49ers capture NFC West offseason title

By Darrell Laurant  |   Friday, June 01, 2007  |  Comments( 19 )

San Francisco 49ers
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No doubt you've heard the old joke about the two hunters being pursued by an angry grizzly.

"What are you doing?" gasped one desperate hunter to the other as the grizzly grew ever closer. "You can't outrun a bear"

"I don't have to," replied the other hunter. "I just have to outrun you."

Similarly, the San Francisco 49ers will only have to outrun the other three teams in the NFC West to get some postseason action in 2007. A wild card is always a possibility, of course, but if the Niners don't emerge on top of a relatively undistinguished NFC West heap, chances are they won't win enough other games to qualify.

Last season, San Francisco was third in its division at 7-9, trailing Seattle (9-7) and St. Louis (8-8) and ahead of Arizona (5-11). So who improved the most during the offseason? It's hard to vote against the 49ers.

True, Arizona set the improvement bar rather low last year. And by drafting Penn State tackle Levi Brown, as well as signing tackle Mike Gandy and center Al Johnson as free agents, the Cardinals did seemingly improve an offensive line that got both of its quarterbacks hurt and created little room for running back Edgerrin James (3.6 yards a carry, his worst average ever, and just six touchdowns) last season.

If that line can, indeed, be stabilized, the Cardinals have some offensive weapons in sophomore quarterback Matt Leinart, James, and wideouts Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald. Besides Brown and Michigan defensive tackle Alan Branch, the draft yielded some speed in WR Steve Breaston and possible help at linebacker in Buster Davis. Overall, though, it peaked with the first two choices.

St. Louis will look pretty much the same on offense this season, QB Marc Bulger throwing to Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt, with Steven Jackson getting the bulk of the carries. Except for perennial Pro Bowler Orlando Pace, however, the offensive line was often overmatched, and the addition of 36-year-old Todd Steussie may not help much. Another free-agent pickup, 6-foot-5 WR Drew Bennett, will offset the loss of Kevin Curtis to the Eagles. TE Randy McMichael was another decent free-agent acquisition, while Travis Minor and second-round draft pick Brian Leonard will give Jackson a little more rest. If kick returner Dante Hall has anything left in the tank, he could add another dimension -- but the fact that Kansas City let him go for a fifth-round draft pick says a lot.

The Rams did help themselves on defense by drafting DE Adam Carriker from Nebraska to team with Leonard Little, La'Roi Glover and James Hall up front. Hall, another free-agent acquisition, was hurt a lot last year and is 30 years old, however. Todd Johnson was added to the secondary mix, but he didn't start in Chicago.

This might well be the year the Seahawks slide off the NFC West pinnacle. The offensive line regressed last season without Steve Hutchinson, making Shaun Alexander work a lot harder for his yards (when he wasn't injured). Matt Hasselbeck was inconsistent, and the receiving corps of Deion Branch, Nate Burleson, Bobby Engram and D.J. Hackett doesn't have a proven No. 1 receiver in the bunch.

Free-agent signees Deon Grant, Brian Russell and Patrick Kerney should help stiffen the defense (although Kerney had to struggle through a succession of injuries as a Falcon last season), but the Seahawks' draft was puzzling. With their first pick (in the second round, thanks to an earlier trade), they chose DB Josh Wilson out of Maryland, who is only 5-9. Some of their other picks included Auburn LB Will Herring, who doesn't seem to have a definable NFL position, and OL Mansfield Wrotto, who only spent a year on offense at Georgia Tech. The plum could turn out to be DE Baraka Atkins out of Miami, who is 6-4, 271 and ran a 4.6 at the combine.

All of this makes the 49ers look good by comparison. Their free-agent crop of Nate Clements, Tully Banta-Cain, Michael Lewis and Aubrayo Franklin all fit neatly into holes that needed to be plugged, and the team snagged two All-Americans (LB Patrick Willis from Ole Miss and OT Joe Staley from Central Michigan) in the first round of the draft. San Francisco also drafted well-regarded WR Jason Hill of Washington State and a potentially strong pass rusher in DE Ray McDonald of national champion Florida. Cornerback Tarell Brown, a "character issues" risk, could see a lot of playing time.

So give the 49ers the NFC West offseason title. Now, they just have to do it on the field.
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