Mildly excited now!

[Pattersonca65]

5 Standouts from First Week of 49ers OTAs

ok, it is only after one week of OTA, but really like reading the last two names.

thanks for posting Deep. Reaser has the talent to be really good. We'll see how it works out. Aker looked really good in preseason last year also before getting injured. I hope they make the CB spots an open competition. You never know what will happen. You are an old timer like me and might remember this. The 1986 49ers opened camp with Tory Nixon and a former USFL Oakland Invader CB as the projected starting CBs. They didn't look good and by the end of training camp two rookie CB's from small schools became the starting CB's, Tim McKyer and Don Griffin. We all know how that turned out.

 

[Crimsoncrew]

5 Standouts from First Week of 49ers OTAs

ok, it is only after one week of OTA, but really like reading the last two names.

I was reading positive reviews of Patton, and all I could think about was hearing such good things about Marlon Moore going into the 2012 season. That said, I've always had a soft spot for Patton, so I hope he truly is putting it together. It would be nice, for next year and the future.

 

[Crimsoncrew]

Make that the 2013 season.

 

[purguy12]

Patton looking good they said. Good to hear. Also Hunter looks good.

 

[MHSL82]

I don't have Insider, but this piece is "5 Reasons the Niners WONT Drop Off in 2015."

Why San Francisco 49ers won't drop off in 2015 - NFL

 

[Pattersonca65]

I don't have Insider, but this piece is "5 Reasons the Niners WONT Drop Off in 2015."

But I do

San Francisco 49ers fans aren't the only ones wondering what happened to their team this offseason. General managers, personnel directors and coaches around the NFL are wondering, too.
"I have never seen anything like this in the current era of football," one GM said.
Watching veterans Justin Smith and Patrick Willis walk away from the game was one thing. Having relative youngsters Anthony Davis and Chris Borland also retire was another.
"It's crazy," a personnel director marveled. "You just don't see a mass exodus like that."
Those weren't the only high-profile departures. Jim Harbaugh and most of his coaching staff are out. Frank Gore, Michael Crabtree and Mike Iupati left as free agents. The team even traded longtime punter Andy Lee. It's a lot to digest, but as the aftershocks from this offseason begin to subside, the footing beneath the 49ers isn't as tenuous as it has seemed. I count five reasons why a big drop-off should not await the 49ers in 2015.
1. The drop-off already happened.
The 49ers averaged 12 victories per season in their first three years under Harbaugh. That impressive run isn't relevant as a reference point after the 49ers fell to 8-8 last season. Using my favorite metrics of expected points added (explained here), the 49ers' 2014 offense ranked 158th out of 288 offenses since 2006, putting them in the 45th percentile. Their defense ranked 167th out of 288 defenses over the same period (42nd percentile). When oddsmakers recently set the 49ers' 2015 win total at 7.5, they were projecting very little change in the team's fortunes, despite the understandable consternation over a tumultuous offseason.
Willis and Davis did not factor much last season. Torrey Smith could be an upgrade over Crabtree. Talented second-year RB Carlos Hyde is stepping in for Gore. NaVorro Bowman is returning.
2. There is precedent for overcoming big defensive losses.
Baltimore went through something similar following its 2012 Super Bowl season. That Ravens defense lost players who totaled 5,441 snaps, led by Cary Williams, Ed Reed, Bernard Pollard, Paul Kruger, Dannell Ellerbe and Ray Lewis. That Ravens defense got better from a statistical standpoint the next season, improving from 13th to ninth in defensive expected points added.
The 49ers have lost players who combined for 4,107 snaps last season, counting Ray McDonald, who the team cut late last season. Willis, like Lewis in 2012, was no longer as dominant when he retired (slowed by foot trouble, he ranked 21st among inside linebackers in Pro Football Focus grading last season). In 2014, the 49ers got only part-time work from talented young defenders Aldon Smith, Tank Carradine, Corey Lemonier, Jimmie Ward, Quinton Dial and Aaron Lynch. They can reasonably expect much more from most of those players and others, including cornerback Dontae Johnson.
We cannot know whether the 49ers' young replacements will play well enough for the defense to improve upon their No. 14 ranking in defensive EPA. We do know the Ravens overcame similar challenges not long ago, and there's a lot of young talent on that side of the ball for the Niners.
3. Kaepernick could be in a better situation.
Derek Carr and Blake Bortles ranked lower in those situations.
4. There's a good plan in place at running back.
Teams usually cannot go wrong moving on from 30-year-old running backs, but Gore defied age in his final season with the 49ers.
"He was the engine that drove that team," a personnel director said. "I do not know if he is still special, but he was the heart and soul of that team. Of all the guys they lost, he is the guy they will miss the most."
But in Hyde, the 49ers have a 23-year-old alternative. Kendall Hunter is also healthy again; he looked good running with the ball in practice. Reggie Bush's addition provides further insurance and another dimension.
"Everyone in the league thinks Hyde is a good player," an offensive assistant coach said.
5. Organizational dysfunction should not be an issue.
Plenty of questions remain about where this organization is headed over the long term. For now, though, the 49ers can move past the dysfunction that made headlines throughout last season, culminating in Harbaugh's departure.
"Last year was such a dysfunctional year for the whole organization," an opposing coordinator said. "But Kaepernick has taken them to the Super Bowl. Eric Mangini has done a good job with defenses in the past. Hyde is a good back. They have a chance to still be really hard to beat."
Notes
WR to watch in Chicago: Eddie Royal's resurgence over the past two seasons and his early grasp of the Bears' new offense has him in great position to play a prominent role right away. He was a player the staff seemed excited about when I visited Bears camp earlier in the offseason. Royal has 10 red-zone touchdowns over the past two seasons, tied for ninth in the league among wide receivers.
The mood in San Francisco: Despite all the bad news coming out of the 49ers this offseason, spirits seemed to run high during the two practices I watched this week. Players at various position groups fell out laughing as they joked around during breaks in the action, such as during a special-teams period Wednesday.
There was a positive competitive spirit during 11-on-11 drills, including when left tackle Joe Staley pushed for a best-of-three after the offense and defense each claimed victory. Inside the locker room, Kaepernick battled fullback Bruce Miller and others in fast-paced games of ping-pong. I came away from my visit to San Francisco thinking the mood was a little lighter without the hard-charging Harbaugh in full-theater-mode. But as an executive from another team put it, "Don't mistake everyone being happy in a new atmosphere for success."
Mathis' release: Roster turnover is the norm in the NFL, particularly when a new coach takes over. Evan Mathis' release from Philadelphia continues that trend as coach Chip Kelly resets the team's salary structure by wiping out big contracts signed under the team's previous leadership.
Mathis and 10 other Eagles had salary-cap figures of $4 million or higher in 2013, Kelly's first season with the team. Three of the 11 players remain with the team: Jason Peters, Brent Celek and DeMeco Ryans. Mathis, Michael Vick, DeSean Jackson, Trent Cole, Jeremy Maclin, Todd Herremans and James Casey are the eight players no longer with the team. Seven Eagles had 2014 cap charges of at least $5 million. Of those, Peters and Connor Barwin remain (gone are McCoy, Cole, Mathis, Maclin and Cary Williams).