Roster Cut to 53

The most important outcome of the final preseason game was those who were fighting for the last roster spots on the team.  Singletary and his coaches cut 20 men from the roster with the some notables:

TE Bear Pascoe:  Pascoe was selected in the sixth round with the 184^th pick in this year’s draft.  It was a surprise to see his name on the final roster cuts because he was selected in the NFL draft and was expected to give fellow tight end Vernon Davis some competition for the starting job.  Pascoe showed promise with his catching ability but his lack of blocking skills and failure to adjust to the speed of the game was reason enough to cut him.  There is a chance he might be signed to the practice squad if he clears waivers.  The 49ers only other TE’s are Davis and Delanie Walker.

RB Kory Sheets:  After breaking out as rushing mad-man in the preseason Sheets quickly realized that sometimes the preseason means nothing when it comes to making the final roster.  Sheets was 10^th in the league with 177 rushing yards and three touchdowns.  Sheets promise earned him a spot on the 49ers practice squad for 2009.

WR Dominique Zeigler:  Lost in the shuffle of Isaac Bruce, Josh Morgan, Jason Hill, Arnaz Battle and Michael Spurlock, Zeigler finds himself once again cut by the 49ers but signed to the practice squad.  Zeiegler had a good training camp but with the implementation of the “Taser” formation by new offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye, his version of the Wildcat, which will be lead by Spurlock who will also return kick-offs, moved Zeigler off the final roster.  Zeigler might someday get his chance to shine but will have to wait until next year or hope for a roster spot to open up at WR.  Note: Michael Crabtree does not count as part of the 53-man roster.  If and when he signs we could see one of the receivers above cut from the team.

Other players cut:

Offensive linemen Jacob Bender, Alex Boone (signed to practice squad), Joe Toledo, Kyle Howard and Matt Spanos; WR’s Dobson Collins (signed to practice squad), and Maurice Price; Defensive linemen Pannel Egboh and Khalif Mitchell (signed to practice squad);  TE Joe Jon Finley(signed to practice squad); CB’s Eric Green and Terrail Lambert; FB’s Brit Miller (signed to practice squad), and Bill Rentmeester; LB’s Jay Moore, Justin Roland and Mark Washington.

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49ers Break Camp

With a 3-0 preseason record and with one game to go against the Chargers in San Diego on Friday the 49ers 2009 training camp is coming to a close.  A lot of questions have been answered, with some still left to figure out, here are some observations:

• The most important position battle was at quarterback between Shaun Hill and Alex Smith.  It was also the one competition Mike Singletary did not need to have.  I think it was just to boost Smith’s confidence that he is not a NFL draft bust and still has a chance to be a great QB (which I don’t believe to be the case).  Hill should have been the named the starter outright and Smith should have been told you want the starting job, go out and take it!

• With last year’s starting cornerback Walt Harris out for the year, and possibly his career, the 49ers had to scramble to fill his position.  They accomplished that with signing veteran Dre’ Bly who has shown in training camp he still has some gas left in the tank.  The 49ers had CB Tarell Brown compete with Bly for the starting job but he has been bothered by a toe injury since the start of training camp.  Bly has earned the starting job with his play but if he cannot hold up for the season and gives up too many big receptions expect Brown to be inserted as the starter.

• The installation of the Michael Singletary run, run, run type of offense has so far been successful thanks to offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye.  Frank Gore has seen limited rushing action so he can preserved for the regular season allowing rookie running backs Glen Coffee and Kory Sheets to led the rushing attack.  Coffee is ranked 1^st in the preseason in rushing yards with 230 and Sheets is ranked 6^th with 144.  Yes, it is only the preseason but with the 49ers offense most likely calling rushing plays 60% of the time it gives the coaching staff confidence in the rushing attack knowing that when Gore comes out they can still run Coffee and even Sheets if they need to and will get the same results.

• The wide receiver position has been the biggest hole the 49ers have had to fill since the days of T.O. and the legendary Jerry Rice.  The 49er Faithful thought we had filled that hole with the selection of Michael Crabtree but the contact holdout that followed has given us a sour taste in the mouth.  I think Crabtree will sign with the Niners before the start of the season but the 49ers might not see a lot of him in the first few games as he learns the offense and gels with his teammates.  Isaac Bruce and Josh Morgan will most likely be the starters and we have a deep bench with Brandon Jones, Arnaz Battle, Jason Hill and Dominique Zeigler but having Crabtree in the game will make the defense account for the passing game freeing up the rushing attack.  The receivers listed does not exactly strike fear into the hearts of the opponents secondary.

• The rushing attack continued to be non-existent in the preseason like it was all of last year.  I was expecting Justin Smith to led the defensive lineman’s core of young players but if he is leading them it has not been with his play.  Watching Tony Romo last week hold onto the football for 4-5 seconds on each pass attempt showed the 49ers biggest weakness on defense.  DE Kentwan Balmer needs to set-up his pass rushing this year to show why the 49ers picked him in the first-round last year.  The 49ers D will only go as far as their D-lineman will allow them to.  No pass rush, big plays will be given up.

• The biggest surprise for me during training camp and the preseason games has been the play of rookie quarterback Nate Davis.  He played extremely well against the Cowboys last week and was the reason the 49ers kept intact their undefeated preseason record.  Davis still has a long way to go as he has only learned about half the offense but he has been named the third-string QB for the season.  Do we a diamond in the rough? We will see.

• What has excited you most about training camp and the preseason? Answer in the comments.

Many 49er players were surprised but welcomed how grueling of a training camp Singletary installed.  Most of the practices were in full pads which is not common among other team’s training camps.  But when you have a coach who expects the best from his players every second on each play Camp Singletary will be success so long as the players don’t break down during the regular season.

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18 days into training camp and Crabtree has not signed.  Nothing new developed over the weekend in regards to MCT.  Tight end Vernon Davis did say he needs to “get his butt here.”  By the second game of the preseason if MCT is not signed, trade away his rights.

Friday, August 7:

Brandon Jones fractures shoulder

With receiver Brandon Jones out with a fractured shoulder for eight weeks does the signing of Crabtree become more important?  Other than the fact that I don’t care for Crabtree anymore after his threat of sitting out the season I think we will be fine with our current roster of receivers that are developing under the radar in Josh Morgan, Jason Hill and Dominique Zeigler.  Jones should be back by the fourth week of the season and veterans Isaac Bruce and Arnaz Battle are equipped to lead the receiving corps in his absence.

Saturday, August 8:

Both Shaun Hill and Alex Smith are holding up strong in training camp

Hill has done nothing to lose the job, but Smith has been connecting on most of his passes in training camp.  With the first preseason game on Friday, August 14 it is not clear who will work with the first-team offense or how the rotation will go.  I still believe Hill should be named the starter based on his performance the last two seasons and I still consider Smith a draft bust, but a QB competition is a healthy thing for both players and the team.  At first I thought not having a starter established early in camp would hurt the team but so far that has proven not to be true.  The team is united behind both Hill and Smith.

Sunday, August 9:

The 49ers had a light-practice as they had walkthroughs in preparation for the first preseason game on Friday against the Broncos.  Do you know who is the new defensive coordinator for the Broncos? None other than Mike Nolan.  I wonder how hard Nolan will send his D after Smith when he is in the game.  Smith will be playing with a chip on his shoulder because of their rocky relationship they had.

Monday, August 10:

Alex Smith told to go to timeout by Singletary?

Apparently Singletary was upset with the offense fumbling the ball in practice and said the next player to cause a turnover would sit on Hamstring Hill the rest of the practice.  The next person to do that was Smith.  To show team unity he was joined by injured receiver Jones and by five of his offensive lineman.  This is why Singletary is the right man for the job.  He does not tolerate mistakes or turnovers from anyone no matter how small the mistake.  Smith had a pass tipped by a D-lineman that was picked off from corner back Marcus Hudson.  Mistakes happen right? Yes, but in Singletary’s world no turnovers is too small, it is the fault of the player no matter the situation.

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