What Is Baalke's Preoccupation With 7th Round Draft Choices?

We have 4 seventh round picks next year. We are going to trade one and take the other three to a Black Jack table in Lake Tahoe.

here is an interesting take on the latest moves made.



The San Francisco 49ers exchanged a 2012 seventh-round pick for 2013 fourth- and 2014 seventh-round picks Monday. That sounds like a pretty good deal and it's typical of the 49ers maximizing value. No one went into the 2013 draft with more picks than the 49ers possessed, and already San Francisco could have as many as 13 selections for next year.

The most recent accounting looks like this: 49ers outside linebacker Cam Johnson, a 2012 seventh-round pick coming off an impressive preseason, goes to the Indianapolis Colts for what is reportedly a 2014 seventh-round pick. Receiver Chris Harper, drafted in the fourth round by the Seattle Seahawks this year, goes to the 49ers' 53-man roster from the Seahawks' practice squad. Trading Johnson to the Colts made room on the 49res' roster for Harper, which is why I included the Harper signing in the equation.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcwest/post/_/id/108101/cam-johnson-and-49ers-draft-planning

It's because 7 is a bigger number than 1. You can get 7 ones out of a 7. Make sense?

Originally posted by jreff22:
Again I get that argument but I would rather keep the player with more upside and dump Skuta. Given the option of keeping a so so player and getting a 7th or keeping a good up and coming talent and getting nothing else.....I would take the better talent any day. Granted Cam isn't all world but I think he becomes better than Skuta.

I don't know if you saw all the preseason games, but over the course of the games and what was coming out of camp Skuta showed more than Cam did, plus he can play both inside and outside as well as ST. You can't say Cam was a good up and coming player based on one preseason game. Even the beat writters said he was on the bubble and that one game should have secured him a spot and it did. Skuta was never on the bubble. He may well become better than Skuta as an outside LB, but right now the niners need some who can backup the starters, play special teams. Cam can't play in the middle. Cam would never see the field anyway. Corey would see it before him, thus he would not be suited up. Its about versatility if you are not a starter or starter 1a. Its a numbers game.

I said it last year when people were oozing about Tolz over Kaep, all because he looked good in pre against scrubs.

Originally posted by SanDiego49er:
He likes 7th rounders too much. Then when we finally get one who is productive and developing we trade them away for nothing.....

Productive? He didn't produce yet unless you count one meaningless pre game that was the last one where teams play the 3rd and 4th stringers to see who stays and goes. We have Corey who has tons more potential and will see the field before Cam who won't even suit up. Niners weren't going to keep him. Every year teams have one or two that make the team temp., until a better player they been eyeing comes along. Right now - Skuta is the better player to have cause of his versatility and the fact that he had a better pre and training camp.

Originally posted by Afrikan:
since you are a poster and not a real life GM I wouldn't expect you to understand.... but it's pretty simple and obvious, it's to trade up and have an opportunity to get high picks (who obviously would be better players) like say




1 (30) - A.J. Jenkins, WR, Illinois
2 (61) -LaMichael James, RB, Oregon
4 (117) - Joe Looney, OG, Wake Forest
5 (165) - Darius Fleming, OLB, Notre Dame
6 (180) - Trent Robinson, FS, Michigan State

LOL. I see what you did there.

Originally posted by WINiner:
Whats better? Releasing Cam and getting nothing, zilch, nada to make room for the WR we signed from Seattle or trade him for a 7th to make room for the WR we signed from Seattle?

What's better? How about not releasing Cam in the first place. Duh. Especially with extra roster spots going to project WRs (two now) and Harbaugh's favorite college fullback.

When our injured players come back we have to cut a lot of players. Better to get a seventh round pick than nothing.

Originally posted by LottDMontanaO:

Originally posted by SFrush:
I'm with the OP on this one. Don't like it. Cam Johnson was coming along nicely as Fangio confirmed.

We had Brooks and Aldon playing with one shoulder in the playoffs. When you're making a deep playoff run that's when that extra pass rusher or two can come in handy, especially if a starter suffers a season ending injury. It happened to the Seahawks in the playoffs with Chris Clemons who could've been the difference in them beating Atlanta.

I agree. Just look at what happened to us last year after a season and deep playoff run...we were down to Clark Haggans having to step in and play some with Aldon hurting (there are a few SB still shots showing Haggans in the game...I didn't even see him in there, to be honest). Cam Johnson was progressing - Fangio doesn't just say that for the sake of...he's a straight shooter it seems. I know we now have Lemonier and Skuta...Lemonier will be a good fill in when needed but still is a rookie...Skuta is new to OLB. Would like to have seen Cam still be an option. For those who say, "Would you rather get nothing for Cam when we had to today make room on the roster in signing the new WR/TE, Harper"...to that I say, who says we had to release Cam? Why couldn't we release Stupar instead? We have five ILBs as it is...plus, despite his hustle and high motor, Stupar is just a so-so ILB from what I've seen.

This was my feeling too. And to say, "Well he would never have been active anyhow" Really, but Skuta would be for ST purposes?. Cam blocked a punt and returned it for a TD. Isn't that a guy you want on ST over a 6th DL flopping down the field on coverage units? My guess is you'd want as many LBers as possible on the coverage units and esp. have your pass rushers coming off the edges on punt returns.

Originally posted by Mr.Mcgibblets:
Without cluttering up enough threads with Cam J. talk, I suspect Baalke just loves keeping the draft scouts on their toes with these late round picks. That doesn't bother me. There can always be use in the late picks.. and I'd bet our guys have the arrogance to believe they can snatch up the sleeper gems. We can take a shot on prospects that we view as 5th or 6th rounders that slipped... we can trade the pick to a team dying to get one last guy, turning that 7th into a future 6th. It's much like having free access to a UDFA without having to fight for him, even.

Adding late rounders doesn't bother me at all. I just don't particularly love losing what we did for this particular one... but if this Harper kid turns out to be something? if we were just gonna cut whats-his-name anyway? if we can get a good prospect with that pick or use it to trade up? Fine... good... whateverz.

Yeah, this is how I feel as well...what late 7th rounder, heck, even packaged 6th rounder after two off seasons in OUR system is going to produce more than a developed Cam at a premier position and who also excelled on ST? I can't imagine the coaches, esp. Fangio would be too thrilled working daily on developing a player through injury and finally reaping the rewards only to lose him to another late 7th rounder next year and having to start all over again.

Originally posted by SFrush:

Originally posted by LifelongNiner:
Corey Lemonier is backing up at OLB, not Clark Hagans. Cam was never going to be active, unless someone went down.

Which can happen and I included it in my post. I like Lemonier, but the Niners will be putting a ton of pressure on this kid (while he's learning on the fly) if Brooks or Aldon suffer a significant injury.

Agreed, both Brooks and Aldon were hurt way more than people realized last year and couldn't ball out 100% given they had nobody behind them. Now we have quality backups in Lemonier and Skuta but as we saw twice last year, we basically lost both Smith's (production-wise) in one game...we also lost Hunter and Williams in one game as well. This deal just makes no sense at all on any level and trying to tie in the Harper deal with it to justify it is laughable.

Originally posted by SD49ers:

Originally posted by NCommand:
True. We could draft and develop a guy like Cam for a year and when healthy and producing we can trade him for a late 7th again...oh wait. Are we a farm club now? Kidding!

Sometimes those guys turn into a Dixon, Brown, miller, Brock, Ian Williams, Boone, Dobbs etc. that are worth keeping around.

I agree...but then we just got rid of one for a late 7th (Cam). So what was the point?

Originally posted by kray28:
What's better? How about not releasing Cam in the first place. Duh. Especially with extra roster spots going to project WRs (two now) and Harbaugh's favorite college fullback.

Did we sign Owen Marecic?

If this trade had been made before the last preseason game, there would have been tons of comments about Baalke's genius. Yes, Cam has plenty of potential. Except for one game, he has not come close to it yet. Why are 7th round picks valuable? Think about next offseason:

Contract extensions:
Colin Kaepernick
Mike Iupati
Aldon Smith

Free Agents:

Tarell Brown
Namdi Asomugha
Perrish Cox
Tramaine Brock
Donte Whitner
Eric Wright
Anquan Boldin
Mario Manningham
Marlon Moore


Does that paint a picture? Given the need to sign the three core guys above, I doubt anyone of the vet free agents here will be resigned. They are all from the same two position groups: WR and DB. Add to that the fact that Crabtree only has one year remaining and tough decisions are already going to have to be made. So what do you do when you have two position groups with multiple holes while the rest of your roster has a mix of star and protege? You draft those positions early and often. The seventh round WR pushes the second rounder and so on. The picks can definitely be used as ammunition to go get a guy they like, but we also need to stock the cupboard. If we let all of the guys walk, we will need to replace a starting WR and a starting SS. Unless Baldwin or Patton step up, we will be looking here early. We definitely don't have Whitner's replacement yet. Spillman is a stop gap guy and Thomas is not a strong safety. The only other positions of need are backups at QB and OL, but those depth concerns can be handled in the 3-5 round range.

Originally posted by buck:

Originally posted by kray28:
What's better? How about not releasing Cam in the first place. Duh. Especially with extra roster spots going to project WRs (two now) and Harbaugh's favorite college fullback.

Did we sign Owen Marecic?

I'm betting that Marecic tanked his season so that he'd be cut and picked up by Harbaugh. I said it first.

Originally posted by MarkD:
It's because 7 is a bigger number than 1. You can get 7 ones out of a 7. Make sense?

wait wha?....