Day 17, practice 25: Willis returns
It's Day 21 since the first day 49ers rookies reported. It's Day 17 of practices. And it was practice No. 25.
And looking back over my notes from the session, there's not a whole lot that distinguished today from the other days. There's still no sign of Michael Crabtree. The quarterback picture is static.
But the 49ers did get their biggest star back on the field today.
Linebacker Patrick Willis took part in individual drills after being out of action since Aug. 3, when he injured his right ankle/Achilles during a nutcracker drill against Michael Robinson. Guard David Baas sustained a left foot injury on Aug. 4 during the same drill.
The "nutcracker", which coach Mike Singletary instituted at the beginning of camp, is a drill in which two like-sized players square off head-to-head with the object being to push the other directly backward.
Running back Michael Robinson (groin) and cornerback Tarell Brown (toe) were back in pads this morning. Robinson took part in individual drills and some limited team work, while Brown was scheduled to begin running. Robinson has been out since Aug. 4, while Brown was injured on the first day of camp. It is not known if they were injured during the nutcracker drill.
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Willis wanted to return to full practice today but he was kept out. It's unlikely he will see full action when the 49ers practice Tuesday and Wednesday against the Raiders.
When Willis returns to the playing field, he will be outfitted with the helmet with the radio transmitter. Willis will call plays in the huddle. He was uncomfortable in that role last season. But this year he says he's ready for the challenge.
"It verifies that this is my show to run," he said.
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Defensive coordinator Greg Manusky singled out safety Reggie Smith and defensive lineman Ricky Jean-Francois for their play in Friday's exhibition opener. Smith, of course, had an interception and also picked off a two-point conversion attempt. Jean-Francois held up well at the point of attack on run plays, Manusky said.
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Receiver Arnaz Battle, who was a forgotten man through most of the offseason, has put together a strong camp, 49ers QB Shaun Hill said. "He's been the rock of the receiving corps," Hill said. "He's always shown up and made plays. I'm glad to see him do well."
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There wasn't much that can be read into the play of the QBs today - no surprises with Hill and Alex Smith. Singletary said on Friday that Hill is less of a mystery. Smith said his goals are to set the tempo for the offense, show a presence, stay level-headed, make good decisions and execute the offense. As far as his self-critique of Friday's game: "Some good, some bad."
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There is a reason why they call it the "nutcracker!"
glad willis is back! and also glad to hear the rookie Ricky Jean-Francois did well as long with reggie smith. looking forward to saturdays game! hope willis can handle the radio this year.
Who is this Crabtree of whom you speak?
I'm ready to see willis in action against the silver and whack. Not a bad idea to sit him out of practice still. No need to rush him just for a preseason game. Man I heard over the week end that crabtree was in the bay area. Was this a media mistake or is he ready to start talkin real buisness?
We're on a baby hunt and we know how to weeeeed 'em out! The Nutcracker. Glad to see Willis and Brown back for the attack. Are they on track for game 3 against Dallas is'nt it?
Matt, Have you spoken with anyone in the 49ers organization that admits that taking Alex Smith over Aaron Rodgers was a mistake?
Held up well at the point of attack?? Too many passing yards, rushing yards, and no sacks. Where was the point of attack? Hope we see something this Saturday from the rook.
MM, what do you think of going to toe-to-toe with Bee-rows in "the nutcracker?" You could have Dan Brown record it. It'd be the best match-up of journalistic talent the world has ever seen.
Matt,
Is it true that Crabbs is in town? If so that has to mean they're back at the negotiating table right?
Matt,
If it is true that Crabtree is going to sit out the season and re-enter the draft next season the 49ers get a HUGE BREAK even without compensation because they don't have to give HUGE MONEY to an unproven player. It's almost like they got to decline their pick which many teams wanted to do anyway. If Crabtree is getting advice from Deion Sanders that is a HUGE RED FLAG on this guy. Crabtree should think real hard before choosing his mentors.
Your comment about Sanders and Owens is over the line.
Matt,
During the broadcast on Friday the announcers indicated that Jay Moore was having a really good camp and he did look pretty active albeit late in the 2nd half. Prior to hearing that I assumed he would be cut as he is on year three and I had not heard much. What is your take? Is he looking good and do you think he makes the team?
The only problem with that is that things may have been a lot different if Rodgers had been thrown in almost right away and if Smith had gotten to sit and learn for years behind a HOF QB.
Rodgers himself recently said that, while he would have liked to have started right away, he realizes that it was beneficial for him to sit, watch and learn.
Yeah, Deion Sanders is extremely close to Devin Hester.
Sanders RUINED Hester's career, now didn't he?
F49er,
From what i've heard from multiple reports is that he is and has been in the Bay Area the whole time.
If the niners don't sign crabtree that means the #10 overall pick was wasted. There's no muligans, do over, gone. The niners don't need to bend over backward for the guy but they should make a deal. Trade him later, whatever but let's get something for him. Hopefully we get a player not a season long hold out.
If anything we should've got a D lineman with the #10 pick.
Matt,
Love your work. I was just wondering if anyone would pay Crabtree or Heyward-Bey $16M in guaranteed money—much less $23M—if they weren't rookies. I know they have great potential, but Houshmanzadeh only got $15M in guaranteed money, and at least we know he can play. Even highly touted rookie WRs bust fairly often. While we're on the subject, would any top 10 pick make as much money if he were a free agent? And if not, why do teams pay rookies more than they would make on the open market? Is it just because high picks get the fan base excited?
My money is on Maiocco!
Who ever loses should be banished to the hill for the remainder of the practice.
So, coming out of last season most people felt the Niners needed improvement at RT, Pass Rush and Safety. We have some good news at RT with Synder stepping up and Marvel in the wings. We had some good news with Goldson named a starter and Reggie Smith stepping up. I thought Taylor looked good, myself. The pass rush still looks weak, though. Will someone step up? Well get another chance to see on Saturday.
its one thing to decline your pick DURING THE DRAFT because you just slide down until you choose the pick and another thing to decline your pick AFTER THE DRAFT. After the Draft you're stuck. Sign the pick or get nothing. There's really no Football advantage to not signing Crabtree. Just Financial reasons.
Salary Cap $ isn't really an issue, yes financially it would suck for the Yorks to sign Crabtree for big money and risk him being a bust. But because the Cap keeps growing every year, the free money that the Niners would have because they didn't sign Crabtree really isn't that relevant.
The only issue is if this guy is worth more than his draft slot and if he should be allowed to break the unofficial NFL rules. Scott Boras does it in baseball all the time. Crabtree and Parker are just trying to do it in the NFL.
MM....Everytime I've read about Willis's injury it's been slight ankle sprain. Now I see you've got Achilles included? What's up? Achilles is a lot more serious word to use than ankle sprain.
Just for fun I looked up all the WR's drafted in the top 10 picks for the last 10 years...in reverse order, DHB, Crabtree, Calvin Johnson, Ted Ginn Jr., Braylon Edwards, Troy Williamson, Mike Williams, Larry Fitzgerald, Roy Williams, Reggie Williams, Charles Rogers, Andre Johnson, David Terrel, Koren Robinson, Peter Warrick, Plaxico Burress, Travis Taylor. Now there are a few studs, a few solid guys, some journeymen and some real busts and these are all guys the experts thought were equal to or better than a 10th pick. Bottom line...drafting is not an exact science so to lay out a guaranteed $20 M for a guy you don't know will perform is nuts. Crabs realistically has about a 20% shot at being worth it. Not good odds. I can't blame Crabs for trying to get his up to a point but he needs to get his $18M and then prove he can do it and get the big 2nd contract.
Matt,
A couple of observations: Mark Roman has been a decent addition for the last couple of years, but he should not make this years roster. He again was lost a couple of times in pass coverage on Fri., and he is not going to be a dynamic playmaker. Also, as I wrote a couple of weeks ago, I believe that the real QB battle is between Smith and Huard for a roster spot. If Smith performs as well as Huard, he will make the team. If Huard is clearly better, Smith is gone. I don't think we will carry 4 QBs and Davis is too good a prospect the expose on the practice squad.
I wonder if Barrows can make to the top-sorry MB couldn't resist!
Who else is familiar with the Officer Crabtree character from the old Brit sitcom 'Allo 'Allo? The 9ers have a namesake who's just as delusional.
Parker is the only agent with the balls to confront the "illegal" NFL slotting unwritten agreement. It doesn't exist in the NFL/NFLPA bargaining agreement. It is clearly collusion among NFL teams.
I like Crabtree, some say he is arrogant and greedy. They said the same thing about Curt Flood. I say the kid got a pair and has the chance to be a premier receiver in the NFL.
Rich, San Ramon,
You are missing the point. "ME GUYS" end up lonely and distanced from the team. Sanders and Owens are two of the biggest "ME GUYS" in the history of football and are TERRIBLE role models for young players. Ask Jerry Rice what kind of teammate Sanders was? Crabtree is getting bad advice from Sanders who continues to have an axe to grind with the 49ers organization 15 years later. He is going down a bad road right now that may cost him everything.
GeoMak,
Devin Hester had a very poor season last year. The guy is a dynamic kick returner and that's it. Sanders has done nothing for this guy but run his mouth. Sanders did a great job of mentoring Adam Jones in Dallas last year didn't he?
Marco, regardless of the "illegal" slotting scenario, the Niners have a right to offer whatever they want to offer and the player has the right to accept it or reject it. Therefore, the negotiations do not have any legal implications.
It is all a matter of business, on both sides, and by both sides I mean the Niners and the agent, who it seems is running the show in Crabtree's camp. The agent is hired to represent and advise a player, and in this case the advise the player is receving (or the decision he is making by himself) is wrong. When you have more to loose than the other side, you gotta concede. The Niners risk wasting a 10th pick, that is never good. Crabtree risks a solid first contract for a very poor first contract in the best of cases and your whole future in the worst of cases. Clearly, Crabtree has more to loose than the Niners. It is what it is.
...favre to minnesota.....
As I've mentioned before, the slotting system can be argued as common sense, rather than collusion.
In theory, each player drafted is less valuable (less desired, lower skills, etc) than the one drafted before; if the player was more desirable, he would have been drafted with a higher pick, and/or teams would trade up in the draft to acquire said player. Therefore, each player has less worth than the player selected just before, and common sense would dictate that you shouldn't pay more for something of lesser value.
If you view it from this standpoint, the slotting system isn't necessarily collusion but just the business of perceived values, where higher draft picks are considered more valuable because they're perceived to be more desirable than the ones who are drafted later.
I still don't understand why you believe the so called slotting system is illegal. How else would teams determine value? They can't determine value based on NFL production for a rookie. NCAA production is not necessarily a good measuring stick since so many highly productive college players fail at the NFL level. The best example I've heard is that it's just like buying a house. Any buyer is going to get some comparables to determine the correct offer. If comparable houses in an area are $150 per sq foot I'm sure as hell not going to pay $200 per sq foot for that house even if I believe it will be an amazing house that I hope to stay in for the rest of my life. It's simple business. Determining appropriate value based on comparisons happens every single day in every business. It's not collusion. If this slotting system was collusion do you think owners would conspire to raise prices by over 20% every year for rookie draft picks. What you say makes no sense.
On Crabtree--ZZZZZZZZZZ, let me know when he's signed, much ado about nothing. Apparently there's nothing new to report, we seem to be rehashing old news.
...dammit,..no news...
..cmon MM i need my fix....
I'm glad Willis is back. Is Kentwan Balmer MIA or does he just play that way? Are they going to keep him on the roster if he doesn't start producing?
Rockdbay: Actually Balmer is said by insiders (according to Gary Plummer,former LBer and current radio broadcaster for the Niners,and several players and coaches),to be right on schedule to become the beast he was drafted to be. It usually takes about 2 or even 3 years for the really big guys on the defensive line to blossom. Balmer is supposed to be at least on schedule and maybe ahead of schedule.
Don't give up on the guy,keep watching and hopefully what they are talking about will show itself in games soon.
As a Bear fan, I can tell you that Hester had a poor return season because:
A) The Bears lost their Pro-Bowl ST player (Brendon Ayanbadejo) in FA to Baltimore.
B) Hester became a full time WR in 2008, a position he had NEVER played in all of football, until last season.
It's a little taxing on the brain to learn a new position at the NFL level.
He CERTAINLY didn't struggle in the return game because of the influence of Deion Sanders.
A friend of mine played with Deion in Dallas. Sanders is very well liked and well respected amongst his peers in the league.
Adam Jones? You're kidding, right?
The guys a complete knucklehead. Deion was supposed to turn his life around, all by himself?
Pleaseeeee!
Hi Matt, regarding the pass rush, I know it was only one preseason game, but shouldn't there be more concern for possibly finding a "pocketcrusher" to put the heat on? I am sure there is only so much you can do with the existing players from last season (Lawson, Smith etc) who did not apply enough pressure last year. Are they all of a sudden going to find a "fifth gear" if they haven't already shown it??
Great to have you back PW. Take your time my man.
Ricky Jean Francois...wow, alright Manusky noticing how STOUT he is. Now can you ask Sing-McCloughan for a legit man mountain stout unmovable NOSE TACKLE???? If we can do that we would be deep in having the prototype 3-4 DE's for that position. It would be great to bring in 2 (even 3..but I doubt they will since Soap can be an emergency 3rd) NT's since we're COMMITTED TO THE 3-4. Then you could slide Franklin & Sopoaga (who prefers DE) to add to Balmer, RJF, McDonald, & keep 1 of the undersized guys in the non-stop active Justin Smith as DEFENSIVE ENDS. Franklin & Sopoaga are quick/athletic enough & s/b able to dominate at the DE spots. Franklin especially..Sopoaga through his whole career still lacks consistency at any position. We don't need 2 smallish 4-3 DE's so Evans could be looked into being traded who we should get good value for & find a replacement for another position IF he has a good year (unless we can trade for a real NT now which I doubt.) McDonald is still a question mark with those shaky knees.
Point is if we concentrated on bringing in 1 LEGIT STARTING NT + an additional 1 or 2 to develop we wouldn’t have to worry about acquiring any more DE’s esp if RJF & Balmer pan out. This Khalif Mitchell is also intriguing. He has size but like Franklin is a tweener at 318 lbs. When I watch this Mitchell he looks very athletic for such a big man. He is so agile. I see him as another DE & him dropping the weight to help him even more with his speed/quickness. Ideally he should be 310 lbs max for a 3-4 DE. (Probably a PS guy if he continues to flash & show potential.) We need some serious beef on that DLINE & ESPECIALLY AT THE NT POSITION. WE NEED TO GET STOUT & DOMINATE AT THE POINT!!!! We were mostly controlled by Denver in that last game.
I had Chris Baker as a 4th-5th RD'er. He dropped even further because he got kicked out of Penn ST (fighting) & ended up transferring to a small school. He made some good plays for Denver & got pressure on our QB. He's 6-3, 328 lbs. He went undrafted. Would have been great to snag him as a freebie FA NT project who DOES have talent. I hope Manusky & the higher ups can see the need for a DOMINANT NT. Like I said before if you get a true dominant NT who can regularly command double-teams he will be the key to CONSISTENTLY shutting down the run (esp on 3rd & shorts + at the goal line), mounting a better pass rush, & allow EVERYONE around him to play better including the back end with the corners & safeties since the rush will be better. I also realize we still need a true #1 pass rusher unless someone steps up & owns that role this season. It’s still early yet & it could POSSIBLY happen. We’ll see.