Blogs

Morning Tailgate: May 10

Rookies report today and come Friday afternoon a large amount of NFL careers will be off and running.

Seven draft picks, 18 undrafted rookies and a few tryout players this weekend will get a chance to make an early impression on the 49ers coaching staff. Perhaps, one of the most intriguing newcomers will be Virginia outside linebacker Cam Johnson, the team’s seventh-round selection of the 2012 NFL Draft.

Johnson started 34 games for the Cavaliers, switching from an outside backer in the team’s 3-4 defensive scheme to a 4-3 defensive end for his final two seasons. In total, Johnson finished with 12.5 sacks but still flashed big-time potential. Unsurprisingly, Johnson’s defensive coordinator Jim Reid raved about his pupil being taken by San Francisco in the final round.

More on Reid’s feedback on Johnson and the latest team headlines can be found after the jump.

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Morning Tailgate: May 9

If you’ve been following the Twitter accounts of the San Francisco 49ers 2012 draft class, you can sense their excitement as the team’s rookie minicamp is now just one day away.

The rookies will not be in the mix with their veteran teammates this coming weekend, but that doesn’t mean they’re looking any less forward to their first practices as members of the National Football League and the San Francisco 49ers.

Count Oregon running back LaMichael James, selected by the 49ers with the No. 61 overall selection in the second round, as one of the most eager players to get his NFL career started. According to a national football writer, James’ presence on the 49ers roster is one of the top minicamp storylines to track involving this year’s incoming draft class.

More on James and the latest team headlines can be found after the jump.

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Nate Byham Bounces Back

Nate Byham couldn’t help but marvel over the weekly production from the San Francisco 49ers tight ends, H-backs and fullbacks in offensive coordinator Greg Roman’s offense last year.

It just stung that Byham couldn’t be a part of the 98 catches hauled in last season by the three previously mentioned positions.

Byham, a sixth-round draft pick in 2010, missed all of his sophomore campaign with a torn ACL on his left knee. The 23-year-old tight end suffered the injury two days into his first training camp working with Roman and the offensive coaching staff.

Nonetheless, Byham’s looking to impress the offensive coaches throughout his work in the team’s offseason program.

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Morning Tailgate: May 8

The 49ers three-day rookie minicamp begins on Thursday and first-round draft-pick A.J. Jenkins will be in attendance. The Illinois wide receiver’s decision to attend was confirmed by his agent to multiple media outlets. But now there’s a question of who will be throwing the passes to the talented vertical threat.

Jenkins was scheduled to walk across the graduation stage to receive his sports management degree on Mother’s Day, but has since changed his mind. Instead, the No. 30 overall pick will join his 49ers teammates when rookies report. However, the 49ers are without a rookie quarterback on the roster that can participate in the camp.

More on the 49ers quarterbacking options, LaMichael James’ draft day experience and the latest team headlines can be found after the jump.

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49ers Add DT Jerod-Eddie

The San Francisco 49ers announced that they have signed DT Tony Jerod-Eddie.

Jerod-Eddie (6-5, 301) starred at Texas A&M, where he played in 51 games (38 starts) for the Aggies and produced 148 tackles, 14.5 TFLs, 7.0 sacks, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble. A second-team All-Big 12 pick in 2011, he set career highs in tackles (56), TFLs (7.0), sacks (5.0) and forced fumbles (1).

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Morning Tailgate: May 7

At the end of the 2012 NFL Draft, Jim Harbaugh defied anyone to watch the game film of his first-round draft pick and say Illinois wide receiver A.J. Jenkins wasn’t impressive on tape.

“I defy anybody to look at that tape and tell me that there’s something wrong with it, that there’s something that he doesn’t do well,” said Harbaugh on April 28.

Now that there’s been time to examine all the moves made in the draft, you can count NFL Network analyst Charley Casserly as someone who agrees with San Francisco’s assessment on Jenkins. In Casserly’s mind, there’s nothing wrong with the game film of the 6-foot, 192-pound wideout.

“Some guys run fast and don’t play fast, he runs fast and plays fast,” Casserly told TV49’s Scott Kegley in a video piece for 49ers.com.

“He’s explosive off the line of scrimmage,” Casserly said of Jenkins, who caught 90 passes 1,276 receiving yards and eight touchdowns in 2011. “He’s got a great double-move to get open deep and he doesn’t need it because he can blow by DBs. I like his separation on his cuts. I like his fluidness when he’s running. His run after the catch, he has great acceleration when he’s running with the ball in his hands and I think the guy’s got terrific hands. I saw him make a number of difficult catches where had to extend, move his body.

“I think this guy is going to be really tough to cover.”

Casserly felt the 49ers accomplished a goal of being more explosive on offense with the selections of Jenkins and second-round pick, Oregon running back LaMichael James.

The NFL Network analyst believes San Francisco went out and accomplished their biggest draft needs by “adding some juice to that 49ers offense.”

More on Jenkins’ work ethic and the latest team headlines can be found after the jump.

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Morning Tailgate: May 4

If three consecutive Pro Bowl appearances weren’t enough recognition for the efforts of 49ers defensive tackle Justin Smith, the first-team All-Pro can take pride in being honored recently in another way.

ProFootballFocus.com has listed Smith as the No. 2 overall player in the National Football League and top-ranked defensive player in the entire league.

It’s not hard to see why the football analysis site has Smith so high on the list. In 2011, Smith became the third player in 49ers history to record at least 6 sacks in four consecutive seasons. Smith finished the year with 105 tackles, 7.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.

Beyond the weekly production, everyone will remember his two clutch plays that sealed wins against the Philadelphia Eagles (fourth-quarter forced fumble on unsuspecting Eagles wide receiver Jeremy Maclin) and against the New York Giants (batting down an Eli Manning fourth-down pass in the closing moments of a Week 10 win). However, PFF has chosen Smith’s Week 6 outing against the Detroit Lions as his best game in 2011.

Sam Monson writes that Smith’s two sacks, six quarterback pressures, quarterback knockdown and strong performance against the run made it an all-around dominant effort. Monson also notes that Smith finished the year with 15 more combined sacks, hits and hurries than any other defensive end in a 3-4 system.

Smith’s presence on the 49ers has certainly benefited the team’s interior offensive linemen who face him in practice. More on the 49ers upcoming position battle at right guard can be found after the jump.

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Harbaugh Visits with KNBR

A day after the untimely passing of his former teammate, Junior Seau, 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh spoke to KNBR Thursday about the lasting impression Seau left on all those he encountered.

As he revealed in a statement on Wednesday, Harbaugh traded jerseys with Seau in the San Diego Chargers locker room following Harbaugh’s final game as a player. The two were teammates during the 1999-2000 seasons and Harbaugh recalled Seau’s engaging and generous personality.

“He had time for everybody,” Harbaugh said. “From the lowest guy on the totem pole right up to the owner and everybody in between. It’s just a very sad, sad time. My family’s thoughts and prayers go out to Junior and his family.”

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Jacobs Picks Jersey No. 45

Whenever the 49ers and New York Giants did battle in recent years, big No. 27 in the blue jersey was hard to miss.

But after signing a free-agent deal with San Francisco this offseason, veteran running back Brandon Jacobs got some new digits to go with his new threads. Jacobs will be wearing No. 45 this season with the 49ers, as the date of April 5 (4/5) holds special significance.

“It was the time I first spoke to my wife,” Jacobs said. “And it was also the first time we made the decision to get our house that we’re going to live in the rest of our lives. … I think it looks good on me; I feel good with it.”

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Mayock Applauds 49ers Top Picks

NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock raved about the San Francisco 49ers draft class in a recent appearance on the Rich Eisen Podcast.

Firepower for the 49ers offense was how Mayock described San Francisco’s additions of Illinois wide receiver A.J. Jenkins and Oregon running back LaMichael James in the first and second rounds of the 2012 NFL Draft.

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