Weston Richburg (retired)

Originally posted by NYniner85:

I asked Kyle Shanahan why center is such an important position in his offense (which in turn made Weston Richburg such a priority).

I thought his response was interesting: pic.twitter.com/BHazAXV8fv

— Joe Fann (@Joe_Fann) March 15, 2018

I think the pickup of richburg is being underrated

Originally posted by Kolohe:

Originally posted by NYniner85:

I asked Kyle Shanahan why center is such an important position in his offense (which in turn made Weston Richburg such a priority).

I thought his response was interesting: pic.twitter.com/BHazAXV8fv

— Joe Fann (@Joe_Fann) March 15, 2018

I think the pickup of richburg is being underrated

I knew Shanahan wanted a Center when he first was hired. Look what he did when he first got to Atlanta, he picked up Alex Mack who was a big part of Atlanta's success. Shanahan thought he had one in Jeremy Zuttah when he traded for him.

I think with Richburg the offense is gonna look a lot different.

Originally posted by StubbyNBY:
He's going to be a stellar center for us over the next 5,7, 10 years. He will be our best center since Jeremy Newberry and quite possibly our best FA signing since Justin Smith.

Originally posted by StubbyNBY:

He's going to be a stellar center for us over the next 5,7, 10 years. He will be our best center since Jeremy Newberry and quite possibly our best FA signing since Justin Smith.

Originally posted by NCommand:

In my piece here: Weston Richburg actually called Alex Mack himself while mulling the 49ers' offer. The connection is fascinating, because Shanahan-Mack relationship saw awesome results for both parties the 2 years it existed, 2014 and 2016. https://t.co/CQiK3zvaXf

— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) March 16, 2018

"Kyle Shanahan first called former New Yorks Giants center Weston Richburg this past Monday.

The 49ers coach wanted a dominant new center, a player who could reprise the role of Alex Mack, whom Shanahan had enjoyed having at that position while coordinating the league-leading Atlanta Falcons offense in 2016.

So Richburg, looking for advice, phoned Mack himself.

Richburg told Mack that he was mulling his options, and that he was considering "joining Shanahan in San Fran–," but he couldn't even finish the sentence — or the city name, for that matter.

"Do it," Mack interrupted.

"That was enough," Richburg said."

"Richburg took notice of Mack's leap.

"Alex's film playing under Kyle spoke for itself," Richburg said. "Even the film when he was in Cleveland. It was very evident that I could go in and play center and be very successful in his offense."

Shanahan and Lynch came to the same conclusion over the past month, even though the two joked that Shanahan had trouble saying the center's name correctly. On cue, Shanahan accidentally called the center "Reston Wichburg" again on Thursday.

The Levi's Stadium auditorium erupted in laughter.

But the 49ers' evaluation of Richburg was no joke: Shanahan and Lynch deemed him the best interior offensive lineman on this year's free agent market. The pool, of course, included Andrew Norwell, whom most analysts publicly proclaimed to be the top option. Norwell signed a mega-deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars worth up to $66.5 million.

"We all personally felt that (Richburg) was the top O-lineman that we saw out of all the inside guys," Shanahan said, before Lynch doubled down on that assertion."

""You look at our division," Lynch said, likely referring to disruptive Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald. "You better be good on the interior."

And then one looks at Shanahan, and it's apparent that a center must be able to master the mental aspect of his complex offensive scheme. The 49ers believe Richburg satisfies that requirement, too.

"When you have a center at the level of what you're talking about with Alex or with Weston, it changes a lot of things, things that people don't totally realize," Shanahan said, delving into complexities of blocking angles and linebacker alignments. "When you have a difference maker at that position, I've found and I've experienced through my career that it's been a lot easier to run an offense."

Originally posted by jcs:

Originally posted by NCommand:

In my piece here: Weston Richburg actually called Alex Mack himself while mulling the 49ers' offer. The connection is fascinating, because Shanahan-Mack relationship saw awesome results for both parties the 2 years it existed, 2014 and 2016. https://t.co/CQiK3zvaXf

— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) March 16, 2018

Originally posted by ronniefreakinlott42:

Originally posted by StubbyNBY:
He's going to be a stellar center for us over the next 5,7, 10 years. He will be our best center since Jeremy Newberry and quite possibly our best FA signing since Justin Smith.

Wow. Just realized how few stellar centers have come through here. I got Sapolu and Newberry. Anyone I'm missing?

"You look at our division," Lynch said, likely referring to disruptive Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald. "You better be good on the interior."

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by jcs:

Originally posted by NCommand:

In my piece here: Weston Richburg actually called Alex Mack himself while mulling the 49ers' offer. The connection is fascinating, because Shanahan-Mack relationship saw awesome results for both parties the 2 years it existed, 2014 and 2016. https://t.co/CQiK3zvaXf

— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) March 16, 2018

Now he's the 3rd highest paid C thanks to Ryan Jensen.

Originally posted by jcs:

Phew I guess that means we didn't overpay....

Originally posted by zonkers:

Originally posted by ronniefreakinlott42:

Originally posted by StubbyNBY:

He's going to be a stellar center for us over the next 5,7, 10 years. He will be our best center since Jeremy Newberry and quite possibly our best FA signing since Justin Smith.

Wow. Just realized how few stellar centers have come through here. I got Sapolu and Newberry. Anyone I'm missing?

Chris Dalman