Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports


At Last: The 49ers’ Dangerous Wide Receiver Duo

Jul 15, 2015 at 11:37 AM5


When considering the potential production of the San Francisco 49ers' top two wide receivers in 2015, there are numerous factors to consider. For years, the team has tried to put together a receiver duo that would be threatening to opposing defenses — a big and strong possession receiver and a deep threat that could stretch the field. They tried to build that via the draft, but continuously failed miserably. It took a trade in 2013 and a free agent acquisition this year to finally put together a pair that could achieve that goal.

Acquired via a trade with the Baltimore Ravens in 2013, Anquan Boldin has been quarterback Colin Kaepernick's favorite target for the past two seasons. He is Mr. Reliable for the team's signal caller. In each of his two seasons with the 49ers, Boldin has surpassed 1,000 yards receiving.

Thanks to an offseason acquisition, Kaepernick now has two legitimate targets at his disposal and finally gets the legitimate deep threat that he has needed for years in Torrey Smith — another former Raven. When you simply look at the stats, Smith may not seem as productive at catching the ball as Boldin, but he stretches the field and that is something that opposing defenses have been unconcerned about for a while. Smith was one of the NFL's top deep threats while with the Ravens and that is unlikely to change with the 49ers.

Smith is a solid blocker and while he can run underneath routes and be effective at it, he did not do it often with the Ravens, which is fine because the 49ers have Boldin for that. Instead, Smith will be able to focus on what he does best, which is stretching the field with his vertical game. His speed makes him dangerous because he can take off after a catch and amass extra yards for the offense, which should keep opposing safeties preoccupied.

Boldin, having played with him in Baltimore and seeing value in a player of Smith's caliber, took an active role in recruiting him to the 49ers. "I told him what kind of organization it was," Boldin said, "a first-class organization, a place where they care about you, a place where you have an opportunity to win, all of that."



How valuable is Boldin to the 49ers? Over his past two seasons with the team, he has caught 64.4% of the passes thrown his way. On the other hand, Smith has caught less than 49.4% over the past two seasons with the Ravens. While Torrey Smith's numbers aren't as impressive in this area, what may impress you is that he has never averaged less than 15.7 yards per reception in a season and averaged 17.4 in both 2012 and 2013. Boldin has averaged over 14 yards per reception only three times during his entire 12 year NFL career. Despite Smith's 767 receiving yards last season for the Ravens, which is still more than Michael Crabtree's 698, he got into the end zone 11 times. That ranked him 7th in the league among receivers. He did all this while hampered by a knee injury.

Do you want to talk character and dedication? Torrey Smith has plenty of it. Smith, like Boldin for the 49ers, was nominated as his team's Walter Payton Man of the Year Award representative last season. He created the Tevin Jones Memorial Scholarships Fund in honor of his brother, who was killed in a motorcycle accident in 2012 — less than 24 hours before a matchup between the Ravens and New England Patriots. Smith ended up playing in that game. He finished with six catches for 127 yards and two touchdowns in the Ravens' 31-30 victory over the Patriots.

He was also a favorite among the Baltimore media because of his professionalism.

Of course, a lot of the production for both receivers will depend on the 49ers' offensive line and running game. There has been a lot of offseason turmoil for the team from coaching changes and retirements to free agent losses. Along the offensive line, there was the free agent loss of guard Mike Iupati, who signed with the Arizona Cardinals, and the sudden retirement tackle Anthony Davis, a key component in the team's ability to run the ball. Their departures shifted personnel, creating some uncertainty along the offensive line.

The offensive line's ability to protect Kaepernick and buy him time to find new target Smith downfield will help his production. If they cannot, Boldin may see a surge in targets on shorter routes as Kaepernick tries to get the ball out of his hands early.



At running back, the 49ers are looking to replace the team's all-time rushing leader, Frank Gore. Carlos Hyde is the favorite to start and many are predicting a break-out season for the second-year player. A productive Hyde would certainly bode well for Boldin and Smith if they are able to take advantage of defenses that are preoccupied with a running threat.

Then there is Colin Kaepernick himself, who insists that the offseason changes to the team "are for the good."

"I feel very confident in our team," Kaepernick recently said while speaking at the annual Governor's Dinner in Nevada. "I feel people are writing us off, but for us, that's all right."

How often has Kaepernick targeted his receivers over the past couple of years? In 2013, 56.1% of his passes went to wide receivers. That number jumped to 71.3% in 2014. It was well over the league average of 60.3% for wide receivers, with only the Philadelphia Eagles targeting the position more often. These numbers bode well for Boldin and Smith's fantasy statistics.

Of course, a lot of that had to do with the drop in production at the tight end position — mainly Vernon Davis. In 2013, tight ends were targeted on 26.1% of Kaepernick's passes, with that number dropping to 15.38% in 2014. Even factoring in wide receiver Michael Crabtree missing 11 games in 2013 and then playing a full season the next year, that number is still significant. Davis saw two fewer targets per game last season when compared to the year before with his receptions dropping from 52 to 26 and his touchdowns from 13 to just two. He was targeted only 50 times last season, compared to 84 times in 2013. On those targets, his reception percentage dropped 10% from 2013 to 2014. A legitimate deep threat at wide receiver may help bring those numbers back up.


How do fans feel the 49ers receiving duo will perform in 2015? As usual, Boldin is being underrated in fantasy leagues. In 2014, his 136.6 points for the season ranked him 21st among wide receivers. The year before that, his 161 points ranked him 15th in the same category. Still, right now, there are an average of 43 other receivers being drafted ahead of him and NFL.com predicts that 46 receivers will finish ahead of him once the season is done.

On the other hand, Torrey Smith is being projected as the 20th best receiver available. In 2014, his 142.7 season points ranked him 19th among receivers, just two spots ahead of Boldin. The year before that, his 138.8 season points landed him at the 20th spot, five spots behind Boldin. So his current projection is right in line with past performances.


Boldin and Smith are once again on the same team and there is a limited number of balls to go around, but if they can be nearly as effective as they have been over the past two seasons, then the 49ers passing game could be very dangerous — assuming the offensive line and running game comes together.

Clearly, fantasy football fans are predicting that with the offseason turmoil that has impacted the 49ers, along with the addition of Smith to the receiver corps, Boldin's numbers might decline. Of course, this is the prediction year-after-year and Boldin always proves his critics wrong. It has been a long time since the 49ers have had this dangerous of a receiving threat. They even added running back Reggie Bush during the offseason, who is an additional receiving threat out of the backfield. It would be foolish to believe that the 49ers would be unable to take advantage of their new weapons this season.

Poll

  • Who will finish the season with more touchdowns?
  • Torrey Smith
    51%
  • Anquan Boldin
    49%
  • 807 votes
The opinions within this article are those of the writer and, while just as important, are not necessarily those of the site as a whole.


5 Comments

  • Marty
    For a brief time at the end of 2012 Moss gave Kaepernick a deep threat. If you remember the offense average 31 points a game. 49ers came back to earth in 2013 & 14. Harbaugh insane system was back. 49ers did not replace Moss & Delanie Walker. No speed, offense struggled. 49ers again failed to reach their goal. I look for Kaepernick to return to those 2012 skills. With a new system & playmakers the 49ers will improve. Just to bad Harbaugh was around to ruin some very good players chances for rings.
    Jul 17, 2015 at 3:16 AM
    0
    Response: Moss was well past his prime, but yeah, he was still someone you had to account for which opened things up a bit. Despite some good numbers, Crabtree was no Boldin though.
  • Gregorypage
    It would be nice if smith and boldin both have 1500 yds
    Jul 16, 2015 at 5:20 PM
    0
    Response: Um, I don't think anyone would argue against that, but it would be unlikely.
  • BILAL19
    A dangerous duo, please. Look at all the NFC/AFC playoff teams with a dangerous receiving duo, it's not the receivers, it's the QB that can utilize them at a high level. NE, GB, SEA, ARI, PHI..... What threat did these have at Receiver? If Kaep continues to be one dimensional the results will be the same...Torrey isn't making the tough catches in traffic and Boldin is a aging vet...Kaep is the deal breaker.
    Jul 16, 2015 at 6:29 AM
    1
  • thl408
    Torrey Smith will help a lot to open up the area behind the LBs and in front of the safeties. Like you stated, it's critical that the OL holds up in order to allow time for Torrey to run the deep routes. Or else it will be Curls and Slants all day and that is not what Torrey was brought in to do. It will be interesting to see if Boldin and Torrey will mostly line up on the same side of the field or opposite sides when in 3 WR sets.
    Jul 16, 2015 at 12:22 AM
    0
  • RishikeshA
    Thanks David, hopefully those days of seeing eight in the box are over. Last year it seemed all routes were fewer than ten yards. The first game against the Cardinals last year put everything into perspective, the Niners had to grind for every yard, the Cardinals had two or three long pass plays that gave them the win.
    Jul 15, 2015 at 11:38 PM
    0

Facebook Comments



More San Francisco 49ers News



Two NFL playoff teams praise 49ers CB Emmanuel Moseley

By David Bonilla
Mar 14

San Francisco 49ers cornerback Emmanuel Moseley didn't play much this past season, suffering a torn ACL in Week 5. However, it was enough to intrigue some NFL teams. Moseley is slated to become an unrestricted free agent on Wednesday. Don't assume he will be an easy re-sign just because he is coming off a severe injury. According to Jordan Schultz of The Score, in talking with two playoff teams, it is clear that Moseley has earned some respect around the league. "Have spoken with two playoff teams today who like him," Schultz wrote. "I'm also told Moseley will be 100 percent ready for camp. Only 26 years old, he had a pick-six, as well as 5 PBUs and 1 TFL before suffering a torn ACL last



Javon Hargrave will wear No. 93 with 49ers

By David Bonilla
Mar 14

Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave wore No. 97 during his last two seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles. Obviously, that won't work with the San Francisco 49ers, the team he is signing with in free agency. The Niners have a pretty popular player already wearing that number—pass-rushing phenom Nick Bosa. Instead, Hargrave will return to the number he wore in his first season with the Eagles—No. 93. The Bay Area's newest DT 🔥 pic.twitter.com/eePEiFNOpK— NFL (@NFL)



Why Sam Darnold Is the Perfect Fit for the 49ers

By Wayne P. Brown
Mar 14

The 49ers agreed to terms on a one-year deal with free agent quarterback Sam Darnold. The former first-round pick—number three overall—of the 2018 draft has had his ups and downs in his first five years in the league. Darnold has completed 1,054 of his 1,765 pass attempts for a 59.7 completion percentage throughout his career. He has thrown for 11,767 yards, 61 touchdowns, and 55 interceptions, per Pro Football Focus. What makes Sam Darnold the perfect fit for the San Francisco 49ers? The first thing that comes to mind is his age. Sam Darnold is 25 years old. When the 49ers mentioned looking into a veteran quarterback, most assumed their selection would be a more seasoned veteran like Andy Dalton or Marcus Mariota. Instead, the 49ers



49ers re-sign center Jake Brendel to a 4-year deal

By David Bonilla
Mar 14

The San Francisco 49ers are retaining their center, Jake Brendel, after the offensive lineman attracted some interest in the free-agency market. NFL Media's Ian Rapoport reports that the team is re-signing Brendel to a four-year deal, revealing that the New York Jets made a push for the offensive lineman. There were reports that several teams, not just the 49ers and Jets, were interested in Brendel. The deal's value is reportedly $20 million over the length of the contract. The #49ers are bringing back C Jake Brendel on a


Featured

More by David Bonilla

More Articles

Share 49ersWebzone