I was there - We all thought the same thing - Ball hits ground, nothing but white jerseys near it, season over.
The NFC championship game was a tough pill to swallow. As I have told people the experience from my POV, when my voice returned a week later, that there wasn't a point in the game I didn't think "We've got this, we are going to the Super Bowl" right up until Kyle Williams second fumble.
(How I looked on the drive home)
But I am not trying to dwell on fumbles blown dead, or 3rd and long TDs, or poor kick returning. No, that's for Raiders fans to do. I prefer to think about how bright the future is for our beloved 49ers, and how things that looked so bleak one year ago have totally turned around.
The coaching is in place. Its obvious from a 13-3 record, AP Coach of the year, and the fact a lot of the assistants were interviewed for head coaching positions. The front Office is in place - this is the most talented the roster has been in years, the GM was just signed to an extension, and they have 30 million in cap space for 2012. Oh, and Mount Singletary has been torn down to make way for our brand new, state-of-the-art stadium.
The one thing that worried me was the amount of free agents the team has. Alex Smith, Ted Ginn, Josh Morgan, Adam Snyder, Carlos Rodgers, Ahmad Brooks, Dashon Goldson, to name the starters. But again, nothing but roses, as Goldsen has said he doesn't expect to leave, the GM showed last season to be very savvy when navigating the Free Agency market. Also, with the amount of cap space, pundits seem to think keeping most of their key free agents shouldn't be an issue.
The biggest two wild cards I see are Rodgers and Brooks. Football is a funny game, where you can be cut at a moments notice, so you REALLY can't blame a player for chasing the money. I hope they both stay and continue to build on the best D in the league, but you are held as accountable as the dumbest team in the league, so who is to say what they will do.
Assuming the key free agents are retained, it is time to go shopping.We saw how good the offense and special teams were, its time to beef up the offense. I expect some turnover with WR, but think Crabtree, Williams, Morgan and maybe even Ginn will all be back. So there is room for a draftee and a FA to push these guys.
the draft isn't nearly as predictable, but the FA market is. DeSean Jackson, a player they SHOULD have draft, will likely be franchised. As will Dwayne Bowe. But there are still some very interesting players who could push everyone down a post on the depth chart and make each WR much better with a lesser workload.
1. Vincent Jackson - I am always weary of players like Jackson, who seem to have 3-5 monster game a year and disappear in others(Evidenced by his 6 games with 2 or less catches, and 4 more games with only 3 catches). True #1 WRs show up week in and week out, and with his recent hold outs, I wonder how much of a team guy he truly is.
2. Reggie Wayne - the most established, but also oldest, WR of the crop. He still had almost 1000 yards despite Peyton not being there. Good hands, solid WR, but more of a possession WR coming to a team needing explosiveness, and he might not make the impact the team needs for the money it would spend. That being said, look at the type of boost Isaac Bruce, far past his prime, did for the offense in his one productive season here.
3. Marquis Colston - He is my personal favorite. Talks of Drew Brees having contract difficulties likely takes any chance of him being franchised away. He makes big plays, gets first downs, moves the chains, is big (6'4) and would be the best fit. Despite missing 2+ games, he still had 80 receptions, 1100+ yards and 8 TDs.
The secondary market isn't very promising, plus, we have plenty of secondary WRs - we need a primary, to open things up for everyone else. Its amazing how much a year changes things, btu taht is really all taht is on the shopping list. If Rodgers or Snyder or Brooks departs, we could be in the market for an OLB, CB or G, but they have all indicated they would like to come back. And the same way Baalke was able to pluck Rodgers, Jonothan Goodwin and Donte Whitner off of last years market, I feel confident he could replace a few starters without seeing a significant drop off.
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