Every year, the Super Bowl champion team will face the ultimate problem: which players are worth retaining at high salaries, which players should be used in exchange for benefits, and which players should simply choose to give up... Subject to the NFL's hard salary cap, team uniforms The team can only list a series of numbers, and then place the chess game in front of the head coach, and the coaching staff will make the choice.
It's not easy, but it's the way to go.
For the San Francisco 49ers, the most fortunate thing is that it took only two years since Jim Harbaugh took charge of the team to successfully reach the Super Bowl. This also means that the winning team is only in the hands of Harbaugh. After two years, mainly the youth team, there are still relatively few players facing the juncture of contract renewal, so the choice can be slightly simpler.
Even if it's a little simpler, that's a good thing.
As mentioned before, the San Francisco 49ers' offensive team is dominated by young rookies. Rookie players such as Logan Newman and Marcus Lynch have not yet reached their contract years and do not need to worry about contract renewal; while the defense The team is mainly composed of senior veterans, and there are quite a few players facing contract extensions or upgrades. Naturally, more choices will occur in the defensive team.
First is the offensive team.
Among the offensive front team, the five main players including Joe Stanley, Mike Rupatti, Jonathan Goodwin, Anthony Davis and Alex Boone have no contract issues and all remain with the team. team, but the bench lineup has undergone major changes.
Only last year's rookie Joe Looney remains on the team.
In addition, Adam Schneider, a former San Francisco 49ers offensive guard who moved to the Arizona Cardinals last year, returned to the team; then San Francisco also selected an offensive guard Ryan Sey in the draft. Ryan-Seymour. But the problem is that these three substitutes are all guards, and the two tackles Stanley and Boone have no substitutes to rotate. In the next training camp, this will be the top priority.
Among the wide receiver team, Randy Moss retired, Mario Manningham is still injured, AJ Jenkins and Chad Hall both transferred to the Kansas Chiefs, and Kyle Williams returned from injury. He also went to the Kansas Chiefs, and now only two players, Michael Crabtree and Ted Ginn, were left on the team.
Although the San Francisco 49ers selected wide receiver Quinton Patton in the draft and traded wide receiver Jon Baldin from the Kansas City Chiefs, this is still a drop in the bucket. .
To make matters worse, the voluntary training camp had just begun when Crabtree was injured. The injured area was the famous "Achilles' heel". The tendon was torn. There was no other option but to undergo surgery. The doctor's initial estimate is that it will take at least six months or more to recuperate, and Crabtree will not be able to return until December at the earliest.
Jim Hubble was dumbfounded.
The news that is not good news is that Crabtree's contract does not need to be renewed, and Trent Baalke does not need to worry about whether to trade Crabtree for the time being; but what is annoying is the issue of Gene's contract renewal.
Ginn transferred to the San Francisco 49ers in 2010. Before Lu Ke joined the team, he had been a special teams player, but he gave top performance in the 2011 season. Although he was injured in the National League finals and entered a long period of recovery, The future became uncertain, but San Francisco signed Ginn to a one-year extension. Now it's due again in the blink of an eye.
In the 2012 season, Gene was the team's No. 2 receiving player after Logan, and maintained ultra-efficient receiving and touchdown abilities for two consecutive seasons. His importance to the team is self-evident. This contract cannot be too low.
For Gene, this is the first and possibly only opportunity in his career to win a big contract and truly establish his important position; but what is unexpected but reasonable is that Gene does not have a lion Large opening. After only asking for quotes three times, Gene readily signed the contract.
Crabtree was not injured at the time of the signing. If Crabtree is injured, Gene's contract will inevitably continue to rise.
Later, Gene and Logan talked about this matter, and he mentioned Lu Ke, "If it weren't for Bambi, I might have stayed in the special teams team all my life. I know that the team must use the salary cap to renew Bambi, of course. , I also need to fight for my own interests, but if I only lose one million or two million, but can stay and fight with Bambi to defend the title, I think it is worth it."
However, what Gene did not say was that his agent had inquired about the news:
During last offseason, San Francisco was actually planning to lay off him because his injury might require him to rest until the start of the new season. There was too much uncertainty. At that time, San Francisco had high hopes for rookie wide receiver AJ Jenkins, believing that Jenkins could Taking over Jean's position, he was ready to give up on Jean.
But Lu Ke took the initiative to find Hubble, which not only explained Gene's recovery status, but also expressed Gene's important role in the entire tactical system - Gene's ability to strike in deep areas is indeed unparalleled in the entire team. People can replace him, and the combination with Lu Ke's long pass can be said to be a perfect combination of two swords.
After careful consideration, Hubble made a choice - San Francisco later completed a one-year contract extension with Gene; and Gene also joined Lu Ke's offseason training in Los Angeles, trying to keep up with the new season. Prepare for war.
Now, it's time to reciprocate the favor.
What's more, Gene didn't stay for charity. He secured himself a four-year, 30 million contract with a guaranteed bonus of 15 million - although this contract is shorter than the Carolina Panthers' five-year, four-year contract. The transfer offer of tens of millions is slightly lower, but it is much higher than the six years and 32 million that Crabtree signed in 2009. Gene is already satisfied.
Although San Francisco retained Ginn, the team's wide receiver lineup is still riddled with holes.
Rookie Patton Trouble aside, Jon Baldwin, acquired from the Chiefs trade, is a joke——
He was the Chiefs' first-round draft pick in 2011. He was the same rookie as Lu Ke. He was generally optimistic that year and considered one of the top three rookies. However, he fell to the 26th pick in the first round because of his bad temper. was selected; subsequent developments also proved the accuracy of the scouting report. During halftime of the second week of the preseason, he had a physical confrontation with his teammate Thomas Jones in the locker room. Injured his wrist and was out for four months.
After returning from injury, his performance was far below expectations and he was mediocre in the past two seasons.
San Francisco traded AJ Jenkins for Kansas' Jon Baldwin. Two first-round picks swapped positions without knowing what their fate would be.
In the following training camp, wide receivers will still be the team's biggest problem.
Then there’s the running back and tight end corps.
There are not many changes in the tight end team. Vernon Davis and Logan Newman have no contract issues, and then last year's rookie Demarcus Dobbs was promoted from the practice staff and was on the main team last year. Rookie Garrett Celek is also slowly growing up enough to serve as a substitute.
The team still selected Vance McDonald with the 55th pick in the second round of the draft as a supplement.
The running back team is still led by Frank Gall and Marcus Lynch. Anthony Dixon was traded to the Buffalo Bills. Bruce Miller was retired for the season due to injury. Kendall Hunter and LaMichael- James will be a reserve player.
Overall, the offensive team is still dominated by young players, and there have not been many changes. The bench lineup of the offensive line and the wide receiver lineup are still the focus of the team's attention. The biggest regret is that of the wide receiver Kyle Williams. Transfer - After an accidental injury during the regular season, he was never able to play as a San Francisco 49ers player again.
Second is the defensive team.
The whole change seems very drastic.
On the defensive front, top player Isaac Sobouga transferred to the Philadelphia Eagles - Sobouga and Schneider were very good friends at first. Last year, Schneider transferred and Soboga took over; this year, Schneider returned and Soboga transferred. Yes, it seems that the two people have never been able to renew their relationship.
Interestingly, Glenn Dorsey, who took over Sobouga's position, was transferred from the Kansas City Chiefs. There have been frequent exchanges between the two teams this offseason.
Two defensive ends, Justin Smith and Ray McDonald, have remained, but the bench has undergone a major reshuffle.
Above the linebackers, the four starting linebackers Patrick Willis, Navarro Bowman, Ahmed Brooks, and Aldon Smith all have no contract issues, but all substitute players have also been purged, and six players Replace all - This also means that the San Francisco 49ers' formation and tactics in the third defense must be rearranged.
Among the second-line defense, Pro Bowl safety Darshan Goldson was transferred to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at a high price. This is the biggest loss in the team's pass defense. Five fresh cards appeared above other positions of safety and cornerback. Faces competing for starting spot.
The defensive bench lineup has basically been replaced, and more than ten players have left the team. Although the starting lineup has basically maintained the status quo, it will face more critical moments such as third-gear defense and red zone defense. Many impacts and challenges.
In the final analysis, Harbaugh has only taken over the team for two years, and the contract of the main lineup is relatively stable. The difficulties he will face after winning the Super Bowl have eased a lot; nevertheless, the earth-shaking change of the substitute lineup is bound to become an unknown factor in the new season. , it may get better, it may get worse.
During the 2012 season, there were many mistakes made by the defensive team at critical moments, especially in the playoffs. Now this team has maintained its basic structure, but after entering the 2013 season, the age of all players will increase by one year. This is especially true for the linebackers and defensive fronts - except for Aldon, they are all veterans, which also means that the depth of the bench is more important.
But now, most of the bench players have been replaced, and things are becoming more uncertain.
