Blogs

Morning Tailgate: Aug. 29

There’s nothing Tavares Gooden wouldn’t do to bring down an opposing ball carrier, or make a block to spring one of his players (See photo atop this post). The 49ers special teams standout has endeared himself to teammates and coaches for his relentless pursuit to the football whether it’s on kickoff or punt coverage teams. Gooden’s unselfish play as a blocker is also well-respected.

The 49ers linebacker explained his all-out mindset in the latest Niner Talk podcast on 49ers.com. In addition, the 6-foot-1, 242-pound, fifth-year pro also explained how the birth of his newborn son, Kadence, has already made a major impact on his life.

Also on the show, San Francisco Chronicle 49ers beat writer Eric Branch previewed two of his feature stories set to hit the newspaper this week. Branch also previewed things to look for in Thursday night’s preseason finale, including the No. 3 quarterback competition between Scott Tolzien and Josh Johnson.

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49ers Feature Quality QB Quartet

Since the 49ers signed Josh Johnson to a free-agent deal this offseason, Coach Jim Harbaugh has lauded his quartet of talented quarterbacks, saying they all have a chance to enjoy long and successful NFL careers.

Between Alex Smith, Colin Kaepernick, Johnson and Scott Tolzien, the 49ers boast one of the best quarterback quartets in the league. Until recently, it appeared to be a three-horse race to see who would backup Alex Smith as the No. 2 quarterback on the roster. But on Tuesday, Harbaugh told reporters that second-year signal-caller Colin Kaepernick has started to separate himself.

“I would say Colin has emerged there,” Harbaugh said. “It’s been very good. Nothing’s set in stone in that regard, but there’s been some emergence.”

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Morning Tailgate: July 26

Jim Harbaugh certainly has a way of getting the most out of people. It’s not just on the football field, it can take place off of it, too.

Matt Barrows of The Sacramento Bee recently spoke with the 49ers coach about his philanthropic work in Piura, Peru. Harbaugh discussed his role in Piura and why the commitment is so important to him, so much so, that he missed a week of rookie minicamp.

“Harbaugh first visited Piura in 2009 after hearing a friend describe his own experience with the Most Blessed Sacrament Parrish there,” Barrows wrote. “The 49ers coach has been going back ever since, and he even missed a rookie minicamp — gasp-worthy when it comes to control-freak NFL coaches — to go this year. He used the word ‘transformational’ three times in a recent interview in describing the effect of the visits.”

Harbaugh has continued his positive messaging back home with the 49ers and has transformed the team’s walkway from the locker room to the field. Harbaugh recently had a street sign placed along the walkway that simply reads, “Forty Niner Way.”

Rookies and select veterans have seen the sign in person. The entire team (including Dashon Goldson, who signed his one-year franchise tender this morning), will get to see it today as it’s veteran check-in day at camp. Practices begin on Friday.

More 49ers headlines can be found after the jump.

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Josh Johnson Growing with Offense

For Josh Johnson and the quartet of 49ers quarterbacks, the 2012 season has already started. It’s no secret that offensive coordinator Greg Roman has put together one of the NFL’s most creative playbooks in his brief time in the league, so Johnson has appreciated the offseason time to hammer out the details.

“With G-Ro’s offense, I’m getting a feel for how he does things,” Johnson said. “Having this warmup period, or as the quarterbacks like to call it, ‘the oil-up period,’ it’s been great for me because now I’m a lot more comfortable within the offense, playing a lot faster, getting things quicker and understanding my teammates a lot more now.”

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Morning Tailgate: June 5

Rain, rain, go away. Come back another day.

The San Francisco 49ers canceled Monday’s Organized Team Activity at team headquarters in Santa Clara, presumably due to inclement weather. But with the sun out early Tuesday morning, it looks like today’s practice is a full-go.  This week stands as the team’s last set of voluntary practices. Next week, the 49ers will hold a three-day mandatory minicamp.

Additional 49ers headlines, including where left tackle Joe Staley ranks amongst the league’s top tackles, can be found after the jump.

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Josh Johnson Enjoys Working Environment

Although he’s entering his fifth season in the National Football League, 49ers quarterback Josh Johnson feels like he’s in college these days.

That’s because the 6-foot-3, 205-pound signal caller has been reunited with his college head coach, Jim Harbaugh.

Working together at 49ers Organized Team Activities, for instance, serves as a reminder of what Johnson experienced as a young passer in Harbaugh’s University of San Diego offense.

Johnson also clearly recalls the tempo and competitive nature of their practices leading USD to win many games.

“It got real intense, we tried to go out and beat (the defense) everyday,” Johnson said. “They tried to come and beat us. Whoever took the advantage that day in practice, we let the other side know about it.

“It created a great environment for our team and it carried over into the games a lot, so we won a lot of games.”

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Greg Roman Discusses Offensive Outlook

Offensive coordinator Greg Roman joined the KNBR Morning Show on Wednesday to discuss the ever-changing 49ers offense, a unit which has added a number of talented weapons this offseason.

For Roman and the 49ers coaching staff, this offseason signals the first opportunity for the coaches and players to start at “square one” so to speak.

An emphasis on fundamentals has been prevalent in the team’s offseason workouts. Roman said the position coaches put together lists of tiny details each player can improve on prior to the 2012 season.

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Morning Tailgate: March 23

Where do we begin.

First, there was the announcement of former New York Giants wide receiver Mario Manningham signing a two-year contract with the 49ers, complete with a reveal of the top of Manningham’s contract.

Then, we attended the 2012 Stanford Pro Day to see potential No. 1 overall pick Andrew Luck perform in front of representatives from every NFL team. Luck even went out of his way to showcase the talents of his teammates who caught passes in his workout.

As soon as 49ers.com returned from Palo Alto, news broke out on two key free agency signings: we first reported wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. signing a one-year contract and later shared the news of quarterback Josh Johnson reuniting with his college coach Jim Harbaugh on a two-year contract.

And don’t forget about the team’s annual Celebrity Winter Fest. We sure didn’t. Scott Kegley filed his first report from Lake Tahoe where the team hopes to raise $1 million dollars at the team’s 12^th annual charity event.

All that took place, and we profiled West Virginia linebacker Bruce Irvin in our “49 in 49” series.

Safe to say, it was a busy day.

And yet, there are still more 49ers-related headlines to check out after the jump.

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