Originally posted by rk1642:
I gave us a B but it could bump up to an A pending Lattimore of course.
Yes we did pickup a 3rd in next years draft but this was the year to kill it with all the high draft picks we had accumulated. For whatever reason, I'm not super happy with this draft and that's after I said we would take the Safety and Dline with our first 2 picks.
The offseason as a whole is also a B for me. We give up a pro bowler FS and get a guy with potential = downgrade for this season.
Let our backup TE go, who was a killer in the Wham department and overall great backup TE and got another good prospect but that will be a downgrade for this year.
Got a couple of Dline in the draft who have potential as well and I'd expect that to be a wash for this year.
Big upgrade is in the wr department. Only loss is Moss and Ginn and we get Boldin and Patten = big upgrade this year!
Lattimore could be huge for us in a year if he comes back healthy and can stay that way. Would be perfect timing with Frank getting up there in age and with mileage!
So, for me its basically a wash, could be better but could also be slightly off of last years team, only time will tell.
Look man, with all due respect, you don't seem to grasp the notion of the salary cap. The Niners would have kept Goldson, D Walker and RJF if they could have...but they simply couldn't afford them. They knew that they are going to have to sign Kaep and Aldon Smith soon and they simply don't have the room under the cap to give big contracts to everybody....unless they want to end up like the Raiders.
It is the same deal all over the league. The Niners had about 10 -12 guys who have made the Pro Bowl or the All Pro Team in the past 2 years. There is no way a team can give a big contract to all those guys and remain under the cap...and we aren't even talking about solid backups like Walker and RJF.
Goldson, BTW, for all of his good attributes, is not that great in coverage, especially for a FS, so my view is that Reid will probably be as good as he is in his first year and down the road, even better. Reid is a superior athlete, smart as hell, competitive, and has a great work ethic. He'll do what it takes to get good.
Both Carradine and Dial are young, athletic, talented, hard working, and cheap (at least for now) additions to the D-line. Both will help this year and I think the D-line unit overall is better now than last years', if for no other reason than R Mac and J Smith don't have to play on every damn down any more.
Vance McDonald is also a much better fit at second TE than Walker was because of his size, strength, athleticism, and red zone capability. That dude is probably good enough to start for at least half the teams in the league
right now. He is a major talent.
You already mentioned the additions of Patten and Boldin at WR...big upgrades there.
Now, I'm not saying this draft was perfect. The Niners desperately need a CB that can cover those damn slot receivers that now seem to be everywhere, especially in the NFC West. For that reason, I gave it an "A-".
However, my larger point is this. Retooling is the way of the league now. The Packers, Patriots, Steelers, and Giants have been doing the same thing for years now, and that is why all those teams are consistently good. They retool. They get younger. They make tough decisions....and they win.
Cheers!
[ Edited by nw9erfan on Apr 28, 2013 at 5:45 PM ]