Montana leading Brady in online ESPN poll

Today, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler wrapped up his rankings of NFL players by position group. He capped off the series by ranking the league's top tight ends. Fowler's list is based on input from around the NFL. He surveyed over 50 league executives, coaches, scouts, and players to compile it. "The objective is to identify the best players right now for 2021," wrote Fowler. "This is not a five-year projection or an achievement award. Who's the best today? Pretty simple." The San Francisco 49ers made George Kittle a fifth-round draft pick out of Iowa in 2017, and he has emerged as arguably the league's

The San Francisco 49ers endured a league-high number of injuries last season in what was supposed to be a year dedicated to avenging their Super Bowl loss. Instead, the injuries quickly transformed the team's roster by Week 2. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo missed 10 games. Tight end George Kittle missed eight. The then-reigning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, Nick Bosa, was done by Week 2. The team went on to win just six games, finishing last in the NFC West. The 49ers hope 2020 was an outlier. On paper, the roster is talented. Players have to stay on the football field, though, for the team to reach its potential. It's difficult to win without your best young pass rusher or your top receiving threat. It's a challenge to put the hopes of a season on the

ESPN recently asked its panel of "experts" — Jeremy Fowler, Louis Riddick, Seth Walder, and Field Yates — to rate each NFL team's quarterback situation, remaining (non-QB) roster, drafting ability, front office, and coaching. Using those ratings, it then ranked all 32 NFL teams on how well they are positioned for the future, creating a power ranking based on projection over the next three seasons. The Kansas City Chiefs came in at No. 1 with an overall score of 88.5. The Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers came in at No. 2 with a score of 88.1. The San Francisco 49ers were the highest-ranked

"San Francisco should be healthier on the whole in 2021, although it's impossible to project anybody on its roster to play all 17 games with any sort of confidence," wrote ESPN's Bill Barnwell in a recent feature for ESPN. The writer was tasked with ranking the NFL offensive weapons for all 32 NFL teams. Perched at the top of the list are the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. At the bottom, as is the case with most rankings, are the Houston Texans. The San Francisco 49ers dealt with a historic number of injuries last season. Not only was it the most in the league, but it was also the