chris98251":2eui5wll said:
Funny thing is pretty much everyone that Mcloughlin scouted and help pick are now gone, what you have is a roster of Baalke picks. How's that working out now.
I will also add he was very involved in our scouting and assisting Schneider. He may have had a substance problem but the guy has laser eyes for talent.
Kind of curious to see if Gruden stays in Washington what year three will look like, they should start seeing the results there also.
I'll never berate McCloughan from a talent evaluation perspective. He picked Smith over Rodgers and selected Balmer and Manny Lawson in the first round, but he also selected Staley (and traded up to do so), Vernon, Frank, Pat, and many others.
I hated losing him.
While true that this is now a team of Baalke picks, it's kinda important to note that the biggest areas of concern on the team right now were the losses of players that Baalke drafted.
The most damaging losses in the offseason thus far from a personnel perspective have been Anthony Davis, Mike Iupati (whom I admittedly thought wouldn't be a big deal...it was), and Aldon Smith. All of those guys were drafted by Baalke. Baalke even drafted a replacement for Willis...who also retired (Borland).
What those losses have obscured are some other players he selected that look pretty good right now. Aaron Lynch. Carlos Hyde. Jaquaski Tartt. Kenneth Acker. Poor Lynch is getting double teamed on every down because they don't have a guy like Aldon on the other side. Hyde can't stay healthy and his line keeps getting him (and every other SF back) hit in the backfield. Tartt and Acker have looked good, but with no pass rush QBs have been able to tee off all season.
Without the line play on either side of the ball, the Niners are simply dead in the water. They will not improve until those areas are addressed. They need a complete overhaul on the Offensive Line and they need some pass rushers.
Yes, the team is comprised mostly now of Baalke selections and they suck hard right now, but a lot of the players they lost in the offseason were some of Baalkes best selections.
I'm not trying to make out that Baalke is the best GM in the NFL (tho I love the way he moves around on draft day), but saying they are losing just because they lost the McCloughan picks isn't really the entire picture.
EDIT:
Just to further illustrate the point on the O-Line...this from Matt Maiocco...
--Center Marcus Martin ranks 30th of the 30 players at his position who have played 50 percent or more of the snaps this season. Martin is 23rd in pass-blocking and last in run-blocking.
--Right guard Jordan Devey ranks 55th of 56 guards overall. He is 54th in pass-blocking and 50th in run-blocking.
--Left guard Alex Boone is surprising low, too. He is 36th overall among all guards, including 53rd in run-blocking. As a pass-protector, Boone is rated No. 22.
--Right tackle Eric Pears ranks 53rd out of 60 tackles in the NFL. He is 34th as a pass protector, and 59th out of 60 when he comes to blocking on running plays.
--Left tackle Joe Staley, a four-time Pro Bowl selection, has clearly been the 49ers’ best offensive lineman – again. Staley is the league’s No. 6-rated tackle. He is 15th as a pass-blocker, and 11th while blocking for the run. He also gets positive marks for screen-blocking and avoiding penalties, raising his overall grade to one of the top in the NFL.
Now the logical argument here is that 4 of those guy were Baalke guys and that's fair, but Baalke also drafted Davis and Iupati. The real disappointment has been Marcus Martin and Brandon Thomas...the latter of which hasn't even been active for a game. No idea whats up with that.
Thankfully they are finally set to get Daniel Kilgore back in the next month or so to get Martin off the field.
I have maintained and still say the last two losses of the 49er offseason were by far the most damaging. Anthony Davis and Aldon Smith.
