Questions from a niner fan north of the border

Hey webzoners, I’ve been following these boards for years, finally decided to sign up. Huge niner fan from Vancouver, Canada… Grew up on my grandpa’s lap watching Joe Montana in the 80’s… There are loads of niner fans up here… probably third to Dallas and Green Bay. And the seahags I guess…

Anyways, even though football is the 2nd biggest sport in Canada our coverage of the NFL is probably half of what it is in the states, so I’ve got a few questions for you guys.

1) Why dont teams keep 4 QB’s on the active roster?

Contrary to the opinion of our head coach I think it’s the most important position in all of sports. If you don’t have a perennial pro-bowler your odds of winning the superbowl are greatly diminished. I understand the obvious reasons for not doing it (one less roster spot, not enough practice time, reps etc, too many cooks spoil the broth). And, obviously you’re Indianapolis you don’t need four. But take the niners, we have at best a huge question mark at starter, an average nfl backup and a raw 3rd stringer who may or may not pan out. Not much of a contingency plan if alex fails this year… plus, I am a fan of the holmgren philosophy of bringing qb’s along slowly… drafting a late round qb and letting him watch tape for a year doesn’t seem like bad idea to me… maybe the PS is the answer, I don’t know… that seems like a poor way to develop…also, this is gonna seem like a stupid question, but has anyone developed a virtual reality QB machine... with like a hugh screen for young QB's to read defenses and react... maybe retarded but it seems like a good way to get reps to me)… any thoughts?

2) why are NFL color commentators so horrible?

Dan dierdorff? Phil simms? Troy Aikmen? I am constantly shocked at how insulting these guys are to my intelligence, and I probably know half of what you guys know about football. The NFL has the worst color guys in all of sports. If I have to hear Dan Dierdorff act like a predicting holding penalty on a kickoff return is akin to the clairvoyance of Nostradamus, I’m going to puke. Say what you want about Gruden, but I love the guy… bad Monday night matchup, I don’t care, I learn something every week from that guy… not really a solution, but I think the NFL network should have a once a week game commentated on by former OC’s and DC’s… broadcast a day late and the go through each play… schemes, formations etc etc…


3) Any reason why the niners have stopped looking to the CFL, even though its envogue right now?

Stephan logan would look pretty good in a niner uniform right now… as would martel mallett (eagles… look out for this guy, he’s a beast) as would Cameron Wake… back in the day we plucked Garcia and some other wide receiver who kind of sucked…cant remember his name... believe it or not, it’s a talented league and there is little risk involved… former niner 3rd stringer Ricky Ray as well (cracker factory… anyone remember that?) would probably be a solid NFL backup right now.

4) Why don’t we have a big bodied, sure handed, block out, prototypical tight end for our back up?

We’re all aware of the problems we had on 3rd down last year. Most of them can be attributed to the OL… but, a sure handed tight end is a qb’s best friend… VD is obviously not that guy… neither is delaine walker, who is a poor man’s VD… seems like his roster spot should go to more traditional tight end. Thoughts?

Originally posted by northvan49erman:
Hey webzoners, I’ve been following these boards for years, finally decided to sign up. Huge niner fan from Vancouver, Canada… Grew up on my grandpa’s lap watching Joe Montana in the 80’s… There are loads of niner fans up here… probably third to Dallas and Green Bay. And the seahags I guess…

Anyways, even though football is the 2nd biggest sport in Canada our coverage of the NFL is probably half of what it is in the states, so I’ve got a few questions for you guys.

1) Why dont teams keep 4 QB’s on the active roster?

Contrary to the opinion of our head coach I think it’s the most important position in all of sports. If you don’t have a perennial pro-bowler your odds of winning the superbowl are greatly diminished. I understand the obvious reasons for not doing it (one less roster spot, not enough practice time, reps etc, too many cooks spoil the broth). And, obviously you’re Indianapolis you don’t need four. But take the niners, we have at best a huge question mark at starter, an average nfl backup and a raw 3rd stringer who may or may not pan out. Not much of a contingency plan if alex fails this year… plus, I am a fan of the holmgren philosophy of bringing qb’s along slowly… drafting a late round qb and letting him watch tape for a year doesn’t seem like bad idea to me… maybe the PS is the answer, I don’t know… that seems like a poor way to develop…also, this is gonna seem like a stupid question, but has anyone developed a virtual reality QB machine... with like a hugh screen for young QB's to read defenses and react... maybe retarded but it seems like a good way to get reps to me)… any thoughts?

2) why are NFL color commentators so horrible?

Dan dierdorff? Phil simms? Troy Aikmen? I am constantly shocked at how insulting these guys are to my intelligence, and I probably know half of what you guys know about football. The NFL has the worst color guys in all of sports. If I have to hear Dan Dierdorff act like a predicting holding penalty on a kickoff return is akin to the clairvoyance of Nostradamus, I’m going to puke. Say what you want about Gruden, but I love the guy… bad Monday night matchup, I don’t care, I learn something every week from that guy… not really a solution, but I think the NFL network should have a once a week game commentated on by former OC’s and DC’s… broadcast a day late and the go through each play… schemes, formations etc etc…


3) Any reason why the niners have stopped looking to the CFL, even though its envogue right now?

Stephan logan would look pretty good in a niner uniform right now… as would martel mallett (eagles… look out for this guy, he’s a beast) as would Cameron Wake… back in the day we plucked Garcia and some other wide receiver who kind of sucked…cant remember his name... believe it or not, it’s a talented league and there is little risk involved… former niner 3rd stringer Ricky Ray as well (cracker factory… anyone remember that?) would probably be a solid NFL backup right now.

4) Why don’t we have a big bodied, sure handed, block out, prototypical tight end for our back up?

We’re all aware of the problems we had on 3rd down last year. Most of them can be attributed to the OL… but, a sure handed tight end is a qb’s best friend… VD is obviously not that guy… neither is delaine walker, who is a poor man’s VD… seems like his roster spot should go to more traditional tight end. Thoughts?

Elguapo welcomes you.
1)I think 4 qb's on the active roster is maybe a little too much but i'm sure if the coaches feel like the 4th qb is woth it, they may keep 4.
2)You are right Gruden kicks ass, but other than that espn with Young Boomer and co are great the rest of the bunch really are bad.
3)CFL does not have the talent but of course there are exceptions. I'm sure there will be more opportunities for CFL players but only the cream of the crop
4)Vernon may not be sure handed but compared to the rest of the nfl TE's what he may have 5 more drops ALL YEAR BUT MORE YARDS, TD's big plays and some of the best speed blocking in the nfl period. So i guess a surer handed TE does not justify getting another one....i will take a few more drops to get the best TE in the nfl anyday.

Great to have you...niners in the sb w/i the next 2 yrs

Originally posted by northvan49erman:
Hey webzoners, I’ve been following these boards for years, finally decided to sign up. Huge niner fan from Vancouver, Canada… Grew up on my grandpa’s lap watching Joe Montana in the 80’s… There are loads of niner fans up here… probably third to Dallas and Green Bay. And the seahags I guess…

Anyways, even though football is the 2nd biggest sport in Canada our coverage of the NFL is probably half of what it is in the states, so I’ve got a few questions for you guys.

1) Why dont teams keep 4 QB’s on the active roster?

Contrary to the opinion of our head coach I think it’s the most important position in all of sports. If you don’t have a perennial pro-bowler your odds of winning the superbowl are greatly diminished. I understand the obvious reasons for not doing it (one less roster spot, not enough practice time, reps etc, too many cooks spoil the broth). And, obviously you’re Indianapolis you don’t need four. But take the niners, we have at best a huge question mark at starter, an average nfl backup and a raw 3rd stringer who may or may not pan out. Not much of a contingency plan if alex fails this year… plus, I am a fan of the holmgren philosophy of bringing qb’s along slowly… drafting a late round qb and letting him watch tape for a year doesn’t seem like bad idea to me… maybe the PS is the answer, I don’t know… that seems like a poor way to develop…also, this is gonna seem like a stupid question, but has anyone developed a virtual reality QB machine... with like a hugh screen for young QB's to read defenses and react... maybe retarded but it seems like a good way to get reps to me)… any thoughts?

2) why are NFL color commentators so horrible?

Dan dierdorff? Phil simms? Troy Aikmen? I am constantly shocked at how insulting these guys are to my intelligence, and I probably know half of what you guys know about football. The NFL has the worst color guys in all of sports. If I have to hear Dan Dierdorff act like a predicting holding penalty on a kickoff return is akin to the clairvoyance of Nostradamus, I’m going to puke. Say what you want about Gruden, but I love the guy… bad Monday night matchup, I don’t care, I learn something every week from that guy… not really a solution, but I think the NFL network should have a once a week game commentated on by former OC’s and DC’s… broadcast a day late and the go through each play… schemes, formations etc etc…


3) Any reason why the niners have stopped looking to the CFL, even though its envogue right now?

Stephan logan would look pretty good in a niner uniform right now… as would martel mallett (eagles… look out for this guy, he’s a beast) as would Cameron Wake… back in the day we plucked Garcia and some other wide receiver who kind of sucked…cant remember his name... believe it or not, it’s a talented league and there is little risk involved… former niner 3rd stringer Ricky Ray as well (cracker factory… anyone remember that?) would probably be a solid NFL backup right now.

4) Why don’t we have a big bodied, sure handed, block out, prototypical tight end for our back up?

We’re all aware of the problems we had on 3rd down last year. Most of them can be attributed to the OL… but, a sure handed tight end is a qb’s best friend… VD is obviously not that guy… neither is delaine walker, who is a poor man’s VD… seems like his roster spot should go to more traditional tight end. Thoughts?

1.)I would think that it has to do with the fact that very rarely do teams go through 3 or 4 QB's in a year, most only go through one or two. Also, the quality level of QB's drops off significantly from the number 1 to 2 and even more so to the 3 most of the time.

2.)I don't know why they are so horrible, but Dr Z of SI.com used to rate them every year. A little googling will help you figure out who the better ones are, I don't know myself.

3.)I don't know hardly anything at all about the CFL, but my guess would be that most NFL teams don't pay attention to it for some reason. I think it probably has something to do with the drastic rule differences, but a talent is a talent and they should be looking everywhere for good players.

4.)Because Vernon Davis is a big bodied, blocking TE and is also a deep threat, so keeping him in the game more often than not will give you both.

Y

[ Edited by susweel on May 5, 2010 at 18:19:38 ]

4.)Because Vernon Davis is a big bodied, blocking TE and is also a deep threat, so keeping him in the game more often than not will give you both.

I didn't mean a blocking tight end, I meant a prototypical tight end, brent jones style... someone said its an advantage to keep vernon on the field, and I agree, but we use 2 TE sets all the time.

Welcome!

1) As far as I know, most teams keep 2-3 QB's on a team. From what I understand, the #3 QB doesn't even get reps as a QB. Nate Davis played more CB last year on the scout team that he actually practiced. #1 QB runs first squar, #2 QB runs everything else. #3 QB doesn't even practice throws.

2) A lot of announcers suck, can't get around that one. Unfortunately, the Niners usually get the #4 and #5 squads from the stations, whereas the #1's and #2 sports crews cover the higher ranked teams... If we get better, we may get better sports groups...

3) The CFL recruiting is low because rule differences, along with the challenge. The lelvel of play in the CFL isn't as high, therefore a stud in the CFL may not translate to the NFL. That is pure speculation though!

4) VD is everything you want in a blocker for a TE, except the hands. Our running schemes are mainly between the tackles, so the TE is not quite as important for that... I think DWalk is also a great blocker and pass catcher. If VD works on his hands, he will redefine the TE role, as in a fullback-sized wideout on the LOS.

My guess is that NFL teams believe rookies out of college have more upside than CFL players and they are younger so they have more time to work with them.