Tag Archives: San Francisco 49ers
Did the 49ers run a ‘bounty system’ during the 2011 season?
Everyone knows that the San Francisco 49ers are a tough physical football team but did part of that toughness include some form of a bounty system in which opposing player’s injuries were targeted last season?
According to NFL.com, in a recent interview on The Dan Patrick Show, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger hinted that he thought something was going on in their game against the 49ers last season.
” But I think when we played San Fran, I felt like there were some things going on, some extra … Now, obviously, I did have the ankle and I was playing, so there was kind of a bulls-eye on there anyway. But for the most part, guys play tough and you go into a game expecting it. I expect to be tougher than them.”
5 sleepers in the 2012 NFL Draft
Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, and Trent Richardson. Those are the names from the 2012 NFL Draft that reside in the minds of many. The glitz and glamour of the first round is even more exemplified than every before in today’s draft, with the first round being by itself in prime time. With those 32 selections being more dissected and magnified than ever, it’s easy to forget how much talent is left for the next six rounds. So here are five guys you can’t sleep on for the 2012 NFL season, and many years to come.
5 reasons the 49ers could win it all in 2012
The San Francisco 49ers were a few plays away from going to the Super Bowl last season. Through an impenetrable defense, a physical ground game and the dependable play of Alex Smith, the Niners shocked the NFL going 13-3 during the regular season before falling short in the NFC title game to a more offensively capable New York Giants team. With the 2012 NFL season still months away, the 49ers have made some tremendous offseason strides to help ensure that they won’t fall short if the opportunity presents itself again; and it will. Here are five reasons San Francisco could win it all in 2012.
2012 NFL draft: Possible selections for the San Francisco 49ers
Swap head coaches and suddenly your in the playoffs? That was the case for the San Francisco 49ers as Jim Harbaugh ended the streak of eight consecutive non-winning seasons.
The 49ers ended the regular season with a 13-3 record, their best since 1997 and earned a bye in the first round of the playoffs.
A rejuvenated Alex Smith and a standout defense led by Patrick Willis had the 49ers inches away from a Super Bowl berth.
As they move forward towards the 2012 NFL draft most positions seem to be set. Eight consecutive years of early draft picks can do that to a team.
Look for the 49ers to grab a player that can make a difference on third down. Despite their success the 49ers were 31st in the league in third down conversion percentage in the regular season (29.1) and even worse in the playoffs (17.9).
Can the 49ers win it all in 2012 with Alex Smith?
Does violence really effect the game’s outcome?
As if the regular season matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and the New Orleans Saints did not have enough built-in drama, the pregame speech by Gregg Williams before last season’s playoff matchup may be the ultimate bulletin board material, months before players even take the field.
Recently released recordings made during a documentary of former defensive coordinator, Gregg Williams’ pregame speech to his defensive unit before their divisional matchup with the 49ers last January have sparked loads of questions revolving around violence in the NFL. For those of us that never played the game on a professional level some of these comments may seem barbaric. Is it really the norm for defensive players to go after the opposition looking to cause serious bodily harm? Is it the end goal for every offensive snap to result in another player sitting out the rest of the game on the sidelines? Are there unspoken rules in the NFL governing the ferociousness of an already ferocious game? Do these types of actions go on in all 32 locker rooms across the entire league?
Alex Smith met with Dolphins, will meet with Seahawks
2012 NFL free agency is underway and the San Francisco 49ers and Alex Smith seem to be butting heads.
According to Yahoo Sports Smith is not only unhappy with his situation he has also visited the Miami Dolphins and plans on visiting the Seattle Seahawks.
Bay Area bound: Why Peyton Manning will sign with the 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers had a busy first week of free agency. On Monday the team signed wide receiver Randy Moss out of retirement to a 1-year contract. In an attempt to further bolster their receiving corps San Francisco reeled in former New York Giants wide out Mario Manningham with a 2-year deal to round out the week. Is Peyton Manning next?
49ers ink Randy Moss but is he just a decoy?
The San Francisco 49ers filled a huge void on offense by signing formerly retired wide receiver Randy Moss to a one year contract on Monday. Moss, now 35, last played in the NFL in 2010; a season that saw the talented but often outspoken receiver on three NFL teams. Moss will line up opposite of new teammate Michael Crabtree and form arguably the most dangerous wide out tandem in the NFL. Because of Moss’ ability to stretch a defense in his sleep he adds a new dimension to the 49ers offense. But is he just a decoy?
2012 NFL Mock Draft: NFC West edition
A year after the NFC West gave the NFL a 7-9 playoff team thanks to the Seattle Seahawks, the NFC West in 2011 was much improved and had a shot at getting two teams in the playoffs.
NFL rewind: Ronnie Lott amputates his finger
Once in a while on rare occasions a player will come along in the NFL and redefine the position at which he plays.
Possible Destinations For Mike Wallace
Mike Wallace has emerged as a rising star for the Pittsburgh Steelers ever since being drafted in the third round of the 2009 NFL Draft. It seems that he would be the new receiver for Ben Roethlisberger to grow with but things aren’t exactly going the way Pittsburgh wants it to. As if the playoff loss to the Denver Broncos seemed bad, it will only get worse in a couple weeks when there is a real possibility that Pittsburgh could lose Mike Wallace. The Steelers are $11 million over the cap currently and are working hard in trying to get under the cap for the 2012 Season. They do not have cap room to slap the Franchise Tag on Wallace while tendering him will leave him vulnerable to a team willing to give up their first round pick to take Mike Wallace away. Now who would be willing to part with their first round pick to take Mike Wallace away, here are some possible destinations for Mike Wallace.
New England Patriots: If there was any team wanting to give up a first round pick it would be a team with two first round picks at their disposal. The Patriots are one of the few teams who do have two picks in the first round. Wes Welker is a Free Agent and even if they put the Franchise Tag on him, it would only be a one year deal. Mike Wallace meanwhile is young and fast who can contribute to helping the Patriots get back to the Super Bowl.
San Francisco 49ers: The 49ers want to upgrade at receiver in free agency and the draft. Why not essentially use the 30th pick in the 2012 Draft on a proven Mike Wallace rather take a chance on a late round receiver. Not only would they have the pick to give up, but the money to give Wallace a long term deal, something the cap tight Steelers can not do. They are $35-40 million under the cap, plenty of room to not only re-sign Alex Smith but give Mike Wallace the money he would be looking for.
Houston Texans: The Texans desperately need to upgrade across from Andre Johnson. Why not use it on speedy Mike Wallace? The Texans offense would be even better than it has ever been with teams having to decide between double covering Andre or Wallace. They would instantly become Super Bowl favorites and once again be a top contender in the AFC.
Denver Broncos: If the Broncos ever want to take my advice on how to build around Tim Tebow, using their first round pick on Mike Wallace would be a good start. With the exception of Demaryius Thomas, the Broncos have nothing at receiver. Tim Tebow, whether you want to admit it or not, is improving as a quarterback and if he is to improve even more, he’ll need the receivers to do so. The Broncos know first hand what Wallace can do when they played the Steelers in the wild card round and would do wonders for Tebow.
Baltimore Ravens: In my AFC North mock, I gave the Ravens Rutgers Wide Receiver Mohamed Sanu with the 29th pick in the 2012 Draft. Like other receiver needy teams in this article, why not use a late round pick on a proven player. Baltimore is probably already enjoying the fact Pittsburgh is over the cap and they will have little room to improve on while Baltimore will have cap room to make improvements. So why not one up Pittsburgh by taking their young star receiver away from them. I know Ray Rice is a free agent but he is likely to be Franchised and Anquan Boldin is 32 and isn’t getting any younger. The combination of Torrey Smith and Mike Wallace would help Joe Flacco out tremendously and since they got over the hump of Pittsburgh last season, adding Mike Wallace may be the ingredient needed to get them over the most important hump and into the Super Bowl.
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Mike Presley is a NFL Featured Journalist for The Penalty Flag. He is a graduate of the Carolina School of Broadcasting and hosts a weekly NFL show on the schools radio station 89.3 The Storm entitled “The Front Seven.” Mike also writes for the racing website www.hardcoreracefans.com. Follow him on Twitter @mikepresley64.
