1) QB: Hard to judge Hoyer one way or the other in so short a stint, but I did love that pass to Kerley that was called back. I need to see much more from Hoyer before really saying much. Barkley looked a bit better than I'd expected although misses McDonald badly on what could have been a TD. Beathard also looked better than I'd anticipated, but the long TD showed good awareness, but not a particularly good throw. Looking forward to seeing more from this group.
2) Reuben Foster: OK. This one requires a bit of explanation. I have maintained for a long time when I talk about football and particularly young players that from time to time you can see a guy for the first time in NFL team gear and there is just something about the way they move. You can tell just from a few snaps where they might not even have a big highlight but as soon as they step on the field they just have SOMETHING that sets the apart from everyone else. I don't know how you define it, explain it, or describe it, but its just "it".
Reuben Foster has it. IMO if he stays healthy he's not going to be a good player. He's going to be a GREAT player. He didn't make any big splash plays and he didn't really blow anyone up, but I could see it already. There haven't been that many times that I've seen a rookie draft pick and seen it this quickly. Patrick Willis is actually the only other time I can think of that I saw it this quickly.
There were a few stops that he made that might not have made sportscenter but he just got the the ballcarrier FAST and that guy didn't gain another inch. One was the tackle that Robinson completely whiffed on (more on that later). Once Reuben got there, it was over. Another was a short pass where he swallowed up the ball carrier FAST.
That is no guarantee of course that he'll be a star, but IMO he's got "it".
3) Solomon Thomas: Important to note on the "it" factor is that just because I see it so quickly in one guy that doesn't mean NOT seeing it so quickly means the guy won't be a big star in his own right. I didn't see it in Bryant Young. That poor guy got dominated in his first preseason appearance in San Diego. I didn't see it in Navarro Bowman. I didn't see it in Aldon Smith (substance problems notwithstanding, the dude was a monster when he was on the field).
That said, I don't see it with Solomon. Now before anyone says anything, I DO see huge potential. He just isn't there yet. Love the motor. Love the play speed. Love the strength. He actually reminds me a lot of the last #94 to play for the 49ers. There just seems to be something kinda awkward with him that I'm having trouble getting my finger on. It might be nothing more than lack of experience as he only started one year in college and missed all OTAs.
There were also a couple "wow" plays in there. The play were he completely sidestepped the guard was impressive. The TD play where he got beaten outside was actually impressive as well but not for the reason you'd think. He is not a small man. He got cut on the play but was athletic enough to keep his feet and pursue.
I do like what I see and look forward to seeing his progression.
4) Rashard Robinson: Dude got beat bad on a couple plays but ya know what I liked about his game? After getting beat, he moved on to the next play. It didn't linger. He made a great play in run support and a great play on the INT (and so did Solomon on that same play BTW). The 49ers need him to be at the very least serviceable.
5) Navorro Bowman: Anyone who has followed my posts over the years might remember that I would always say that Frank Gore was showing signs of age early in the year and then invariably he would make me look foolish and rip off a few great games and show that he was still Frank. It got the the point where I started doing it intentionally anticipating that Frank would once again make me look foolish.
Well now, its not Frank that see as having lost a step. Its Navorro Bowman. Considering the medical issues he's had it wouldn't exactly be shocking if he didn't have the movement skills anymore, but there was one play on Friday that really caught my eye. One play in a preseason game is FAR, FAR too little make an opinion of, but it certainly got my attention.
Alex Smith scrambled up the middle because Armstead and Buckner both took wide paths to the QB. Foster spotted a RB running over the middle and quickly picked him up and ran with him to the sideline. Eric Reid nailed the RB running a cross and actually got a personal foul on the play. It left Navarro alone in the middle to chase Alex.
To be fair to Navorro, he was running in one direction and Alex cut back on him, but his ability to change direction looked VERY slow. Alex beat him badly and ran right past him.
Clearly, he may not have been running at 100% and in the regular season perhaps he makes a better effort....but it caught my eye and I'll be looking for that moving forward.
6) Joe Williams: Yeah, I see why Kyle wanted him. I have some questions with him like why he kept tapping out of the game and he doesn't seem as elusive as I'd like when he gets into the open field, but man that guy just moves at a different speed and he looks like he's got really good vision at the LOS. Looking forward to seeing more.
7) Matt Breida: Wasn't as impressed. I've heard great things about him and perhaps that distorted my expectations, but he reminds me a lot physically of a Niners RB from awhile back named Jamal Robertson. I'll reserve judgement, but wasn't super impressed.
8) Scheme: Isn't it a joy to see an offensive scheme that can get guys WIDE open? Stunning. So great to see a competent, NFL offense from a scheme standpoint again as opposed to college offenses. Its been the better part of a decade since they ran a true NFL passing game and its a joy to watch.
9) O-Line: Its gonna be an issue. Guard is going to be a problem. We'll see if Garnett can come back and help, but guard is probably the position that concerns me the most for THIS season. QB moving forward is obviously an issue.
10) Football is back: My god wasn't it great to see some Niners football again?
[ Edited by Marvin49 on Aug 14, 2017 at 10:19 AM ]
