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Aldon Smith

Latest On Aldon Smith

April 17th, 2014 at 9:38pm CST by Zachary Links

THURSDAY, 9:38pm: The 49ers don’t currently plan to release Smith, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk).

TUESDAY, 6:02pm: After talking with several sources involved in the 49ers decision making, Tim Kawakami of the Mercury News gets the sense that Aldon Smith won’t play for the club in 2014. That doesn’t mean that San Francisco will release the talented outside linebacker, but the Niners have reached a point of frustration that they haven’t shown towards any player in recent years.

The 49ers won’t cut bait with Smith right away since they’re on the hook for a guaranteed $3MM+ and want to wait and see what the NFL’s punishment will look like. However, 49ers owner Jed York, the York family, and GM Trent Baalke feel embarrassed, according to Kawakami’s sources, and Jim Harbaugh feels similarly. San Francisco knows how talented Smith is and it’s conceivable that the club could change course and welcome him back, but it would take a lot from the 24-year-old in a short period of time for that to happen.

On the flipside, Kawakami hears that the club’s weariness and frustration is mostly focused on Smith. Team management supports Colin Kaepernick through the “suspicious incident” that he had in Miami and they’re not planning to release Chris Culliver despite his felony and misdemeanor hit-and-run charges recently.

NFC Notes: Lions, Williams, Aldon Smith

April 14th, 2014 at 10:54pm CST by Rory Parks

The Lions‘ brass held a town hall meeting for season ticket holders on Monday, and there were a few highlights. For instances, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press writes that team president Tom Lewand is optimistic that a new deal for defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh will get done, although there is nothing new on that front just yet.

Vice President of Player Personnel Sheldon White also spoke at the meeting. Referencing the Lions’ late-game meltdowns in 2013, White said the team will be looking for “closers” in this year’s draft (Twitter link). And special teams coordinator John Bonamego said that finding a kicker is his “top priority” from a scouting standpoint (Twitter link) and that the team will compare Giorgio Tavecchio and John Potter with the players available in the draft to determine the best fit in that regard (Twitter link).

More notes from the NFC to close out the night:

  • Mark Craig of the Star Tribune tweets that free agent defensive tackle Kevin Williams visited with the Giants Monday night and that the visit will continue on Tuesday. As our Luke Adams recently wrote, Williams still offers solid value as a veteran run-stopper.
  • NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets that it would be hard to imagine the 49ers picking up Aldon Smith‘s option by the May 3 deadline, given that the team will not have “enough answers” regarding his latest off-field incident by that time. Instead, he believes the team will go year-to-year with Smith (Twitter link).
  • After meeting with the Titans, Colts, and Redskins, Louisville DE Marcus Smith will have his final pre-draft visit with the Eagles next week, tweets Alex Marvez of FOX Sports.
  • Oklahoma State CB Justin Gilbert is visiting the Saints, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.

NFC Notes: Smith, Cowboys, Seahawks, Bell

April 13th, 2014 at 8:53pm CST by Dallas Robinson

49ers linebacker Aldon Smith was arrested this afternoon at Los Angeles International Airport following an incident where he allegedly falsely indicated that he possessed a bomb, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee. The episode reflects poorly not only on a Niners team that has dealt with several off-the-field issues over the past month (the Colin Kaepernick investigation and the Chris Culliver arrest), but also on Smith himself, who has been embroiled in personal struggles over the past year, including missing five games last season while spending time in a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility.

This incident could have implications on Smith’s future with the 49ers: as ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson points out, the team has not decided whether to pick up the fifth-year option they hold on Smith. If San Francisco decides that the young edge rusher’s personal issues make him too difficult to trust, they could opt to decline the option, estimated to be worth more than $9MM. The deadline to decide on the option is May 3.

Other news from the NFC:

  • Rainer Sabin of the Dallas Morning News examines the Cowboys draft strategy regarding developmental quarterbacks, and wonders why the team hasn’t copied the strategy of the Patriots and Packers and drafted an heir apparent to Tony Romo.
  • The Seahawks might look ahead to 2015 needs rather than simply draft to fill immediate positional vacancies in the upcoming draft, writes Andy Benoit of the MMQB.com. Seahawks general manager John Schneider is a forward-thinking executive, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see him eschew a pressing receiver need in favor of stockpiling defensive talent.
  • Byron Bell is expected to slide from right to left tackle for the Panthers, helping to replace the void created by Jordan Gross‘ retirement, according to David Newton of ESPN.com. Bell was below-average last season according to Pro Football Focus (-2.8 grade), but both Gross and coach Ron Rivera think Bell should be much improved in 2014. Additionally, Carolina’s tight cap situation meant they couldn’t sign a free agent left tackle, and the premier options in the draft likely won’t last until pick No. 28, so Bell looks to be the team’s only option.

NFC West Notes: 49ers, Quinn, Cardinals

March 8th, 2014 at 12:25pm CST by Matt Feminis

The 49ers have big-money decisions to make, while the Cardinals eye offensive line help in a batch of NFC West division tidbits:

  • Last season, 49ers cornerback Carlos Rogers declined a pay cut, but the team had no recourse because they needed him on the field. A year later, the team is prepared to release Rogers if he does not agree to a pay cut, as the veteran is scheduled to earn a $6.25MM base salary and count nearly $8.1MM against the cap, writes Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area. Releasing Rogers after June 1 would save $6.6 on the 2014 cap, but the team would incur $1.5MM in dead money on the 2015 cap. If the team swallowed the entire cap hit in 2014, the immediate cap savings would be $5.1MM with no dead money in future years.
  • The escalating salary cap helps the 49ers long-term, especially given the team’s desire to retain 2015 free agents Colin Kaepernick, Aldon Smith, Michael Crabtree and Mike Iupati, but the extra $10MM the rest of the league has to play with in the short term could make it difficult to retain this year’s free agents, including Donte Whitner, Tarell Brown and Phil Dawson, writes Eric Branch of sfgate.com.
  • Robert Quinn is entering the final year of his four-year rookie contract, but a provision in the new CBA (instituted in 2011 when Quinn was drafted 14th overall) allows the Rams to keep the reigning Defensive Player of the Year through 2015, notes Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. By virtue of Quinn being selected between No. 11 overall to No. 32, the team can pay Quinn the average salary made by the third- through 25th-highest paid players at the defensive end position ($6.9MM).
  • The Cardinals are targeting Branden Albert and Rodger Saffold in that order, according to Kent Somers of azcentral.com (via Twitter).

NFC West Notes: 49ers, Rams, Cardinals

March 3rd, 2014 at 5:55pm CST by Ben Levine

Michael Bennett took to SiriusXM NFL Radio and talked to hosts Bruce Murray and Rich Gannon about his future with Seahawks, writes Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. The defensive end revealed that discussions “have been positive,” adding that the team wants him “to be a Seahawk for the rest of (his) career.”

While it certainly sounds like the Seahawks will bring back their defensive end, Bennett admitted that his brother, Martellus Bennett, is still trying to recruit him to come to the Bears. The Bears would have to “open up their wallet” for that to happen, Bennett said.

Let’s take a look at what else is happening around the NFC West…

  • The 49ers did not use their franchise tag on Monday, but could use it next season, Bill Williamson of ESPN.com says. Colin Kaepernick, Michael Crabtree and Aldon Smith are entering the final season of their contracts and could be tagged next offseason.
  • Considering the safety’s connection to St. Louis, Jairus Byrd could potentially be a target of the Rams, writes Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com. Byrd played high school football near St. Louis, and Wagoner believes the prospective free agent would be a great fit for the team. Still, the writer thinks it’s unlikely the Rams would dish out the kind of money that would be required for Byrd’s services.
  • Larry Fitzgerald acknowledged that the restructuring of his contract should allow the Cardinals to re-sign some key free agents, like Karlos Dansby and Patrick Peterson. One interesting name that the receiver also brought up was Frostee Rucker, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com writes. Fitzgerald said, “Some guys have gaudy numbers. I know his numbers weren’t crazy high. In terms of locker room guy, you can’t ask for a better teammate.”