wco81 wrote:CrimsonCrew wrote:
Even if we crush next year's draft, I can't see us being in better shape with Trent, CMC, Kittle, Warner, and Bosa a year older. We have some promising young players, but those vets are all going to be in the HOF conversation (with CMC probably the weakest resume at present, somewhat shockingly). I don't see guys in the pipeline who are likely to replace them.
Not to mention more expensive.
That's why I mentioned TE but ultimately the roster has to be constantly turned over and the team is letting Lynch and Shanahan continue to shape the roster when their spotty drafting record should at least make the team realize that it might not be smart to place all their eggs on Lynch and Shanahan.
Because if and when they determine they have to move on from them, they have given them too much rope with talent acquisition that it will take even longer to clean up after them.
Once several key players well into their 30s retire or can no longer produce at levels to justify their salaries, team will need to rebuild unless the players drafted in the last two drafts and the next two all have the impact of Warner, Bosa, Kittle, etc.
I think the last two drafts have been quite good. Pearsall, Green, Puni, and Mustapha already look like plus starters. There was a lot of optimism about Cowing this season before the injuries. Bethune made a huge leap this year and looks like at least a good depth piece. I have my doubts about Guerendo, but we'll see.
It's extremely early to judge 2025, but it looks like Williams, Stout, West, and Siegel will have clear roles and the inside track to starting jobs at some point. Martin showed remarkable improvement during the preseason, and I'm fairly confident he'll be starting some day (might get the Winters treatment). Watkins flashed in camp, and I think James will carve out a role as a runner. Colby could be a starting OG in the near future. I have some pretty big questions about Collins in the high second round, and given what Williams has offered as a pass rusher to date I wonder if that wasn't a reach given where he was taken. But as of now, I think most of that class could play some role, with several starters to boot.
"Value" is always going to be an issue with this FO. Even if Nick Martin turns into the next Greenlaw, they probably could have taken him in the 5th and used that third-round pick on another position. But I've noted before that a player's value is the pick that the second team would use on him, and after the first round or two, it's just impossible to predict where that will be. Every year, loads of guys go markedly higher or lower than they were projected. Lots of people had Sigle as an undrafted player, and he's already looking like a steal. People (including me) hated the Watkins pick, but he was the talk of camp (we'll see if that pans out on the field). I do it too, but getting too hung up on value when you're adding a good player is somewhat defeatist.
