3 PLAYERS I AM CLOSELY WATCHING IN 2015

[49er4life1979]

The 3 players who I believe need to significantly perform better imo in 2015 are:
1. Vance McDonald - 2nd round pick, drafted primarily for his pass catching has done very little in that department. He's got all the physical tools and the speed to be a stud, so time to start showing it. It really bugs me that his former college teammate Luke Willson, a 5th rounder is doing better than him. Vance has been a solid blocker thus far, but I am sure all of you agree we need much more than that at this point from him.
2. Corey Lemonier - a solid rookie season but he hit a wall last year. He obviously needs more pass rush moves in his arsenal. With Brooks all but guaranteed to be gone and Skuta a free agent, Niners definitely need him to start playing in the rotation.
3. Quinton Patton - a solid rookie preseason, unfortunately missed most of his rookie season due to injury, but came on late in the season with some clutch catches. Was WIDE open underneath in the NFC Title Game with no one in sight but we wont go there...He also caught a nice 35 yard pass against Arizona in the finale this season. He has the speed and elusiveness to be an underneath weapon, and if Stevie is released for his high cap #, I would love to see Patton step in.

 

[Pattersonca65]

The 3 players who I believe need to significantly perform better imo in 2015 are:
1. Vance McDonald - 2nd round pick, drafted primarily for his pass catching has done very little in that department. He's got all the physical tools and the speed to be a stud, so time to start showing it. It really bugs me that his former college teammate Luke Willson, a 5th rounder is doing better than him. Vance has been a solid blocker thus far, but I am sure all of you agree we need much more than that at this point from him.
2. Corey Lemonier - a solid rookie season but he hit a wall last year. He obviously needs more pass rush moves in his arsenal. With Brooks all but guaranteed to be gone and Skuta a free agent, Niners definitely need him to start playing in the rotation.
3. Quinton Patton - a solid rookie preseason, unfortunately missed most of his rookie season due to injury, but came on late in the season with some clutch catches. Was WIDE open underneath in the NFC Title Game with no one in sight but we wont go there...He also caught a nice 35 yard pass against Arizona in the finale this season. He has the speed and elusiveness to be an underneath weapon, and if Stevie is released for his high cap #, I would love to see Patton step in.

Great post. I am hoping Vance McDonald can turn it around. Reminds me of Wesley Walls. He was a tight end drafted with the 49ers. He was hurt on the 49ers for a couple of seasons. Once healthy, he eventually became a pro bowler on Carolina. Hopefully McDonald can find it on the 49ers. He has shown flashes in the pass game.

I read somewhere once the coaching staff was disappointed in Patton's pace of development. Part of the problem is he hardly saw the field last year with the team committed to its veteran WRs. Plus, I think WR development was lacking under Johnny Morton. Hopefully, the new coaching staff can get more out of their young receivers.

Lemonier I am the most down on. I saw nothing out of him. Lynch may never have seen the field if Lemonier was able to do anything. He couldn't beat anyone to the QB and was easily taken out of the game. It brings back memories of Todd Kelly and Israel Ifeanyi

 

[Pattersonca65]

There could be quite a few younger players to watch this year. Marcus Martin will be back with a season under his belt, Hope he is healthy and will be interesting to see how well he develops. If Lupati leaves, Brandon Thomas will be another player to watch. Same goes for Carradine and Dial. Be interesting to see how those players perform if either is given extensive playing time. While we are at it, you could also throw Hyde in the mix if Gore is not back. Hyde has shown flashes of being really good. His success is going to be critical if Gore leaves and he is given the lead back role which is almost sure to happen.

 

[49er4life1979]

Great post. I am hoping Vance McDonald can turn it around. Reminds me of Wesley Walls. He was a tight end drafted with the 49ers. He was hurt on the 49ers for a couple of seasons. Once healthy, he eventually became a pro bowler on Carolina. Hopefully McDonald can find it on the 49ers. He has shown flashes in the pass game.

I read somewhere once the coaching staff was disappointed in Patton's pace of development. Part of the problem is he hardly saw the field last year with the team committed to its veteran WRs. Plus, I think WR development was lacking under Johnny Morton. Hopefully, the new coaching staff can get more out of their young receivers.

Lemonier I am the most down on. I saw nothing out of him. Lynch may never have seen the field if Lemonier was able to do anything. He couldn't beat anyone to the QB and was easily taken out of the game. It brings back memories of Todd Kelly and Israel Ifeanyi

Yep. It makes the re-signing of Skuta very important for that reason. Heaven forbid Aldon or Lynch go down we could be screwed. Also I would not rule out Baalke drafting another pass rusher for deph and competition.

 

[49er4life1979]

There could be quite a few younger players to watch this year. Marcus Martin will be back with a season under his belt, Hope he is healthy and will be interesting to see how well he develops. If Lupati leaves, Brandon Thomas will be another player to watch. Same goes for Carradine and Dial. Be interesting to see how those players perform if either is given extensive playing time. While we are at it, you could also throw Hyde in the mix if Gore is not back. Hyde has shown flashes of being really good. His success is going to be critical if Gore leaves and he is given the lead back role which is almost sure to happen.

I thought Martin did well when he played. Grant it, he was only 20 last year! Very young player. He may however end up at LG with Kilgore at C...As for Carradine and Dial, I was very pleased. Tank notched 3 sacks in the final 3 games, and Dial looked good overall as well, grant it he'd be better at DE than inside at NT in the 3-4. He is too tall for a NT. Dial too finished with 2 sacks on the season, not to mention had a strong preseason...As for Hyde, he will be a beast, no doubt. He is the future at RB and imo, that future is right now.

 

[Pattersonca65]

I thought Martin did well when he played. Grant it, he was only 20 last year! Very young player. He may however end up at LG with Kilgore at C...As for Carradine and Dial, I was very pleased. Tank notched 3 sacks in the final 3 games, and Dial looked good overall as well, grant it he'd be better at DE than inside at NT in the 3-4. He is too tall for a NT. Dial too finished with 2 sacks on the season, not to mention had a strong preseason...As for Hyde, he will be a beast, no doubt. He is the future at RB and imo, that future is right now.

Martin was inconsistent. Had his moments. Not unexpected given his lack of experience and preparation coming in. Center is a tough position to come in as a rookie. Any OL line position can be tough as a rookie, especially when he wasn't expected to play this year.

 

[deep9er]

Yep. It makes the re-signing of Skuta very important for that reason. Heaven forbid Aldon or Lynch go down we could be screwed. Also I would not rule out Baalke drafting another pass rusher for deph and competition.

yep, can never get enough pass rushers, and can't assume everyone stays healthy. So similar to Lynch last year, should later value arise, do draft a pass rusher.

if value warrants it, I'd go so far as to go OLB in round 1. granted, it doesn't seem likely this draft cause 'value' means an EVERY down OLB, with excellent pass rush skills. from my layman's perspective, there is value at WR.

 

[AU_Fever]

Great post. I am hoping Vance McDonald can turn it around. Reminds me of Wesley Walls. He was a tight end drafted with the 49ers. He was hurt on the 49ers for a couple of seasons. Once healthy, he eventually became a pro bowler on Carolina. Hopefully McDonald can find it on the 49ers. He has shown flashes in the pass game.

I read somewhere once the coaching staff was disappointed in Patton's pace of development. Part of the problem is he hardly saw the field last year with the team committed to its veteran WRs. Plus, I think WR development was lacking under Johnny Morton. Hopefully, the new coaching staff can get more out of their young receivers.

Lemonier I am the most down on. I saw nothing out of him. Lynch may never have seen the field if Lemonier was able to do anything. He couldn't beat anyone to the QB and was easily taken out of the game. It brings back memories of Todd Kelly and Israel Ifeanyi

I agree. I don't know how Morton kept his job. Niners should take a page from the Steelers on how to evaluate and develop receivers. I hope that Patton gets an opportunity this year. I've been impressed with McDonald's blocking and I hope he gets more involve in the passing game. VD had such a down year and I don't know what to expect from him this year.

 

[Pattersonca65]

I agree. I don't know how Morton kept his job. Niners should take a page from the Steelers on how to evaluate and develop receivers. I hope that Patton gets an opportunity this year. I've been impressed with McDonald's blocking and I hope he gets more involve in the passing game. VD had such a down year and I don't know what to expect from him this year.

I heard Patton had come along late last year. Need to let Patton and Ellington play.

 

[purguy12]

The 3 players who I believe need to significantly perform better imo in 2015 are:
1. Vance McDonald - 2nd round pick, drafted primarily for his pass catching has done very little in that department. He's got all the physical tools and the speed to be a stud, so time to start showing it. It really bugs me that his former college teammate Luke Willson, a 5th rounder is doing better than him. Vance has been a solid blocker thus far, but I am sure all of you agree we need much more than that at this point from him.
2. Corey Lemonier - a solid rookie season but he hit a wall last year. He obviously needs more pass rush moves in his arsenal. With Brooks all but guaranteed to be gone and Skuta a free agent, Niners definitely need him to start playing in the rotation.
3. Quinton Patton - a solid rookie preseason, unfortunately missed most of his rookie season due to injury, but came on late in the season with some clutch catches. Was WIDE open underneath in the NFC Title Game with no one in sight but we wont go there...He also caught a nice 35 yard pass against Arizona in the finale this season. He has the speed and elusiveness to be an underneath weapon, and if Stevie is released for his high cap #, I would love to see Patton step in.

Mine are Hyde, Lynch and Johnson(CB). Also throw in Tank.

 

[49er4life1979]

Mine are Hyde, Lynch and Johnson(CB). Also throw in Tank.

Hyde showed enough to warrant being the No. 1 this season. Lynch had 6 sacks and looked good - so long Ahmad Brooks, Johnson looked decent but needs more experience obviously. And I really liked what I saw out of Tank, 3 sacks in the final 3 games.

 

[49er4life1979]

yep, can never get enough pass rushers, and can't assume everyone stays healthy. So similar to Lynch last year, should later value arise, do draft a pass rusher.

if value warrants it, I'd go so far as to go OLB in round 1. granted, it doesn't seem likely this draft cause 'value' means an EVERY down OLB, with excellent pass rush skills. from my layman's perspective, there is value at WR.

If Skuta leaves for a starting job, the draft has some nice OLB prospects who can rush the passer. We will definitely also need another DL should Justin retire. There is already a hole left from cutting Ray McDonald. Tank get ready for more PT, same for you Quinton Dial. They looked good last year when they played, they will need to be even better in 2015.

 

[Montalban]

The 3 players who I believe need to significantly perform better imo in 2015 are:
1. Vance McDonald - 2nd round pick, drafted primarily for his pass catching has done very little in that department. He's got all the physical tools and the speed to be a stud, so time to start showing it. It really bugs me that his former college teammate Luke Willson, a 5th rounder is doing better than him. Vance has been a solid blocker thus far, but I am sure all of you agree we need much more than that at this point from him.
2. Corey Lemonier - a solid rookie season but he hit a wall last year. He obviously needs more pass rush moves in his arsenal. With Brooks all but guaranteed to be gone and Skuta a free agent, Niners definitely need him to start playing in the rotation.
3. Quinton Patton - a solid rookie preseason, unfortunately missed most of his rookie season due to injury, but came on late in the season with some clutch catches. Was WIDE open underneath in the NFC Title Game with no one in sight but we wont go there...He also caught a nice 35 yard pass against Arizona in the finale this season. He has the speed and elusiveness to be an underneath weapon, and if Stevie is released for his high cap #, I would love to see Patton step in.

Those three players are meaningless though. I'll be watching an aging Willis, an aging Gore and a player coming off missing an entire season in Bowman. Without those three the team is really going to srtruggle. I don't think they'd miss a beat without the three you mentioned.