Worries

There is nothing good that comes out of losing the team's best pass rusher. I don't agree with the argument that Aldon only had 2 sacks so the production is replaceable. It's not about the sacks he got. It's about the attention he commands from offensive lines. You can't block him with a TE in the run game when running to his side. Sliding pass protection to his side means Lynch would have gotten 1v1 battles all day. Mangini was all about moving players around and you can bet he was going to use Aldon to exploit weaknesses in the opposing OLine. That chess piece is gone.

I haven't seen anything from Harold and I don't assume a rookie is going to produce. Rookies are a complete unknown whether they are highly touted or were an afterthought at the draft. They need to show they can perform before they are slotted as someone that can perform. I suppose it will be Brooks at Sam and Lynch at the Will. We really need Lemon to show something so that the rotation is strong and for Tank to step up and create some inside pressure. Pass rush was the strength of the entire team and that took a hit. I really hope I'm overestimating Aldon's impact, but I don't think I am.

Originally posted by thl408:
There is nothing good that comes out of losing the team's best pass rusher. I don't agree with the argument that Aldon only had 2 sacks so the production is replaceable. It's not about the sacks he got. It's about the attention he commands from offensive lines. You can't block him with a TE in the run game when running to his side. Sliding pass protection to his side means Lynch would have gotten 1v1 battles all day. Mangini was all about moving players around and you can bet he was going to use Aldon to exploit weaknesses in the opposing OLine. That chess piece is gone.

I haven't seen anything from Harold and I don't assume a rookie is going to produce. Rookies are a complete unknown whether they are highly touted or were an afterthought at the draft. They need to show they can perform before they are slotted as someone that can perform. I suppose it will be Brooks at Sam and Lynch at the Will. We really need Lemon to show something so that the rotation is strong and for Tank to step up and create some inside pressure. Pass rush was the strength of the entire team and that took a hit. I really hope I'm overestimating Aldon's impact, but I don't think I am.

You're right. Aldon was a rare talent, you can't replace a guy like that and get the same production/impact on the field from his backups.

The question is do we have the pieces to still generate a productive pass-rush? Maybe. A lot hinges on some young guys growing up fast and excelling in bigger roles. Carradine, Lynch, Lemonier, Harold. We need one or more of these guys to emerge.

Originally posted by Oakland-Niner:

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by Oakland-Niner:
Originally posted by 49erFaithful6:
Originally posted by NinerPrideinNJ:
Honestly NCommand, we could trade Anquan Boldin for a bag of Fritos tomorrow and you'd somehow be able to spin it into a positive. Don't act like this team isn't a disaster when it is; it's insulting to everyone's intelligence



You guys need to chill. Maybe he really likes Fritos...


j/k NC..

Hahaha. I think I'd need something stronger than Fritos after this news...we all do!

No kidding man.

While its very easy to be negative in this enviroment, you've managed to keep this board reasonably sane. I dont always agree, but you do a lot of good work on here.....

To be honest, its going to take me a minute to get over this one though. Borland, Willis, Davis and now Aldon is a tough pill to swallow. I just totally didn't see that coming. I thought Aldon would at least hold it together a couple of years.

He and A.Davis hurt...a lot (the rest I was totally cool with; even Borland). Behind A.Davis though you have Pears. At least behind Aldon we have some real talent there (not his level though). But collectively, we basically just ripped off the bandaid...or duct tape...and were shoved down the stairs. Gotta let this all set in and get back to redoing our 53 to remind ourselves not all is lost (talent/production-wise).

It's darkest before dawn...hopefully these draft picks start earning their keep and grow and develop quickly and our coaches keep teaching and don't go potato on game days. The silver lining to all this is NOBODY has the book on the 2015 49ers and many teams WILL be overlooking us. And I know this team has a LOT of hungry guys who know what's in front of them...they now have a legit chance to be a starter in the NFL...and I know this team is going to play it's ass off for JT. That I do know.

If we can get an early momentum, it could go a long ways to opening up some

Hang in there man...

Originally posted by SofaKing:

Originally posted by thl408:
There is nothing good that comes out of losing the team's best pass rusher. I don't agree with the argument that Aldon only had 2 sacks so the production is replaceable. It's not about the sacks he got. It's about the attention he commands from offensive lines. You can't block him with a TE in the run game when running to his side. Sliding pass protection to his side means Lynch would have gotten 1v1 battles all day. Mangini was all about moving players around and you can bet he was going to use Aldon to exploit weaknesses in the opposing OLine. That chess piece is gone.

I haven't seen anything from Harold and I don't assume a rookie is going to produce. Rookies are a complete unknown whether they are highly touted or were an afterthought at the draft. They need to show they can perform before they are slotted as someone that can perform. I suppose it will be Brooks at Sam and Lynch at the Will. We really need Lemon to show something so that the rotation is strong and for Tank to step up and create some inside pressure. Pass rush was the strength of the entire team and that took a hit. I really hope I'm overestimating Aldon's impact, but I don't think I am.

You're right. Aldon was a rare talent, you can't replace a guy like that and get the same production/impact on the field from his backups.

The question is do we have the pieces to still generate a productive pass-rush? Maybe. A lot hinges on some young guys growing up fast and excelling in bigger roles. Carradine, Lynch, Lemonier, Harold. We need one or more of these guys to emerge.

We really do need one of those guys to emerge to make up for the loss. There wasn't much pressure on them (Harold, Lemon, Tank) because I thought Lynch-Tank-Dockett-Aldon could hold it down, but now the centerpiece of that foursome is gone. It doesn't have to be from another OLB either. It can be Tank or Dockett, or even Dial, if he can show he is a pocket pusher. Not sure Brooks can handle three downs and remain effective all game long so I'm looking at Lemon/Harold to show something.

Originally posted by thl408:
There is nothing good that comes out of losing the team's best pass rusher. I don't agree with the argument that Aldon only had 2 sacks so the production is replaceable. It's not about the sacks he got. It's about the attention he commands from offensive lines. You can't block him with a TE in the run game when running to his side. Sliding pass protection to his side means Lynch would have gotten 1v1 battles all day. Mangini was all about moving players around and you can bet he was going to use Aldon to exploit weaknesses in the opposing OLine. That chess piece is gone.

I haven't seen anything from Harold and I don't assume a rookie is going to produce. Rookies are a complete unknown whether they are highly touted or were an afterthought at the draft. They need to show they can perform before they are slotted as someone that can perform. I suppose it will be Brooks at Sam and Lynch at the Will. We really need Lemon to show something so that the rotation is strong and for Tank to step up and create some inside pressure. Pass rush was the strength of the entire team and that took a hit. I really hope I'm overestimating Aldon's impact, but I don't think I am.

So true thl...he IS the type of player you have to game plan for no doubt...he's like the T.Smith of the offense...even if not effective or targeted, teams have to respect him which opens up things for others.

Silver lining? We finished top 5 in defense last year...BUT finished 21st (Seattle 20th) in team sacks with only 36 and that was with Aldon on the field for the final 7 games. Maybe we're overvaluing sacks a bit? Sack leaders were: Buffalo, Philadelphia, Baltimore, NY Giants, Kansas City, NY Jets, Jacksonville, Detroit, etc. and most of those teams had one HUGE year by one sack artist.

Perhaps now, Mangini can draw up significantly more than that now with all the pieces and depth he has to work with. I'm fairly confident though that this group can generate more than 36 sacks either way:

(3) RDE: Quinton Dial; Tank Carradine & Arik Armstead
(1) NT: Ian Williams; (Glenn Dorsey & Quinton Dial)
(3) LDE: Glenn Dorsey; Darnell Dockett & Lawrence Okoye
(7) Notes: Even – Last year we kept 7 DL's in Smith, McDonald, Carradine, Jerod-Eddie, Dial, Dobbs & Dorsey

(1) WILL: Aaron Lynch; Eli Harold & Corey Lemonier
(2) TED: Michael Wilhoite; Nick Moody
(2) MIKE: Navarro Bowman; Nick Bellore
(2) SAM: Ahmad Brooks; Corey Lemonier
(7) Notes: Even – Last year we kept 9 LB's in Smith, Brooks, Willis, Wilhoite, Skuta, Lemonier, Borland, Moody & Lynch

So no we have no CBs and no pass rushers. Now Im starting to get worried.

Originally posted by susweel:
So no we have no CBs and no pass rushers. Now Im starting to get worried.

Just now?

Originally posted by SofaKing:

Originally posted by susweel:
So no we have no CBs and no pass rushers. Now Im starting to get worried.

Just now?

Yeah man I've tried to stay positive through all this but this is too much.

Originally posted by thl408:

Originally posted by SofaKing:

Originally posted by thl408:
There is nothing good that comes out of losing the team's best pass rusher. I don't agree with the argument that Aldon only had 2 sacks so the production is replaceable. It's not about the sacks he got. It's about the attention he commands from offensive lines. You can't block him with a TE in the run game when running to his side. Sliding pass protection to his side means Lynch would have gotten 1v1 battles all day. Mangini was all about moving players around and you can bet he was going to use Aldon to exploit weaknesses in the opposing OLine. That chess piece is gone.

I haven't seen anything from Harold and I don't assume a rookie is going to produce. Rookies are a complete unknown whether they are highly touted or were an afterthought at the draft. They need to show they can perform before they are slotted as someone that can perform. I suppose it will be Brooks at Sam and Lynch at the Will. We really need Lemon to show something so that the rotation is strong and for Tank to step up and create some inside pressure. Pass rush was the strength of the entire team and that took a hit. I really hope I'm overestimating Aldon's impact, but I don't think I am.

You're right. Aldon was a rare talent, you can't replace a guy like that and get the same production/impact on the field from his backups.

The question is do we have the pieces to still generate a productive pass-rush? Maybe. A lot hinges on some young guys growing up fast and excelling in bigger roles. Carradine, Lynch, Lemonier, Harold. We need one or more of these guys to emerge.

We really do need one of those guys to emerge to make up for the loss. There wasn't much pressure on them (Harold, Lemon, Tank) because I thought Lynch-Tank-Dockett-Aldon could hold it down, but now the centerpiece of that foursome is gone. It doesn't have to be from another OLB either. It can be Tank or Dockett, or even Dial, if he can show he is a pocket pusher. Not sure Brooks can handle three downs and remain effective all game long so I'm looking at Lemon/Harold to show something.

Definitely. I feel really good about the depth/versatility on the d-line. Dial is getting hyped up, hopefully he can create some havoc. Carradine too. I also think Brooks may not be a 3-down player anymore. Would expect him and Lynch on 1st/2nd downs, Harold gets sprinkled in as a 3rd down pass rusher.

Originally posted by susweel:

Originally posted by SofaKing:

Originally posted by susweel:
So no we have no CBs and no pass rushers. Now Im starting to get worried.

Just now?

Yeah man I've tried to stay positive through all this but this is too much.

Yeah, I'm just hoping after this season we show some positive signs for the future. Mainly seeing Kap improve, better passing game / WRs, some of the young guys on defense making a name for themsleves, Tomsula proving he belongs...etc. If we;re hoping for a SB we're going to be very, very disappointed. That's not happening. Next year we have the draft and some money to spend to fill some holes.

No more worries.

I'm just here for the ride and to root every Sunday and occasional Thursday and to try and call in drunk to late night sports talk when I get real excited.

Originally posted by BodhiPaddlesOut:
No more worries.

I'm just here for the ride and to root every Sunday and occasional Thursday and to try and call in drunk to late night sports talk when I get real excited.

Love it!

Welcome. HC Jim Tomsula.

Wow, that is a welcoming that never envisioned all that has happened. My 9-12 Ws were based on a reformed Aldon, not a recidivist 3 time DUI and rehaber. JT now has the one most difficult job in the NFL, a cumulative mass of retirements, healing injuries, and now minus Aldon also. .500 is starting to sound pretty good. Ouch. What this will do, however, is scrape every last bit of coaching out of JT's body and brain, and every single other coach is going to do not just his job but every and anything they can think of to help. Teams have been decimated before, but this....this is ridiculous. Somebody ought to stroll by aldon and say, "et tu, Brute?"

Wouldn't it be something if JT were able to bring all this together and make it a winner? Prayers now needed. Change the "R" for an "L", and it works also.

Originally posted by SofaKing:
Definitely. I feel really good about the depth/versatility on the d-line. Dial is getting hyped up, hopefully he can create some havoc. Carradine too. I also think Brooks may not be a 3-down player anymore. Would expect him and Lynch on 1st/2nd downs, Harold gets sprinkled in as a 3rd down pass rusher.

I can see this as well!

So now that its over and done. What are we looking at OLB wise?


Brooks and Lynch? Not as great as Aldumb but not as bad as say,Ulbrich and co.