike Iupatie walk because he has Joe Looney who proved himself last year waiting in the wings as well as Brandon Thomas
g.) Let Goodwin walk, signs Kilgore to a cheap contract and drafts Marcus Martin
h.) Resigned Tramaine Brock to a decent deal.

3.) Trades for more picks and stashes guys for a year on the NFI list.
a.) Joe Looney, Dial, Carridine, Okoye, Marquardt and this year Thomas, Reaser and Millard.

4.) Injuries don't faze the team. Coaching is a huge part, but Baalke played a role as wel in helping bring the talent to the roster.
a.) 2012, lose Alex Smith, no problem Kaepernick steps in no problem
b.) 2012 lose Kendall Hunter, no problem LMJ steps up.
c.) 2013 lose Michael Crabtree, Culliver, Hunter and Manningham still out, team only loses 13 games last year
d.) 2013 Ian Williams out, Glenn Dorsey steps up no problem.
3.) 2013 Tarelle Brown out, Tramaine Brock steps up and earns a contract.


Draft is 1 little part of Baalke's job. He's used every possible avenue to bring talent to this roster.

we lost 13 games last year?

Originally posted by NCommand:
I certainly don't feel you are off your rocker for wanting to upgrade an "unknown" position esp. when the "known" bolted to the bottom feeders. I respect your opinion for sure...at the end of the day, you just want what we all want. We're just saying be patient here and watch what happens. And in the end, if you end up being right, we all lose.

Cully - He plays even more aggressive than Brock. I love that.
Wright - Agree that he is a bit of an unknown. So we'll have to see but clearly, unlike when Rogers and Brown were here, he has a "license" to push for a starting position and a full off season to prepare. Knowing you have a real chance to start is a huge mental change and added motivation.
Cox - I think he got caught in the numbers game and Wright beat him out but it ended up working out as Cox played his heart out AND we ended up signing both he and Wright again. Smart.
Brock - gotcha! This kid has tons of upside and just got better and better and better.
Morris - I'm with you 100% on this one. This kid is not only quick but ultra fast. He is the one I may want covering the Harvin's of the world.
Ward - Super excited about this "12th starter."
Cook and Johnson - How nice will it be to see the opposing WR's get beat up at the LOS for a change?
Keith Reaser (PUP) & Kenneth Acker - Sounds like they have some potential as well.

I think with the added pass rush in Carradine, a more experienced Lemonier, Skuta and perhaps, Lynch coupled with Ian Williams inside (slasher-gap NT), I think this also opens the doors for many more blitzes with Bethea and the rest of the secondary. What I saw in the Seattle game was Fangio dialing up the blitz more. With the added pass rush and rotation/depth, he can feel more free to dial up more aggression on the press and knowing these guys CAN press and won't have to cover long...they just need to ensure we don't get beat over the top (hence Reid and Ward's speed and range).

Last year, we only activated 10 DB's on the active-46. They will be replaced by (X):
Whitner (Bethea)
Reid (Reid)
Brock (Brock)
Brown (Culliver)
Rogers (Ward)
Cox (Cox or Wright)
Spillman (Spillman)
Dahl (Johnson or Cook?)
Morris (Morris)
Ventrone (Ventrone)

We had the 7th rated passing defense last year and we could only play one style of defense...off coverage. So the question is, is Bethea a downgrade over Whitner from last year? Is Culliver a downgrade over Brown last year? And is Ward really a downgrade over Rogers last year? Most would say we're at least equal, right? Maybe better to start with a much higher ceiling d/t age, skill sets, versatility, speed, range, cover abilities, etc.? So even if we brought in Verrett or Fuller or even later, Gaines/Jean-Bastiste, would any of them be significantly better that what we currently have slated to start 2014? And enough to give up the the "clear" top-rated positions of FS, RB, ILB & C as a consequence?

I'm not going to turn on a valued contributor because he made a business decision that he felt was in his best interests. Let's not get into all the reasons Brown may have left.

I think that the "plan" is to see how ota's and training camp go, and if we feel we need people due to injury or underperformance we sign an FA , or cook up a trade.

I would have liked our depth better with a package that could have swung a high round DB and still snagged Ward. Baalke also tried to do this, apparently, but the proposals being floated "didn't make sense for the organization."

We don't need Hyde, Dobson, Borland on this roster, IMO, although of course we all want them to work out. And, there's possibilities there too.

I'm kind of knocked out by Millard. Any chance he will play this year?

Originally posted by brodiebluebanaszak:
I'm not going to turn on a valued contributor because he made a business decision that he felt was in his best interests. Let's not get into all the reasons Brown may have left.

I think that the "plan" is to see how ota's and training camp go, and if we feel we need people due to injury or underperformance we sign an FA , or cook up a trade.

I would have liked our depth better with a package that could have swung a high round DB and still snagged Ward. Baalke also tried to do this, apparently, but the proposals being floated "didn't make sense for the organization."

We don't need Hyde, Dobson, Borland on this roster, IMO, although of course we all want them to work out. And, there's possibilities there too.

I'm kind of knocked out by Millard. Any chance he will play this year?

You can say we don't need Hyde and I can see that because we're so set at RB, BUT LMJ is likely out, Gore/Hunter are on contract years, Gore is 31 years old w/a ton of mileage, typically, when older RBs hit the wall, they hit it hard. I don't think Gore will suddenly suck, but we're a power running team and we need to guard against that. I LOVE Marcus Lattimore, I pray he ends up being on the of the best RBs in the NFL but with that injury history you can't count on him this year or beyond, you can hope but you can't count on it. Hyde could be very valuable this year and def will be in the future, as the #1 RB in this draft at #57 it was tremendous value.

I agree Borland wasn't a huge need but again, value, in the 3rd round where we got him for the #2 ILB in the draft was great value. Bowman will miss at least 6 games on PUP and this defense relies heavily on their ILBs playing great football. Wilholte was good last year but he's not a star caliber player, Moody is a 6th round pick and more of a backup/ST guy and given the Aldon situation, we need to keep Skuta at OLB. Adding Borland gives us a guy that could play at a very high level while Bowman is out, be a great #3 ILB for us and allow us the opportunity to spell Willis/Bowman and keep them fresh throughout the year while adding great value on STs.

How can you say we don't need Borland? Our entire team is built on the idea that competition brings out the best. Sure, Wilhoite played alright last year, but I'd like to see him challenged by a hungry rookie like Borland.

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by kronik:
Now you got me super curious what they said, LOL. I like what they have built over there as well. They just need a little more work on OL and a stud QB.

19:40 mark.

http://arizonasports.com/?nid=244&a=304849&p=17&n=May%2012,%202014%20-%20Hour:%202




And these two below are probably the biggest Cardinals homers that exist, one of them is Ron Wolfley who played for the Cardinals and does the broadcast for their games.


28:50 mark on this one.

http://www.arizonasports.com/?sid=&nid=244&a=304837

Blocked streaming here at work but I pretty much get the idea based on your description, "...sucking off the 49ers for their draft." LMAO! Actually, I love that other fans are raving about our draft including the Hawks. I think there is a ton of respect between the NFC West teams right now. This may go down as one of the most competitive divisions ever.

Originally posted by brodiebluebanaszak:

Originally posted by NCommand:
I certainly don't feel you are off your rocker for wanting to upgrade an "unknown" position esp. when the "known" bolted to the bottom feeders. I respect your opinion for sure...at the end of the day, you just want what we all want. We're just saying be patient here and watch what happens. And in the end, if you end up being right, we all lose.

Cully - He plays even more aggressive than Brock. I love that.
Wright - Agree that he is a bit of an unknown. So we'll have to see but clearly, unlike when Rogers and Brown were here, he has a "license" to push for a starting position and a full off season to prepare. Knowing you have a real chance to start is a huge mental change and added motivation.
Cox - I think he got caught in the numbers game and Wright beat him out but it ended up working out as Cox played his heart out AND we ended up signing both he and Wright again. Smart.
Brock - gotcha! This kid has tons of upside and just got better and better and better.
Morris - I'm with you 100% on this one. This kid is not only quick but ultra fast. He is the one I may want covering the Harvin's of the world.
Ward - Super excited about this "12th starter."
Cook and Johnson - How nice will it be to see the opposing WR's get beat up at the LOS for a change?
Keith Reaser (PUP) & Kenneth Acker - Sounds like they have some potential as well.

I think with the added pass rush in Carradine, a more experienced Lemonier, Skuta and perhaps, Lynch coupled with Ian Williams inside (slasher-gap NT), I think this also opens the doors for many more blitzes with Bethea and the rest of the secondary. What I saw in the Seattle game was Fangio dialing up the blitz more. With the added pass rush and rotation/depth, he can feel more free to dial up more aggression on the press and knowing these guys CAN press and won't have to cover long...they just need to ensure we don't get beat over the top (hence Reid and Ward's speed and range).

Last year, we only activated 10 DB's on the active-46. They will be replaced by (X):
Whitner (Bethea)
Reid (Reid)
Brock (Brock)
Brown (Culliver)
Rogers (Ward)
Cox (Cox or Wright)
Spillman (Spillman)
Dahl (Johnson or Cook?)
Morris (Morris)
Ventrone (Ventrone)

We had the 7th rated passing defense last year and we could only play one style of defense...off coverage. So the question is, is Bethea a downgrade over Whitner from last year? Is Culliver a downgrade over Brown last year? And is Ward really a downgrade over Rogers last year? Most would say we're at least equal, right? Maybe better to start with a much higher ceiling d/t age, skill sets, versatility, speed, range, cover abilities, etc.? So even if we brought in Verrett or Fuller or even later, Gaines/Jean-Bastiste, would any of them be significantly better that what we currently have slated to start 2014? And enough to give up the the "clear" top-rated positions of FS, RB, ILB & C as a consequence?

I'm not going to turn on a valued contributor because he made a business decision that he felt was in his best interests. Let's not get into all the reasons Brown may have left.

I think that the "plan" is to see how ota's and training camp go, and if we feel we need people due to injury or underperformance we sign an FA , or cook up a trade.

I would have liked our depth better with a package that could have swung a high round DB and still snagged Ward. Baalke also tried to do this, apparently, but the proposals being floated "didn't make sense for the organization."

We don't need Hyde, Dobson, Borland on this roster, IMO, although of course we all want them to work out. And, there's possibilities there too.

I'm kind of knocked out by Millard. Any chance he will play this year?

Yeah, that's the thing with the draft. It's a free-flowing process at lightning speed and no matter what plan you come in with, the culture of the draft that day, that moment, is often times what dictates decisions. For all we know we were going to take Kelvin Benjamin who went right before us to the Panthers. I'm willing to bet that nobody would have predicted we'd end up with the top-rated cover FS, RB, C, and 2nd-rated ILB. At 30th, you're lucky to get the 5th or 6th rated player at the need position you want. So again, is packaging picks (and losing out on the top-rated RB, C & ILB) to move up and get the 6th or 7th best CB a better value pick; a better idea? I think Baalke did the right thing. Sometimes the board falls exactly how you like it to AND you get a top-rated player at a position of need. But that's rare.

Once thing this FO has learned is that injuries happen. Gore is always nicked up, Lattimore is a huge question-mark, James rcently got decapitated returning punts, Hunter was lost to a major injury himself, etc. Also, Willis and Bowman have been trading time off the field due to a variety of issues. Now with Bowman out for a while, what if Willis gets nicked up again? In the end, I think Baalke went with the best value on his board and fortunately for us, they were at positions of need and many will contribute on ST as well.

Millard...I know! I had him picked at pick #243 in my Mock Draft. Good question...I wonder of any of our "injured" players will play this year. Do you know what happened to him? The extent of his injury?

Originally posted by NCommand:
Yeah, that's the thing with the draft. It's a free-flowing process at lightning speed and no matter what plan you come in with, the culture of the draft that day, that moment, is often times what dictates decisions. For all we know we were going to take Kelvin Benjamin who went right before us to the Panthers. I'm willing to bet that nobody would have predicted we'd end up with the top-rated cover FS, RB, C, and 2nd-rated ILB. At 30th, you're lucky to get the 5th or 6th rated player at the need position you want. So again, is packaging picks (and losing out on the top-rated RB, C & ILB) to move up and get the 6th or 7th best CB a better value pick; a better idea? I think Baalke did the right thing. Sometimes the board falls exactly how you like it to AND you get a top-rated player at a position of need. But that's rare.

Once thing this FO has learned is that injuries happen. Gore is always nicked up, Lattimore is a huge question-mark, James rcently got decapitated returning punts, Hunter was lost to a major injury himself, etc. Also, Willis and Bowman have been trading time off the field due to a variety of issues. Now with Bowman out for a while, what if Willis gets nicked up again? In the end, I think Baalke went with the best value on his board and fortunately for us, they were at positions of need and many will contribute on ST as well.

Millard...I know! I had him picked at pick #243 in my Mock Draft. Good question...I wonder of any of our "injured" players will play this year. Do you know what happened to him? The extent of his injury?

Torn ACL last November. Its feasible he could play this year but doubtful the 49ers will try to push him back, rather than just re-setting his rehab and putting him on PUP.

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:
Torn ACL last November. Its feasible he could play this year but doubtful the 49ers will try to push him back, rather than just re-setting his rehab and putting him on PUP.

Thanks so much! We are certainly the All-ACL team. Ha

At least he will avoid training camp this year, which seems to be the most dangerous time for our players.

Originally posted by SanDiego49er:
I don't know. Aldon Smith is a disaster and that is regarded as one of his best picks. 2012 was completely lost. Kaep is a running QB with no pocket presense. A great athlete who is tall, big and strong and super fast legs. But he can't make a read to save his life. He has no idea what he is seeing out there. Upside yeah. Rare athletic skills sure. But he is a tad bit overrated on the WZ IMO. There are probably 15 QB's who can get just as far as him in the NFL. This thing is driven by defense, O line, running game. Alex Smith on his same team at the time proved it. He got the NFC Championship. He would have gotten to the Super Bowl if Kyle Williams didn't fumble twice. This ship is not QB driven.

Funny ... you aren't serious?

Originally posted by OldJoe:

Originally posted by SanDiego49er:
I don't know. Aldon Smith is a disaster and that is regarded as one of his best picks. 2012 was completely lost. Kaep is a running QB with no pocket presense. A great athlete who is tall, big and strong and super fast legs. But he can't make a read to save his life. He has no idea what he is seeing out there. Upside yeah. Rare athletic skills sure. But he is a tad bit overrated on the WZ IMO. There are probably 15 QB's who can get just as far as him in the NFL. This thing is driven by defense, O line, running game. Alex Smith on his same team at the time proved it. He got the NFC Championship. He would have gotten to the Super Bowl if Kyle Williams didn't fumble twice. This ship is not QB driven.

Funny ... you aren't serious?

Bitter fanboys just seem to have trouble moving on. I would suggest professional help.