2018 Team Information (Needs)

Originally posted by dtg_9er:
NC...you seem to be overthinking this preseason. Too much negativity. Every year there are players who get injured and a team is lucky to escape devastating injuries. If Garoppolo was injured it would be devastating. I can't think of any other single player who comes close to that impact, so the team is lucky. The Shanahans have created great offense with RBs who might not succeed elsewhere and RBs aren't the most difficult position players to find. Nor do they require as much time learning the offense.

So in this pre-championship year (close to getting to an elite status) we should relax and enjoy the development of young players like DJ Jones, Thomas, Foster, Warner, Pettis and perhaps even Mostert.

Nah, I stated the obvious unfortunate things (couldn't secure Mack and the loss of McKinnon), dire need for at least one real ER and lack of a true box SS should Tartt go down. These are things every fan is concerned about. But I also noted about 9 areas where we improved from last year, marginally or significantly. Like you said, year 2 of the rebuild. We're going to be a 7-8 win team until we can secure the three big weaknesses. Either way, it should be a fun year!

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by dtg_9er:
NC...you seem to be overthinking this preseason. Too much negativity. Every year there are players who get injured and a team is lucky to escape devastating injuries. If Garoppolo was injured it would be devastating. I can't think of any other single player who comes close to that impact, so the team is lucky. The Shanahans have created great offense with RBs who might not succeed elsewhere and RBs aren't the most difficult position players to find. Nor do they require as much time learning the offense.

So in this pre-championship year (close to getting to an elite status) we should relax and enjoy the development of young players like DJ Jones, Thomas, Foster, Warner, Pettis and perhaps even Mostert.

Nah, I stated the obvious unfortunate things (couldn't secure Mack and the loss of McKinnon), dire need for at least one real ER and lack of a true box SS should Tartt go down. These are things every fan is concerned about. But I also noted about 9 areas where we improved from last year, marginally or significantly. Like you said, year 2 of the rebuild. We're going to be a 7-8 win team until we can secure the three big weaknesses. Either way, it should be a fun year!

All these things were true last year, so I predict only positive changes this year.

Originally posted by dtg_9er:
All these things were true last year, so I predict only positive changes this year.

True, true!

Originally posted by NCommand:
Nah, I stated the obvious unfortunate things (couldn't secure Mack and the loss of McKinnon), dire need for at least one real ER and lack of a true box SS should Tartt go down. These are things every fan is concerned about. But I also noted about 9 areas where we improved from last year, marginally or significantly. Like you said, year 2 of the rebuild. We're going to be a 7-8 win team until we can secure the three big weaknesses. Either way, it should be a fun year!

NC...although I completely understand the trepidation you feel about the team's pass rush, lack of depth at SS, and the loss of a RB that was to carry a big load for the team this season, I would beg to differ with your 7-8 win assessment. Here's why...

1) The team has clearly improved in the middle of the DL, especially with the development of DJ Jones and Day. Therefore, on passing downs, it is no longer essential to have Buckner play inside so I expect him to rush off the edge more and more as the season progresses. At the least, he will draw a double team on the outside, leaving the middle open for pass rushers such as Day, Blair, and Thomas to work less impeded.

2) The team has a much better OL in general and actually may be respectable at the OG position. This will enable the offense to have longer drives and thus keep the defense off of the field for longer stretches, keeping it fresh for the all important 4th quarter. The depth in the DL will also contribute to this as well.

3) If you all recall, the Niners lost 4-5 games last year by a field goal or less...and this was prior to the arrival of Jimmy. When he was finally installed at QB, the team won those close games. The team would have likely won 2-3 additional games last year had Jimmy played the entire season with SF, putting the team close or in the playoffs....and the roster last year was decimated by injury and inexperience. This year's roster will improve because of an additional year with an excellent coaching staff, fewer injuries overall (hopefully), and more overall talent. The difference between a team that wins 6-7 games and a team that wins 9-10 games are the close games. If you win them, you are in the playoffs and if you lose them, you are out. I think the Niners will win the majority, rather than the minority of the close games this year. We will see.

4) The 2018 49er roster is still a work in progress. Look for the team to add another RB, a SS, and a pass rusher in the coming weeks, either through waivers or trade. Like last year's squad, this year's squad will likely get better as the season progresses. As several zoners have stated, the team is deeper and more talented at DL, ILB, CB, FS, OL, WR, and possibly, TE.

I agree with you.....it's gonna be fun!

Cheers!

Nice post/info.

i don't get the doom and gloom, yeah mckinnon's injury sucks, and Mack would have been nice, but the compensation was too high, plus that 6yr $141M is too much for us, we need to preserve cap room for our up and coming studs like Buckner, and Day who both will be eligible for new deals after 2018. The season isn't over due to McKinnon injury and no Mack.

I agree with ward shouldn't have made the team, but to cut him and eat $8.5M is a tough pill to swallow. The other saved money that we cut, not much, but still.

Originally posted by NinerGM:
I guess I'm not sure how you came to that conclusion when Morris ran outside zone quite effectively in KS offense or am I not seeing things clearly? Jet was important, I agree but again I don't think KS is "scared s**tless" because he has to call different plays in an extensive playbook. I guess how I look at is the man conceived an offense on the fly to accommodate the most important player on the field for wins - QB. I completely disagree that we are back to "Hyde-hour" with Morris running. He ran outside zone in Washington with KS as his OC. I agree that he isn't much of a pass-catcher so this does make the offense somewhat predictable in its ability to put a RB who can effectively run and pass, but I expect Breida to step up a bit. I didn't observe Morris being exhausted as you've posted multiple times and I've not seen that reported in other places. I do know Morris is getting himself back into football shape - but it is reported that Morris has an intense pre-game warm-up and tends to get closer towards the end of games. I agree the offense works off the play action and forcing defenses to wear out laterally and hesitate reading run or pass and being non-predictable, but I don't think you've presented a strong enough argument/supposition that it cannot function in this way without Jet.Limited? Yes. Non-functional? That remains to be seen which is why I can't come to this conclusion with certainty.

Hero helped clarify the OZ but I was specifically talking about deeper stretch-runs that stretch the defense laterally to the sidelines before cutting upfield; outside the T's. McKinnon had that unique lateral speed to get to that edge as a runner or receiver. Hyde couldn't do it. Brown couldn't block for it. So Kyle adjusted and everything was up inside or just outside the hash marks. I just haven't seen if Morris can stretch run but at this age and with his lack of speed (lateral), who knows? Breida has the best shot at stretching the defense but he's hit-miss as well. But it may not matter...like with Gore. Teams would stack 9 in the box against him and 99/100 runs were up inside the T's but he was so good, like Morris, it didn't matter.

ER, I'm just not sold on the fact that we didn't do all that we could have given the options (who was available) - like with OG. Of course I don't think Marsh and company are better, but the only real bonafide ER available in FA was re-signed by the Cowboys. And I'm not in the camp that you give up the following:

I totally agree about FA. Attaochu was about it this year and they weren't ready to make a splash in year 1. I'm glad Lynch went after him but just bummed we couldn't close. His impact on this defense and the ripple effect would only be dwarfed by JG joining the offense. My issue with their actions are the inactions via the last two drafts. In another thread, I listed about 20 players we were directly tied too and most with personal visits/workouts. The bottom line is they did nothing. Nothing. So here we are.

Raiders get: 2019 first-round pick, 2020 first-round pick, 2020 third-round pick, 2019 sixth-round pick.
Of course if you're the Raiders you take this deal because the Bears aren't a player away from even being in playoff competition. They will again be picking in the teens for the next two years giving the Raiders a HUGE amount of ammo to rebuild that roster, then making Mack the highest priced defensive player this year. On that team, he won't even come close to having the same effectiveness to say JJ Watt (a similar team).

i don't think fans realize what the Bears did this off season. That defense was top 10 with an enormous amount of injuries and now they just added Mack and Roquan Smith. Then they went all in on offense to surround Trubisky with legit weapons and added an offensive minded HC and staff. Fangio's got the defense. If Trubisky plays well (not great), they could literally end up with a better record than us.

SS: I'd say Exum has been promising. My expectations for the secondary was this season would be a true test for the younger guys without a true vet back there like Reid. I'm for letting the kids play to see what we have.

That's a legit call there. I thought Exum was very solid and a true SS. We have 3 spots open; I wonder why they didn't give him a chance. Otherwise, I love the starters. Every one of them are perfect for this scheme.

I agree there's progress, but I don't think KS is desperate. A QB loss to me is much more of a desperate situation. Just my 2 cents. Thank you bud for expanding here.

I gotcha; perhaps desperation was a little strong when not talking about a FQB going down. Ha. But more b/c he's only got a couple days to redo his game plan and get it to the team in time for study and walk-through.

Originally posted by longterm9erfan:
NC...although I completely understand the trepidation you feel about the team's pass rush, lack of depth at SS, and the loss of a RB that was to carry a big load for the team this season, I would beg to differ with your 7-8 win assessment. Here's why...

1) The team has clearly improved in the middle of the DL, especially with the development of DJ Jones and Day. Therefore, on passing downs, it is no longer essential to have Buckner play inside so I expect him to rush off the edge more and more as the season progresses. At the least, he will draw a double team on the outside, leaving the middle open for pass rushers such as Day, Blair, and Thomas to work less impeded.

2) The team has a much better OL in general and actually may be respectable at the OG position. This will enable the offense to have longer drives and thus keeping the defense off of the field for longer stretches, keeping it fresh for the all important 4th quarter. The depth in the DL will also contribute to this as well.

3) If you all recall, the Niners lost 4-5 games last year by a field goal or less...and this was prior to the arrival of Jimmy. When he was finally installed at QB, the team won those close games. The team would have likely won 2-3 additional games last year had Jimmy played the entire season with SF, putting the team close or in the playoffs....and the roster last year was decimated by injury and inexperience. This year's roster will improve because of an additional year with an excellent coaching staff, fewer injuries overall (hopefully), and more overall talent. The difference between a team that wins 6-7 games and a team that wins 9-10 games are the close games. If you win them, you are in the playoffs and if you lose them, you are out. I think the Niners will win the majority, rather than the minority of the close games this year. We will see.

4) The 2018 49er roster is still a work in progress. Look for the team to add another RB, a SS, and a pass rusher in the coming weeks, either through waivers or trade. Like last year's squad, this year's squad will likely get better as the season progresses. As several zoners have stated, the team is deeper and more talented at DL, ILB, CB, FS, OL, WR, and possibly, TE.

I agree with you.....it's gonna be fun!

Cheers!

Your name is perfect for a post like this. I certainly agree that in-season, if we're able to minimize or alleviate these original roster concerns, we'll be rolling. I just think we're in year 2 of a rebuild, have one hell of a tough schedule esp. the first half of the year and that at best, we'll alleviate one of these major talent/scheme concerns in-season. Oh, and this damn injury curse.

But like you said, the difference between 7 and 10 wins is the difference in space between this little guys fingers!

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by longterm9erfan:

NC...although I completely understand the trepidation you feel about the team's pass rush, lack of depth at SS, and the loss of a RB that was to carry a big load for the team this season, I would beg to differ with your 7-8 win assessment. Here's why...

1) The team has clearly improved in the middle of the DL, especially with the development of DJ Jones and Day. Therefore, on passing downs, it is no longer essential to have Buckner play inside so I expect him to rush off the edge more and more as the season progresses. At the least, he will draw a double team on the outside, leaving the middle open for pass rushers such as Day, Blair, and Thomas to work less impeded.

2) The team has a much better OL in general and actually may be respectable at the OG position. This will enable the offense to have longer drives and thus keeping the defense off of the field for longer stretches, keeping it fresh for the all important 4th quarter. The depth in the DL will also contribute to this as well.

3) If you all recall, the Niners lost 4-5 games last year by a field goal or less...and this was prior to the arrival of Jimmy. When he was finally installed at QB, the team won those close games. The team would have likely won 2-3 additional games last year had Jimmy played the entire season with SF, putting the team close or in the playoffs....and the roster last year was decimated by injury and inexperience. This year's roster will improve because of an additional year with an excellent coaching staff, fewer injuries overall (hopefully), and more overall talent. The difference between a team that wins 6-7 games and a team that wins 9-10 games are the close games. If you win them, you are in the playoffs and if you lose them, you are out. I think the Niners will win the majority, rather than the minority of the close games this year. We will see.

4) The 2018 49er roster is still a work in progress. Look for the team to add another RB, a SS, and a pass rusher in the coming weeks, either through waivers or trade. Like last year's squad, this year's squad will likely get better as the season progresses. As several zoners have stated, the team is deeper and more talented at DL, ILB, CB, FS, OL, WR, and possibly, TE.

I agree with you.....it's gonna be fun!

Cheers!

Your name is perfect for a post like this. I certainly agree that in-season, if we're able to minimize or alleviate these original roster concerns, we'll be rolling. I just think we're in year 2 of a rebuild, have one hell of a tough schedule esp. the first half of the year and that at best, we'll alleviate one of these major talent/scheme concerns in-season. Oh, and this damn injury curse.

But like you said, the difference between 7 and 10 wins is the difference in space between this little guys fingers!

I am looking on the bright side NC, if we get 8 wins it will be the first time since 2014 we didn't have a losing season.

Originally posted by mojave45:
I am looking on the bright side NC, if we get 8 wins it will be the first time since 2014 we didn't have a losing season.

Damn straight! I originally had 8 myself. The great news is we certainly are capable of 8+.

Worth noting Cole Wick is the only player from the P.S. last year to make the team this year. Go Cole!

Originally posted by TheXFactor:
Worth noting Cole Wick is the only player from the P.S. last year to make the team this year. Go Cole!

Stoked for him!

Originally posted by NinerGM:
Cheers man and thanks for the response.

The Bears will surprise some, but it is a brand new offense. The defense will be solid but they are at least 2 years away from contending within their division. I make my home these days in ChiTown and hear/read/see their stuff almost as much as the Niners. Tribisky has to take a big next step and I think this year he'll "learn" the offense. We'll see where the Bears are next season.

Man, with a top 5 defense most likely, that running game and big weapons at WR, you're spot on...they'll go as far as Trubisky can take them but may not be playoff bound just quite yet.

Originally posted by AB81Rules:
i don't get the doom and gloom, yeah McKinnon's injury sucks, and Mack would have been nice, but the compensation was too high, plus that 6yr $141M is too much for us, we need to preserve cap room for our up and coming studs like Buckner, and Day who both will be eligible for new deals after 2018. The season isn't over due to McKinnon injury and no Mack.

I agree that Ward shouldn't have made the team, but to cut him and eat $8.5M is a tough pill to swallow. The other saved money that we cut, not much, but still.

Always the voice of reason, AB... I appreciate your posts.

As far as Ward is concerned, the team is in need of veteran depth in the secondary. Now, that being stated, I don't believe that Ward is solid as a CB on the outside because he doesn't do well when the play is not in front of him. However, as a slot CB or a FS, he is still pretty damn good. By all accounts, he also works hard and is a solid guy in the locker room. Yes, he is making too much money and gets hurt too often. I'll just say this...if the guy can play 10 games this year, he will help the team. Period.

Cheers!

Originally posted by longterm9erfan:

Originally posted by AB81Rules:
i don't get the doom and gloom, yeah McKinnon's injury sucks, and Mack would have been nice, but the compensation was too high, plus that 6yr $141M is too much for us, we need to preserve cap room for our up and coming studs like Buckner, and Day who both will be eligible for new deals after 2018. The season isn't over due to McKinnon injury and no Mack.

I agree that Ward shouldn't have made the team, but to cut him and eat $8.5M is a tough pill to swallow. The other saved money that we cut, not much, but still.

Always the voice of reason, AB... I appreciate your posts.

As far as Ward is concerned, the team is in need of veteran depth in the secondary. Now, that being stated, I don't believe that Ward is solid as a CB on the outside because he doesn't do well when the play is not in front of him. However, as a slot CB or a FS, he is still pretty damn good. By all accounts, he also works hard and is a solid guy in the locker room. Yes, he is making too much money and gets hurt too often. I'll just say this...if the guy can play 10 games this year, he will help the team. Period.

Cheers!

Thanks my friend, i try to be positive and optimistic, one injury and not getting Mack isn't doom and gloom, $141M with $80M GTD is A LOT.