The Skillz Report

Give & Go: Niners In '14, Niners In '15

 

By D-Rock; originally written 1/15/15

 

 

 

I just wanted to do a quick run-through of my thoughts on my Niners as it pertains to this past season and moving forward to next season. To my fellow Faithful, I'm curious to get your thoughts on any of this.

 

 

2014

 

• - the report about Cleveland Browns brass possibly trading for Harbaugh in February was a huge WTF moment; unbeknownst to most of us, it signaled the beginning of the end for Harbaugh and the Niners.

• - the drafting of Jimmie Ward in the first round puzzled many; and jury is still out on his first-round worthiness.

• - the drafting of already injured guys like Brandon Thomas and Trey Millard echoed last year's draft of Tank Carradine and Marcus Lattimore; this tactic has yet to pay dividends.

• - Kap signs the big one; team-friendly deal shows that Kap is a team player; the team and the Faithful are invested.

• - the nine-game suspension of Aldon Smith seemed heavy-handed (Goodell is a major tool) and it made me wonder if it was worth it to keep this guy around.

• - the team carried a heavy burden of question marks BEFORE the season even started; from Aldon's suspension to Bowman's injury to Boone's holdout.

• - the Ray McDonald debacle added to what had already been a season of distractions not only for the Niners but for the NFL.

• - Vernon Davis pulls a David Copperfield (no, he doesn't start dating Claudia Schiffer, I mean the other thing Copperfield is known for).

• - injuries galore as starters like Brock, Willis, Kilgore, and Anthony Davis go down like flies.

• - more distractions as Ahmad Brooks displays unhappiness with role; season starts to lose all meaning.

• - interceptions, three-and-outs, lack of pass blocking, lack of run blocking, LACK OF OFFENSIVE LINE; Cleveland Browns and Tennessee Titans had shown more offensive production; FML!

• - Niners finish with a .500 record; season can now be classified as 'mediocre' rather than 'sub-par'.

• - Harbaugh accepts HC position at University of Michigan.

• - Niners in search of new Head Coach; Fangio(+), Tomsula (+), Dan Quinn (meh), Adam Gase (+), Mike Shannaha n(+), Rex Ryan (hell to the NO!) and Josh McDaniels (+) are candidates.

2015
- Frank needs to re-sign; if only to retire as a Niner; for all that is good in the world, I need Frank to stay.
- Justin Smith needs to re-sign; the big lug has some fight left in him; I know this.
- Niners gotta draft a beast at WR, GOT TO! Most of current WR corps will be members of AARP soon.
- with the defensive personnel that the Niners currently have, will it be beneficial to move to a 4-3? 
- obviously the success of the Niners in the near future hinges greatly on the coach they hire to lead the team, but with the type of talent they have assembled, my optimism is still present.

Go Niners!