Tackle Marvel Smith is being scheduled to visit the 49ers on Wednesday. With the team's need for a right tackle, could Smith be the answer?
One of the biggest concerns of fans (and I can see how you guys feel from your recent comments) is that the team isn't aggressive enough in this year's free agency market. In fact, the team hasn't made a big splash at all. We were led to false hopes with Kurt Warner and now, the team is just sitting down.
However, Smith would be an interesting addition to the team no doubt. And why wouldn't be come to San Francisco? According to Barrows:
Smith is from the Bay Area having played high school ball at Skyline High School in Oakland. He went to Arizona State and was a second-round pick by the Steelers in the 2000 draft. Smith has two Super Bowl rings and he went to the Pro Bowl in 2004.
Smith is a strong player, but he has missed 15 games over the past two seasons. But having played for the Steelers, I think he would bring a tremendous amount of experience from playing with such a talented team. Also, as the 49ers are looking for a new right tackle, I think I might feel a little bit better signing an experienced veteran than try to work a rookie into the mix.
Smith isn't that big name tackle, but he sure is a tackle that I believe can perform well if healthy. The 49ers should try their best to sway Smith to play for the 49ers. After the failed experiments of Adam Snyder and Barry Sims (because of Jonas Jennings' injuries), I would like to have a tackle that I truly can believe in. Of course, the physical at Stanford tomorrow would be a huge indicator if Smith is healthy enough to play for us.
Let's assume that he is ready to play. The 49ers can definitely sign him and not worry about trying to get a tackle in the first round. With that, they can either go for that wide receiver (Jeremy Maclin maybe) or that pass rusher (Everette Brown). Heck, they can even try to trade away that first round pick to a team that wants Mark Sanchez (the Jets maybe?) or if it's not too crazy, trade it for Jay Cutler.
We'll see how tomorrow goes for Smith. If he's healthy, let's get him!
Comments
I would love it if we got Marvel Smith. He is one of the strongest tackles in the league, and can play left or right tackle. In short, he is a pro bowl quality player that can play at a high level for another 4-5 years, barring injury.
The 49ers are being smart and saving there money for another year. Buying big name players doesn't mean you will win. It may make a good story for sports writers, TV and some fans to go out and buy buy buy, but the real players are in the draft... and the cost less too. Just look at our best players... Gore, Willis, Staley, Davis, Morgan and Rachal... All drafted! Yet our secondary of Clements, Harris, Lewis and Roman were all free agents and had a combined 5 ints total last year! Just look at the biggest spender last year. All the sports writers and TV people were talking day, noon and night about the Jets and the 135+ million dollar shopping spree they went on. Calvin Pace, Kris Jenkins, Damien Woody, Tony Richardson, Alan Faneca and Brett Favre. All that hype and money, and where did it get them? Playoffs? Hell no! All that money and hype got them a 24-14 lost to the 49ers. Build through the draft and save your money.
All I have to say is look at the two teams that have won the most superbowls over the last 10 years: The Patriots and the Steelers. Then look at how many free agents were starting on those teams - a lot! You figure it out...
Well Troy Conwi, you sounded a little mad in your last post telling me that I was straight up wrong. Well you should try not to speak out of your ass, because here comes my foot! Last years Superbowl winning Steelers had only 3 Free agents in the starting line up! The other 19 starters were all drafted and trained by the Steelers. Everybody knows that the Steelers have always built their teams through the draft... everybody but you! Maybe that's the reason why they have more Superbowls then any other team. As for the Patriots, yes their team has been filling more and more with Free agents as they have gotten older and have had bad drafts. That would also explain why they haven't won a Superbowl in 4 years. When the Patriots started their road to 3 Superbowls, 18 out of the 22 starters were all drafted by them! Drafted players are on the team longer and cost less, so again I say, save your money and build though the draft.
Steeler's 2008 starters; QB Big Ben, RB Fast Willy Parker, WR Superbowl MVP Santonio Homes, WR Superbowl MVP Hines Ward, TE H. Miller, RT W. Colon, RG D. Stapleton, C free agent J. Hartwig, LG C. Kemoeatul, LT M. Starks, CB I. Taylor, CB D. Townsend, SS T. Polamalu, FS free agent R. Clark, LB J. Harrison, LB L. Foote, LB L Woodley, LB Free agent J. Farrior, DE A. Smith, NT C. Hampton, DE B. Keisel. The ones that were not marked as Free agents were drafted by the Steelers!
One other thing that I noticed is that more than 90% of Superbowl MVPs are from the team that drafted them.
Rob
The Steelers last year had two starting linebackers acquired through free agency: James Harrison, and James Farrior. Ryan Clark (FS), Willie Parker (HB), Carey Davis (FB), Darnel Stapleton (Right Guard)all acquired thru free agency. You should learn to count because that makes six starter that came from free agency or 27 % of their starters. But judging from you usage of language and lack of math skill, it appears you aren't well educated.
Well even if you were right, and your not 27% doesn't make up "a lot" of the team. You said " look at how many free agents were starting on those teams - a lot" so I guess you consider 1/4 of a team a lot... James Harrison was a rookie free agent witch means he wasn't good enough to be drafted since there are only 7 rounds in the draft, and Fast Willy was an undrafted free agent.Those to players were not BIG name free agents. They were players that were not drafted and with in a week were signed by the Steelers for next to nothing. The FB I forgot to put him in, since well... hes the FB and did not to cost a lot. As for the FS, RG and Farrior I already menchened them. You have not proved that what I said was wrong. All you have done is nit pick the crap out what I said. I never said don't buy any free agents. I said don't spend all your money on them, witch the Steelers have not done. Here is what I said since you have such a bad memory. "The 49ers are being smart and saving there money for another year. Buying big name players doesn't mean you will win". I could careless about your opinion about education, and language since you can't even stick to one point or keep quite when you are wrong. First you attracted me for having and opinion about something, saying that I was wrong and that teams shouldn't build though the draft because the Patriots and Steelers don't. Saying that the Steelers have "a lot" of free agents. I showed you that they don't have a lot of free agents, so what do you do, you fail back on your point that they have a lot and say that I can't add, that their team is made up of 27% free agents. Adding that I didn't count the FD and the two undrafted free agents. So "a lot" went down to 27% witch is what I was saying the whole time! Build though the draft and save your money!
rob I never said they had to be "expensive" or big name free agents...the best ones are the ones nobody knows about and have a lot of upside.
Then why did you try to disprove what I was saying, and told me to figure it out...
Heres what I said, because thats what I was saying the whole time!
"The 49ers are being smart and saving there money for another year. Buying big name players doesn't mean you will win. It may make a good story for sports writers, TV and some fans to go out and buy buy buy, but the real players are in the draft... and the cost less too. Just look at our best players... Gore, Willis, Staley, Davis, Morgan and Rachal... All drafted! Yet our secondary of Clements, Harris, Lewis and Roman were all free agents and had a combined 5 ints total last year! Just look at the biggest spender last year. All the sports writers and TV people were talking day, noon and night about the Jets and the 135+ million dollar shopping spree they went on. Calvin Pace, Kris Jenkins, Damien Woody, Tony Richardson, Alan Faneca and Brett Favre. All that hype and money, and where did it get them? Playoffs? Hell no! All that money and hype got them a 24-14 lost to the 49ers. Build through the draft and save your money."
Well I was saying it was the big free agents they shouldn't buy! The Niners already had enough big free agents over the last 3 or 4 years to skip a year on big names and build though the draft. That's what I was saying the whole time!
My position has always been that the draft is very important. But to be successful a team has to complement the draft with free agency. I do not agree that a championship team can be built exclusively through the draft.
When a GM says we're going to build our team thru the draft that is usually code for "our owner is too cheap to build a championship team, well just do the minumum by signing our draft picks."
You never understood what I was saying in the first place. I never said don't get ANY free agents! I said the team doesn't need to get those big free agents this year. That's what the 49ers have been doing this year, and it is a good idea.
They have a good team and they are going to save their money for next year. I like Clements and J. Smith but there is no need to buy big names every year! Some teams are cheap no matter what they do, it has nothing to do with building through the draft.The Steelers have been doing it for 30 years now and I think it has worked out for them just fine. I mean they do have more Superbowl wins then any other team.
Drafted players are young and can be on the team for a lot longer and for less money then a big name 27-32 year old free agent. Samuel Lam wrote the same thing I have been seeing and hearing everywhere... "One of the biggest concerns of fans is that the team isn't aggressive enough in this year's free agency market. In fact the team hasn't made a big splash at all". He wrote that and I wrote the reason why they shouldn't be aggressive in THIS years market. Then you came alone and for some reason and crapped all over what I had said! I say for some reason because it looks like to me you have the same view as me. You just took what I said literally.
When I said its fine if this year they don't buy any big names free agents... you took that as they should NEVER buy ANY free agents. When I say build though the draft... you thought I was saying ONLY through the draft every year.
So go back and read what I said in my first post and you might finally understand that I was saying building though the draft is better then spending 135+ million dollars in one year on players.
Oh and by the way my first post was not aimed at what you said about Marvel Smith, ever though it makes me a nervous to replace one often injured tackle with another often injured tackle. I mean if he doesn't get hurt then yeah he would be great, but he has been getting hurt.
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