Official 2017 Offseason Thread(prior threads merged)

[RedneckNiner]

Aftee the Seatwats signed Lacy... who would have looked awesome in red and gold...Hightower is a bad consolation prize... and if Lacy regains his motivation and lays ogg the donuts he could be beastmode 2.0 in Seattle...

[Bingo_AlphaMan]

Tim Hightower - RB - Free Agent

The 49ers will host free agent Tim Hightower on Thursday.

Like many of the free agents San Francisco has signed, Hightower has a history with Kyle Shanahan from Washington. The 49ers have addressed their running game aggressively, trading for C Jeremy Zuttah, signing FB Kyle Juszczyk, and now hosting one of the NFL's better No. 2 backs for a visit. Hightower totaled 748 yards and five touchdowns on 155 touches in New Orleans last year.
Source: ESPN.com

Mar 15 - 10:57 PM

[Bingo_AlphaMan]

...

[Ray_Dogg]

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[CrimsonCrew]

Hightower is the sort of player I wouldn't sign until after the draft. If we don't pick up a RB and need depth, we should be able to easily find a guy of Hightower's caliber. Granted he knows the offense, but that's only worth so much.

[CalamityX12]

damn, just saw the chris jones news... lol

[thesack12]

Hightower is the sort of player I wouldn't sign until after the draft. If we don't pick up a RB and need depth, we should be able to easily find a guy of Hightower's caliber. Granted he knows the offense, but that's only worth so much.

I got put on blast for saying it might be better to wait to sign guys of similar pedigree to Hightower.

But I do agree with you. I don't see much benefit in signing guys, who will be in competition to make the 53, prior to the draft.

[Ray_Dogg]

Hightower is the sort of player I wouldn't sign until after the draft. If we don't pick up a RB and need depth, we should be able to easily find a guy of Hightower's caliber. Granted he knows the offense, but that's only worth so much.

I got put on blast for saying it might be better to wait to sign guys of similar pedigree to Hightower.

But I do agree with you. I don't see much benefit in signing guys, who will be in competition to make the 53, prior to the draft.

I count one player signed in the first wave that could struggle to make the 53 at this point in time. Paulsen.

I don't see any benefit in waiting to sign the guys that we did in the first wave. Financially it doesn't prevent the team from doing anything. Roster size doesn't prevent the team from adding anyone. Dead money wouldn't be a factor if one didn't make the team. So really don't see a point in even mentioning that.

Let's say they signed Hightower. Does anyone think it would prevent the team from drafting or adding more RBs?

We gotta get to 90 somehow some way.

[Ray_Dogg]

I think we have around 65 guys on the roster. As it stands now with picks we have 10 more coming in the draft. That leaves 15 spots open for vets and UDFA. Really shouldn't be a concern if we add low cost vets at this point in time. Like they said...competition.

[ChrisPozz]

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My favorite stat of the offseason that sums it up.

[thesack12]

Hightower is the sort of player I wouldn't sign until after the draft. If we don't pick up a RB and need depth, we should be able to easily find a guy of Hightower's caliber. Granted he knows the offense, but that's only worth so much.

I got put on blast for saying it might be better to wait to sign guys of similar pedigree to Hightower.

But I do agree with you. I don't see much benefit in signing guys, who will be in competition to make the 53, prior to the draft.

I count one player signed in the first wave that could struggle to make the 53 at this point in time. Paulsen.

I don't see any benefit in waiting to sign the guys that we did in the first wave. Financially it doesn't prevent the team from doing anything. Roster size doesn't prevent the team from adding anyone. Dead money wouldn't be a factor if one didn't make the team. So really don't see a point in even mentioning that.

Let's say they signed Hightower. Does anyone think it would prevent the team from drafting or adding more RBs?

We gotta get to 90 somehow some way.

Robinson and Goodwin will be competing with; Ellington, Rogers, Burbridge, Smelter, Harper, and Carter. Garcon and Kerley are locks for the final roster. Also, its a pretty good bet that they will draft a WR pretty early in the draft that will lock down a roster spot as well. Everybody Robinson and Goodwin will be competing against are all young and relatively untapped. So I could easily see any of those other guys making the final 53 over Robinson/Goodwin on shear upside if for no other reason.

I also don't consider Barkley to have a firm grasp on a roster spot. Hoyer is obviously locked in, and these days a lot of teams only carry 2 QB's on the roster. That being the case if a QB is drafted early on, Barkley's spot becomes pretty tenuous IMO. If they trade for Cousins, Barkley is definitely not making the final 53, because Hoyer would be the unquestioned backup and of they do keep a 3rd QB, it will be a young developmental guy.

As you alluded to, Paulsen is very much in limbo. McDonald is locked in. So that puts Paulsen up against Celek, Bell, and Hamm already with a potential draftee being added to the mix as well. Bell and Hamm are also young and untapped like a lot of the WR's, so a case could easily be made that potential upside in those guys winning out over the elderly Paulsen.

Sure its entirely possible all those guys end up on the final 53. But today, 41 days before the draft, its far from a given that any of those guys have strangleholds on the 53.

[thesack12]

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My favorite stat of the offseason that sums it up.

Just makes me dislike the Vance McDonald extension all the more.

Thanks, Trent

[wco81]

What is Patton's status?

There were some hopes when he was drafted but just didn't make too many plays. Must not have performed in practice to get many targets.

He's tweeting about the Warriors recently so ...

[ChrisPozz]

What is Patton's status?

There were some hopes when he was drafted but just didn't make too many plays. Must not have performed in practice to get many targets.

He's tweeting about the Warriors recently so ...

Sort of the opposite. He's almost always flashed in practices (to his coaches) but it hasn't translated over into games quarterback or no quarterback (shocking/sarcasm).

http://www.49ers.com/news/article-2/Ronald-Curry-Evaluates-49ers-Wide-Receivers/565c1fdb-ac29-4c85-961b-b7dd6a329dbd

Another name to not sleep on is Patton. The 49ers fourth-round pick in 2013 is entering his third season. While the on-field production has been quiet, six receptions for 78 yards in two seasons, Patton has shown glimpses of his potential this offseason.

“Quinton Patton has always flashed,” Curry said. “He’s going to get a real opportunity to go out there and see what he can do. I’ve been here since he was a rookie, and just to see him grow as a player and a person is great to see. He’s always been dedicated, he’s always been focused, he’s always worked hard, he’s smart and it’s going to be interesting to see how he does in this camp.”

When asked what Patton has been missing in his game, Curry made it simple.

“An opportunity,” Curry said. “And he’ll get it.”

---------------------

And.................


"Totally different," Patton said. "I'm not going to say it's my time, but I'm coming." Patton spent several weeks training with Colin Kaepernick in Arizona and has reportedly stood out during OTAs. With Anquan Boldin and Torrey Smith locked in on the outside, Patton, Bruce Ellington, and Jerome Simpson are competing for the 49ers’ No. 3 receiver job.

-------------------------

and........

Matt Maiocco:

49ers GM Trent Baalke singled out third-year WR Quinton Patton as a player having "an excellent offseason."

[Bald Bull]

Robinson and Goodwin will be competing with; Ellington, Rogers, Burbridge, Smelter, Harper, and Carter. Garcon is the only WR lock for the final roster. Also, its a pretty good bet that they will draft a WR pretty early in the draft that will lock down a roster spot as well. Everybody Robinson and Goodwin will be competing against are all young and relatively untapped. So I could easily see any of those other guys making the final 53 over Robinson/Goodwin on shear upside if for no other reason.

I also don't consider Barkley to have a firm grasp on a roster spot. Hoyer is obviously locked in, and these days a lot of teams only carry 2 QB's on the roster. That being the case if a QB is drafted early on, Barkley's spot becomes pretty tenuous IMO. If they trade for Cousins, Barkley is definitely not making the final 53, because Hoyer would be the unquestioned backup and of they do keep a 3rd QB, it will be a young developmental guy.

As you alluded to, Paulsen is very much in limbo. McDonald is locked in. So that puts Paulsen up against Celek, Bell, and Hamm already with a potential draftee being added to the mix as well. Bell and Hamm are also young and untapped like a lot of the WR's, so a case could easily be made that potential upside in those guys winning out over the elderly Paulsen.

Sure its entirely possible all those guys end up on the final 53. But today, 41 days before the draft, its far from a given that any of those guys have strangleholds on the 53.

you forgot kerley who just signed a new extension. i think he could probably be considered a lock.

[thesack12]

Robinson and Goodwin will be competing with; Ellington, Rogers, Burbridge, Smelter, Harper, and Carter. Garcon is the only WR lock for the final roster. Also, its a pretty good bet that they will draft a WR pretty early in the draft that will lock down a roster spot as well. Everybody Robinson and Goodwin will be competing against are all young and relatively untapped. So I could easily see any of those other guys making the final 53 over Robinson/Goodwin on shear upside if for no other reason.

I also don't consider Barkley to have a firm grasp on a roster spot. Hoyer is obviously locked in, and these days a lot of teams only carry 2 QB's on the roster. That being the case if a QB is drafted early on, Barkley's spot becomes pretty tenuous IMO. If they trade for Cousins, Barkley is definitely not making the final 53, because Hoyer would be the unquestioned backup and of they do keep a 3rd QB, it will be a young developmental guy.

As you alluded to, Paulsen is very much in limbo. McDonald is locked in. So that puts Paulsen up against Celek, Bell, and Hamm already with a potential draftee being added to the mix as well. Bell and Hamm are also young and untapped like a lot of the WR's, so a case could easily be made that potential upside in those guys winning out over the elderly Paulsen.

Sure its entirely possible all those guys end up on the final 53. But today, 41 days before the draft, its far from a given that any of those guys have strangleholds on the 53.

you forgot kerley who just signed a new extension. i think he could probably be considered a lock.

Yeah, you're right when I was originally typing that post I had momentarily forgot about Kerley. Shortly after, I edited it to account for Kerley.

I agree Kerley, will definitely be on the 53. He's currently a better player than all the WR's not named Garcon + he provides special teams value.

Even if WR is not addressed in the draft (although it very likely will), there will be about 9 guys competing for maybe only 4 roster spots. Every WR draftee brought in furthers the potential that Robinson and Goodwin don't make it.

[CrimsonCrew]

I got put on blast for saying it might be better to wait to sign guys of similar pedigree to Hightower.

But I do agree with you. I don't see much benefit in signing guys, who will be in competition to make the 53, prior to the draft.

I count one player signed in the first wave that could struggle to make the 53 at this point in time. Paulsen.

I don't see any benefit in waiting to sign the guys that we did in the first wave. Financially it doesn't prevent the team from doing anything. Roster size doesn't prevent the team from adding anyone. Dead money wouldn't be a factor if one didn't make the team. So really don't see a point in even mentioning that.

Let's say they signed Hightower. Does anyone think it would prevent the team from drafting or adding more RBs?

We gotta get to 90 somehow some way.

Robinson and Goodwin will be competing with; Ellington, Rogers, Burbridge, Smelter, Harper, and Carter. Garcon and Kerley are locks for the final roster. Also, its a pretty good bet that they will draft a WR pretty early in the draft that will lock down a roster spot as well. Everybody Robinson and Goodwin will be competing against are all young and relatively untapped. So I could easily see any of those other guys making the final 53 over Robinson/Goodwin on shear upside if for no other reason.

I also don't consider Barkley to have a firm grasp on a roster spot. Hoyer is obviously locked in, and these days a lot of teams only carry 2 QB's on the roster. That being the case if a QB is drafted early on, Barkley's spot becomes pretty tenuous IMO. If they trade for Cousins, Barkley is definitely not making the final 53, because Hoyer would be the unquestioned backup and of they do keep a 3rd QB, it will be a young developmental guy.

As you alluded to, Paulsen is very much in limbo. McDonald is locked in. So that puts Paulsen up against Celek, Bell, and Hamm already with a potential draftee being added to the mix as well. Bell and Hamm are also young and untapped like a lot of the WR's, so a case could easily be made that potential upside in those guys winning out over the elderly Paulsen.

Sure its entirely possible all those guys end up on the final 53. But today, 41 days before the draft, its far from a given that any of those guys have strangleholds on the 53.

One thing to keep in mind is that there was virtually no chance of us coming away from this offseason with any comp picks for next year. That's a big part of why many teams wait to sign lower-level FAs. Once they pass a certain date (April 1, maybe?), FAs don't count toward the comp pick formula. As that's not a concern for us, we may just be taking advantage of getting the guys we want on the same type of contracts we would have signed them to later while other teams have to sit on their hands.

I think Goodwin is pretty close to a lock for the roster, but you're right, the other guys certainly are not. There are a lot of toss-ups at this point, particularly with all of the returning players basically having a blank slate with the new staff. As long as we're not giving out frivolous guaranteed money, I don't see a tremendous drawback to targeting the guys we want while there isn't much competition. I don't feel particularly strongly about any of these signings, but Hightower is a (almost) 31-year-old RB who has never been all that good.

[CrimsonCrew]

Robinson and Goodwin will be competing with; Ellington, Rogers, Burbridge, Smelter, Harper, and Carter. Garcon is the only WR lock for the final roster. Also, its a pretty good bet that they will draft a WR pretty early in the draft that will lock down a roster spot as well. Everybody Robinson and Goodwin will be competing against are all young and relatively untapped. So I could easily see any of those other guys making the final 53 over Robinson/Goodwin on shear upside if for no other reason.

I also don't consider Barkley to have a firm grasp on a roster spot. Hoyer is obviously locked in, and these days a lot of teams only carry 2 QB's on the roster. That being the case if a QB is drafted early on, Barkley's spot becomes pretty tenuous IMO. If they trade for Cousins, Barkley is definitely not making the final 53, because Hoyer would be the unquestioned backup and of they do keep a 3rd QB, it will be a young developmental guy.

As you alluded to, Paulsen is very much in limbo. McDonald is locked in. So that puts Paulsen up against Celek, Bell, and Hamm already with a potential draftee being added to the mix as well. Bell and Hamm are also young and untapped like a lot of the WR's, so a case could easily be made that potential upside in those guys winning out over the elderly Paulsen.

Sure its entirely possible all those guys end up on the final 53. But today, 41 days before the draft, its far from a given that any of those guys have strangleholds on the 53.

you forgot kerley who just signed a new extension. i think he could probably be considered a lock.

Yeah, you're right when I was originally typing that post I had momentarily forgot about Kerley. Shortly after, I edited it to account for Kerley.

I agree Kerley, will definitely be on the 53. He's currently a better player than all the WR's not named Garcon + he provides special teams value.

Even if WR is not addressed in the draft (although it very likely will), there will be about 9 guys competing for maybe only 4 roster spots. Every WR draftee brought in furthers the potential that Robinson and Goodwin don't make it.

I'd be surprised if we didn't keep at least five WRs, and possibly six. That said, there's no doubt that Robinson and Goodwin will have to step up to hold onto roster spots. I'd love to see Smelter show something, but not holding my breath on that one. Rogers, too.

[thesack12]

I count one player signed in the first wave that could struggle to make the 53 at this point in time. Paulsen.

I don't see any benefit in waiting to sign the guys that we did in the first wave. Financially it doesn't prevent the team from doing anything. Roster size doesn't prevent the team from adding anyone. Dead money wouldn't be a factor if one didn't make the team. So really don't see a point in even mentioning that.

Let's say they signed Hightower. Does anyone think it would prevent the team from drafting or adding more RBs?

We gotta get to 90 somehow some way.

Robinson and Goodwin will be competing with; Ellington, Rogers, Burbridge, Smelter, Harper, and Carter. Garcon and Kerley are locks for the final roster. Also, its a pretty good bet that they will draft a WR pretty early in the draft that will lock down a roster spot as well. Everybody Robinson and Goodwin will be competing against are all young and relatively untapped. So I could easily see any of those other guys making the final 53 over Robinson/Goodwin on shear upside if for no other reason.

I also don't consider Barkley to have a firm grasp on a roster spot. Hoyer is obviously locked in, and these days a lot of teams only carry 2 QB's on the roster. That being the case if a QB is drafted early on, Barkley's spot becomes pretty tenuous IMO. If they trade for Cousins, Barkley is definitely not making the final 53, because Hoyer would be the unquestioned backup and of they do keep a 3rd QB, it will be a young developmental guy.

As you alluded to, Paulsen is very much in limbo. McDonald is locked in. So that puts Paulsen up against Celek, Bell, and Hamm already with a potential draftee being added to the mix as well. Bell and Hamm are also young and untapped like a lot of the WR's, so a case could easily be made that potential upside in those guys winning out over the elderly Paulsen.

Sure its entirely possible all those guys end up on the final 53. But today, 41 days before the draft, its far from a given that any of those guys have strangleholds on the 53.

One thing to keep in mind is that there was virtually no chance of us coming away from this offseason with any comp picks for next year. That's a big part of why many teams wait to sign lower-level FAs. Once they pass a certain date (April 1, maybe?), FAs don't count toward the comp pick formula. As that's not a concern for us, we may just be taking advantage of getting the guys we want on the same type of contracts we would have signed them to later while other teams have to sit on their hands.

I think Goodwin is pretty close to a lock for the roster, but you're right, the other guys certainly are not. There are a lot of toss-ups at this point, particularly with all of the returning players basically having a blank slate with the new staff. As long as we're not giving out frivolous guaranteed money, I don't see a tremendous drawback to targeting the guys we want while there isn't much competition. I don't feel particularly strongly about any of these signings, but Hightower is a (almost) 31-year-old RB who has never been all that good.

Thats a very valid point about the compensatory picks. I hadn't actually considered that.

I agree Goodwin might have a bit of advantage at the moment because on the surface he's the one guy who might be able be the go route, take the top off the defense type. That said, there's and outside chance either Ellington or Smelter develops into that type of guy. Could always bring somebody like that in during the draft as well.

As for the timing of the signings, for me I'm the gambling type. So if they are bringing in guys with limited NFL pedigree and/or are fringe NFL players, I would much prefer rolling with young guys with potential upside or even complete lottery ticket types. But that's just my own personal philosophy.

[thesack12]

you forgot kerley who just signed a new extension. i think he could probably be considered a lock.

Yeah, you're right when I was originally typing that post I had momentarily forgot about Kerley. Shortly after, I edited it to account for Kerley.

I agree Kerley, will definitely be on the 53. He's currently a better player than all the WR's not named Garcon + he provides special teams value.

Even if WR is not addressed in the draft (although it very likely will), there will be about 9 guys competing for maybe only 4 roster spots. Every WR draftee brought in furthers the potential that Robinson and Goodwin don't make it.

I'd be surprised if we didn't keep at least five WRs, and possibly six. That said, there's no doubt that Robinson and Goodwin will have to step up to hold onto roster spots. I'd love to see Smelter show something, but not holding my breath on that one. Rogers, too.

Yeah, when I said competing for 4 roster spots I was considering Garcon and Kerley to already be in and having 6 total WR's on the roster. Thus leaving 4 open spots for the other 9 guys + any draftees.

Rogers intrigues me. I know his path doesn't generally lead to NFL success (DuRon Carter immediately comes to mind), but there's just something about him that leads me to believe he can become a solid NFL'er. Smelter is about 2 years removed from the injury, so if he's ever going to show anything, its time.