That's awesome! I'm glad to hear it.

Good news, assuming Bruce will retain flanker position where will Jones now play?

cool

I think this shows that he believes in Singletary and what he has in place/plans for the future.

I think your comment is right on the money! That makes me excited, because as you pointed out I don't think he would return if he didn't believe in the direction we were going.

However, I know Bruce makes us better, but I was kind of looking forward to getting the young guys more involved. Does this mean the end of Battle?

HELL YEAH BABY!!! This will help our young WR corps so much. I heard he and Josh Morgan are close friends as well.

It looks like God was on the 49ers side this time, instead of the Cards'...

In all seriousness, glad to hear it. I think his veteran leadership will continue to help the young WRs develop, and he is definitely a class act on and off the field. Plus, he was our leading receiver last year.

can't believe i am saying this - YES!!!!!....this is great news for A.Smith

can't believe i am saying this - YES!!!!!....this is great news for A.Smith and the young receivers...

Matt,
How does this shape out our WR depth chart? Does this pretty much eliminate drafting a WR? Thanks

root

This is great news for Josh Morgan in particular. Morgan had some difficulties getting open last year, and Bruce excells at creating separation, even with diminished speed and strength at the position. Morgan really looks up to Bruce, calling him a second father, so you know he learns from Bruce whenever he can.

im glad 2 have isaac bruce back.. he is a veteran and im sure he sets a good example for the youngsters..

Great news!

He's a great mentor for our young receivers who also happened to play pretty dang good last year for an old guy ;^)

Coach Nolan coming back to San fransico in August - not an April fools joke

I guess I'm the only one that isn't very excited about this move. This further slows the growth of our younger WRs and don't tell me Bruce will teach them, they don't need a mentor, they need reps in games. This is just another in a line of conservative moves that show little vision when it comes to the big picture and simply gives us a safe receiver. We need a playmaker, not another possession WR.

Glad to have Bruce back. If there’s a really promising draft prospect at WR in the lower rounds we can grab him and park him on the practice squad. Otherwise, go with what we have at WR now and hope that Hill & Morgan continue to develop.

Having had very successful surgery on a bulging disk problem in December, I’m particularly hopeful for the new RT --- who needs to be named “Captain Marvel”. I’ve even changed my picture in his honor. For those under 60 years old, just google Captain Marvel.

Toby, could you be anymore negative? He was our leading receiver last year, and yet you say our young guys don't need a mentor? If they are so good, why didn't they lead the team in receiving?

His work ethic is on another level, and the young guys do need to see what it takes to play as long as he has and still be productive. Morgan and Hill will still get their reps, and Jones is a big unknown. We will probably pick up a speedster in the draft also.

My favorite Bruce moment last year was when he took over the game in St Louis, when we were down big time, and with the record on the line. The guy is clutch and he's money in the end zone. Your a fool if you don't think the young guys can learn from him.

Oh yeah, and one more thing Toby:

John Morgan is the only WR on our roster that has shown flashes of play making ability, and last I checked he was still on the roster and refers to Bruce as "his second father".

Let's hope we add another playmaker in the draft. I agree we need more playmakers and less possession receivers, but I'm very happy that Bruce is coming back. He brings the intangibles to the game that you need to be successful. Fast 40 times and big bodies don't automatically translate to hall of fame status. I'm sure that Jerry's 40 time was not anything special ...

Maualuga is set to visit the San Francisco 49ers next week

http://profootball.scout.com/2/852437.html

Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports wrote that Minnesota backed out in attempting to get Cutler after internal discussions led them to conclude he is a douchebag.

Robinson goes on to say that since Singletary has already shown he wants to keep any team issues in-house and is currently cleaning up the org to do so, Niners may shy away from Cutler.

Add to that, the Niners would have to give up lots of picks and get really creative (add a third team like Cleveland to the mix) to get Cutler.

So he does not believe the Niners will not pursue that hard.

Again, this is one guy's opinion. I believe that only two QB people in recent memory has publicly asked to be traded or not picked in the draft and went on to be successful: Elway and Eli Manning.

Well, Manning was more of a team effort than actually putting the team on his shoulders, right? ;)

Traj

The competition among the wide receivers should be a very exciting one to watch this training camp, particularly if we draft another receiver in the first two rounds. My early guess is Bruce and Morgan will be the starters at Z and X respectively, and Jones will compete with Jason Hill and Arnaz Battle (and possibly any rookies in the draft class) for the third receiver. Depth is good. Whoever plays well will earn their way onto the field. I am excited.

I'm happy he's coming back...he can still play at a higher level than most doubters thought, plus he's a coach on and off the field. Actually, I hope he decides to coach after his playing days...he'd be a good one. Anyway, he'll continue to be a mentor to Jason Hill and Josh Morgan. I'm sure Brandon Jones can also learn from him...he didn't exactly have that kind of mentor in Tenn. Also a nice validation of Singletary's vision with Raye as his OC.

Cutler is like the hot "freshly single and available" chick at the bar that everybody crowds around and stumbles over themselves trying to hook up with. She's young, gorgeous, and has great "proportions" ... (it's funny how scouts and personnel people react to quarterbacks with strong arms like most men react to women with large "proportions"). Lost in the enthusiasm and fascination with her "proportions" is any interest in the circumstances of her last relationship. How much are you willing to give up to get with her? Are you then willing to marry the chick and ignore the possibility that she runs off with your house and car once you have a difference of opinion? I think this is a case where the personnel folks at 49er HQ need to really think about this situation and just turn around and run away.

I don't really care if he's back or not... but for those that are saying it's good because he can mentor the young'uns, you must not remember Matt's piece on him last year. He doesn't mentor. He doesn't verbally try to help the younger receivers. He just 'leads by example'. So it MAY help for them to see him run routes (which he is damn good at), but he won't be doing any mentoring.

Evidently you missed the piece on Bruce very recently where Josh Morgan said that he wanted Bruce back, that Bruce constantly answered Morgan's frequent questions, and that Bruce was like a second father to Morgan on the field. You're right, Bruce sounds disinterested in mentoring.
As great a job as Matt does, he doesn't get to go to position group meetings, he can't see everything that happens in practice (position groups practice separately, and we have no definitive evidence that MM can be in several places at once), and the only knowledge he can have about internal conversations is based on what players and coaches choose to tell him. When a player reflects on another player the way Morgan did about Bruce, you have to take that at face value.

I like iBruce a lot. Super-quality guy. Good news all around - can't have enough champs and leaders around...

Also, interesting segment on KNBR this morning with Mooch. He had great words for Hill and Smith. And I agree... Hill's a great QB (I believe), or at least, a pretty good one. And Alex takes the job *only* if he shows himself to be better.

IMO a great situation for the Niners.

I don't recall that one. I did recall this one, though:

http://49ers.pressdemocrat.com/default.asp?item=2263510&mode=

"Q: You said J.T. is coachable and he listens, are you ever the one who's coaching him up on the offense, given your background with the offense?

Bruce: "No, not really. He has enough coaches coaching him up, so he doesn't need my help."

Q: How about some of the younger receivers, like Josh Morgan and Jason Hill?

Bruce: "I'll tell you what. The biggest way I learned was just watching and watch other guys I wanted to be like. And I didn't have to ask them too many things. I just did what they did.""

jimmy raye can now officially come up with a working 5 receiver set for those just in case moments like at the end of fins game.

Mark Sanchez scheduled to vist also...

http://www.latimes.com/sports/college/usc/la-sp-farmer-pro-day1-2009apr01,0,5416636.column

Wow, Bruce chooses to downplay his involvement in helping people out. That is par for the course for him. He also generally chooses not to talk much about his involvement in charity efforts, but he does a world of good for a lot of people. He has said before that he doesn't want the credit here, because he believes rewards come in heaven. It may not be everyone else's belief, but it is his way to step back when people try to hand out accolades.

Alabama OT Smith plans to meet with five teams

Smith also has visits scheduled later this week and next week with San Francisco (No. 10), Philadelphia (Nos. 21 and 28), the New York Jets (No. 17) and Cleveland (No. 5).

www.nfl.com

And the hits keep coming on the Good News Front. I'm glad Bruce is coming back simply because the guy can ball. Yes he's more of a possession reciever but when you have a 3rd and 8 who better to go to than Bruce you Nay-Sayers? All the guy does is produce on a consistant basis that's all.

If Sanchez already met with the 49ers how come Matt didn't report it? I think the LA Times article is bogus.

F49er,ever heard of private work out?

B-R-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-U-C-E !

In the off season hope springs eternal. Bruce was clearly a smart and talented receiver who worked well within Martz's scheme. I really don't know what he will do with this new scheme. Maybe he will just continue on, but maybe he will not have the advantage of his years of experience adjusting to the defense with the Martz's reaction patterns which might be why he got open late in his career when his speed dropped. But time will tell. Morgan needs to play no matter what. Let's see if he can perform on a regular basis. Remember he only has 20 receptions as an NFL receiver and that isn't a lot to hang your hat on. Though he sure looks like he has potential. Play him over Bruce

Maybe it's an April Fool's Day joke, but see ---

http://www.denverexaminer.problitz.com/sports/broncos/20090401-Cutler-Trade.html

From a commenter on BeeRows blog a minute ago.

I've been had !! Just went back and scrolled all the way to the bottom. April Fools.

Good thing The Bruce Is Back. I dont think the Niners would have gotten anyone else even if Bruse retired.

Who does that leave us with ar WR in 09?

Bruce
Morgan
Battle
Jones
Hill
Zeigler

Spurlock
Price
Bradford

He may have slowed, but he's known around the league as one of the best route runners playing the game today. The ability to run a crisp route will ensure that he'll be able to separate from DBs, regardless of the system.

Yummy,

Is that like being on "Double Secret Probation?"

Comment: He doesn't mentor. He doesn't verbally try to help the younger receivers. He just 'leads by example'.

My response: Bruce is eccentric, to be sure, but I think he is a good teammate. He's not going to sit at his locker and hold court, but I do believe he picks his spots to help his younger teammates. He's not a real social person, but he does speak to his teammates. I think it's a positive for the team that he's back. --Matt M.

Just got the Tweet from Pete Carrol and he said Sanchez had an OUTSTANDING DAY!!
Franchise has got to be drooling at this point!!

Matt,

Can you enlighten us on this so called "private workout" that Sanchez had with the 49ers? and if so when did this supposedly happen?

Bruce is coming back and that is a good thing. Sing has made a point of not allowing veterans take PT from young players just because they're veterans. Look at Rachel. If Morgan starts to shine, we'll see Bruce have less and less PT.

Whose playing time is diminished by the return of Bruce? Battle? Morgan? Hill? the kid from Tenn? It's a good thing to get Bruce back but I think Walsh had it right. Get rid of them before a precipitous decline. Does Raye run primarily 2 or 3 receiver sets? I hope Bruce doesn't get playing time based on his name alone. I'd like to see some of the younger guys step up or step out.

This an excerpt from a different blog. I didn't want to link to it, because I didn't know if that is considered rude, kinda like Matt invited me over for dinner and I brought McDonald's, but the interview with Morgan does reflect upon Bruce's qualities as a mentor:

# # # 2:40 p.m. update # # # I just got off the phone with Josh Morgan. I wanted his reaction to the news that his mentor is coming back.

“I’m ecstatic,’’ he said. “There’s a lot more learning I can do.”

Morgan said he got the news when it came across the crawl on ESPN. He had been holding out hope that Bruce would return and had a hunch based on the final months of last season. “He was just having so much fun,’’ Morgan said.

Morgan called Bruce a “second father” for his help a year ago. He recalled on Wednesday all the advice passed his way. For one thing, Bruce always reminded the kid that he was playing a game. “He would say, ‘Never stop enjoying this. The reason you started playing football in the first place is because it was fun. Don’t let anybody ever change that.’’’

http://www.denverexaminer.problitz.com/sports/broncos/20090401-Cutler-Trade.html

NINERS GETTING CUTLER?????
SMITH SENT TO DENVER WITH PICK # 1 & 3???????
Is this real?????

Read to the bottom of the article.
April Fool's

Question: Is this real?????

My response: Unfortunately, it is not real. Denver has not opened another newspaper to replace the defunct Rocky Mountain News. --Matt M.

Ahhhhh....

THAT WOULD BE A NO goatfather. Not today, not tomorrow, not the day after, etc., etc. ,etc. NEVER! So people let's move on.

Matt,

So what about this so called "private workout" that yummy insinuates happened already with Sanchez at the 49er facility?

Sanchez visit is next week.

http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/49ers/archives/021205.html?mi_rss=49ers%20Blog%20and%20Q%26A

yummy,

lets not have a link to barrows blog plz.

So Yummy,

I guess the "private workout" didn't happen eh? Nor is it "private" afterall. Nice

For all of the criticism most of you laid on Nolan, you guys are worse! Multiple 1st and 2nd round pix and Smith for Cutler? WTF?! You do realize that football is a team sport right? You are so eager to sell the farm for one guy… one who hasn’t even proven himself in the NFL. Granted his got a nice arm, but I don’t remember Cutler taking the Broncos deep in the post season… has he even taken them to the playoffs? If the Broncos have made it, $100 says it was because of the running game not the QB. You all sound like Ditka… Ricky really turned the Saints around didn’t he? C’mon! Going all out for Cutler would make sense if he was the one piece the team needed in order to be SB contenders. But we need depth at multiple positions, and arguably a starter or two (QB, OT, and/or FS). If anything, we should try to acquire as many picks as we can in the first three rounds and try to shore up our lines and grab a legitamate #2 RB (who could share the load with Gore). With the lower picks we should get some depth at the other positions (QB, RB, WR, DE, S, and ST). Once we have an established team identity, a solid foundation of talent and a mix of veterans, then we can go after a stud QB (that will be pretty costly by the way). Rookie HC + sub-par OL + expensive prema donna QB = Disaster! (see McNolan). Seriously, as much as most of you have to say regarding the errors and failures of the previous coaches/GM’s, I’d figure you’d be smart enough not to make the same mistakes. Keep the big picture in mind guys… you’re starting to sound like some of the SF Giants fans who were clamoring for Manny Ramirez. Oy vey!

Cutler is halfway through the six-year, $48 million contract he signed as the 11th overall pick out of Vanderbilt in the 2006 draft. He's 17-20 as Broncos starter, although that's misleading because of Denver's dismal defense.

In games where the Broncos have allowed 21 points or fewer, Cutler is an impressive 13-1, and that only loss was to Green Bay in 2007 when the Packers won the coin toss and Brett Favre threw an 82-yard touchdown pass on the first play of overtime.

hey matt seeing as this is april 1st, this isn't a fool's joke is it?

F49er,what the hell are you bitching about... the private work out next week. you act like i'm making crap up. if you don't believe me go to barrows blog.

Hey Franchise! Your boy looked stellar today. Great Kid no doubt about it.
http://all-access.cbssports.com/player.html?code=usc&media=112019

yummy,

Go back to your 1:25pm post. You originally posted a bogus article from the LA Times & YOU believed it. It said in the article that Sanchez ALREADY met with the 49ers which in fact was NOT the case. Now your changing your tune after the fact but boy your were pretty smug thinking you knew something that nobody else knew & you came back to me with that snide comment about "ever heard of a private workout?" Dude I'm just calling you phony that's all.

Matt's at the Warrior game, he just tweeted and is not having a good time.

YESS!! THEY GOT BRUCE BACK AND JUST AQUIRED JASON TAYLOR!! THIS IS GREAT NEWS

Hi Matt, Good news with Bruce back on board, What he has forgotten is more than most receivers know. These great receivers age like fine wine. In another post I said that I did not think that the front office could pull the trigger on a trade for Cutler. However, if the Browns back down the niners have a shot with the 10th pick as bait. Wouldn't be
funny if Alex went to the Broncos and was on the same sideline as the Suit. A reality show in the making.

Finally,I never acted smug as you are claiming. You asked how he could have meet with the 49ers already like LA Times reported. I told you how. You went on crying like a baby how LA times is bogus. Yes newspaper make mistakes some times. I'm sure Matt made mistakes before,but unlike you he doesn't cry because a report made an error and throws a fit about it. The point of my posting LA times article was Sanchez meeting with the 49ers which is true. So do me a favor F49er stop pouting like a 2 year old and go cry to someone that cares.

ninermaniac,nice april fools joke on taylor...lol

WOW!

Calm down yummy, just because you've been exposed now & have lost all credibility with the rest of the 49er Empire you don't need to get your chonies in a bunch. Just take your medicine like the little boy that you are ok?

Perhaps the 49ers could come up with their franchise quarterback without giving up the 10th pick (and more)...

An interesting development from the Washington Post:

(An) NFL source said a high-ranking Redskins official contacted one NFL team yesterday about the possibility of trading quarterback Jason Campbell for a second-round pick in the upcoming draft. That source said he interpreted the Redskins' overture as an attempt by Washington to put together a package to acquire Cutler.

Rather have Hill and/or Smith than weak sauce Jason Campbell