Marcus Lattimore to Retire

49ers running back, former South Carolina Gamecocks standout, Marcus Lattimore announced his retirement from the NFL today via twitter.

Lattimore exploded onto the scene for the Gamecocks as a true freshman in 2010, and was absolutely dominant. He showed talent that not many players possess. Standing at 5’11” and weighing 220 pounds, he proved early he was a load for defenders to bring down, breaking 42 tackles on 37 carries in his second ever college game against the Georgia Bulldogs. Yet, his game wasn’t just power. Lattimore also had incredible speed and agility which was surprising for a back his size. He finished his freshman year with 1197 yards and 17 touchdowns on 249 carries.

His dominance continued during his sophomore year until his season was cut short when he tore both his ACL and MCL in his left knee when the Gamecocks played the Mississippi St. Bulldogs. Despite missing the final fives game of the season, Lattimore finished the year with 818 yards and 10 touchdowns on 163 carries.

Lattimore was able to recover from this injury and return to lead the Gamecoks to a 6-0 start during his junior year. On October 27th versus the Tennessee Volunteers, Lattimore’s football career was effectively ended. During this game, Lattimore suffered what is considered one of the worst knee injuries in the history of the game. He was hit by two defenders, one hit him low at the knees while another rolled him over the first defender from behind, trapping Lattimore’s right leg and twisting at the knee (WARNING: if you REALLY need to see it, here it is).

Lattimore tore his ACL, MCL, and PCL in his right leg. This devastating injury ended Lattimore’s career in South Carolina, as he missed the remaining of the season and declared for the NFL draft at the end of the year, forgoing his senior year of college. The 49ers drafted Lattimore in the fourth-round and signed him to a 4-year contract worth $2,460,584 including a signing bonus of $300,584, despite doubts that he would ever recover from his injury enough to play again.

He never did.

His farewell on twitter included the following:

After prayer and careful consideration, I have decided it’s time to end my professional football career. I have given my heart and soul to the game that I love, and it’s time for me to move on to the next chapter of my life and help others. I have given every ounce of my energy toward making a full recovery from my knee injury, and I have made a lot of progress. Unfortunately, getting my knee fully back to the level the NFL demands has proven to be insurmountable.

In the end, that cut back run against Tennessee would be the final down of football Lattimore would ever play. The destruction of his right knee was too great for him to overcome. Much like David Wilson’s farewell earlier this year, Lattimore stated his gratitude for the organization which allowed him to achieve his lifelong dream of making it to the NFL.

He took out a tax-free $1.7 million disability insurance policy following the first knee injury, which it seems he will now use. Lattimore plans to return to South Carolina to finish his degree, and it’s hard to believe Coach Steve Spurrier won’t get him involved in the coaching staff of the team.

Marcus Lattimore’s football story has come to an end, but it’s hard to look back at those college highlight films and not think “what if?”

 

 

Vernon Davis and the Pointless Holdout

Let me start this off by saying that I am a big Vernon Davis fan. He is extremely talented, a physical freak of nature, one of the top tight ends in the league, and was a main part of my championship winning fantasy team last season.

However, I disagree with his decision to holdout for a bigger contract that he attempted to justify in his article in Sports Illustrated’s MMQB (read it here). Davis signed a 5 year/$36.75 million contact in 2010. That deal included a $10 million signing bonus and $11.1 million guaranteed. He says that he is “playing at a higher level than [he] was then” and that “it’s all about getting paid what you deserve.”

That’s where he’s wrong.

Davis signed his current deal after coming of the best season of his career, 2009, in which he caught 78 passes for 965 yards and 13 touchdowns. The following year he had another stellar year catching 56 passes for 915 yards and 7 touchdowns. These are his two career high seasons in terms of yardage.

The next two years, 2011 and 2012, he saw a drop in production during the regular season, but was a huge part of the 49ers’ playoff runs both seasons. Last season, was a bit of a resurgence of the old Vernon Davis as he caught 52 passes for 850 yards and a career-high tying 13 touchdowns. These numbers are for only 15 games, as he missed his first game in 5 years after suffering a concussion.

When looking at the numbers, you can’t disagree that Vernon Davis is one of the best tight ends in the league. Most people would say the only better tight ends would be Jimmy Graham and maybe Gronk.

Graham’s numbers are miles ahead of Davis’ so it is tough to make a comparison there, and Gronk signed his contract after playing the single greatest season by a tight end ever so it’s hard to compare his worth to Davis’ as well.

Did Vernon Davis drastically improve his numbers last season compared to the rest of his career? No. Did he ever have a season like Gronk and Graham both had in 2011? No.

The only argument you could make against this is that Davis didn’t have Drew Brees or Tom Brady throwing him the football, but Colin Kaepernick’s newest contract shows the 49ers hold him to that level.

In fact, this holdout was most likely due to the monster contract Kaepernick signed, but that contract isn’t what it seems. There are numerous performance milestones Kaep must meet in order to earn the full $126 million and there is also a large opt out for the 49ers if he doesn’t meet them. Realistically, his deal is 2-years/$28 million, pay-as-you-go type of contract (Deadspin broke it down well).

If Vernon Davis believes he should make wide receiver money, like Jimmy Graham is trying to do, he is wrong. He is a true tight end and doesn’t put up the numbers Graham does.

I believe he could probably bargain with the team for another $1 million a year (depending on salary cap space) moving him closer to Gronk’s salary, but his deal would most likely be structured similar to Kaepernick’s with various performance levels he must meet in order to make big money.

Vernon Davis isn’t playing any better or worse than he did when he signed his other contract; he’s merely playing the same game. If he believes he should be paid “what [he] deserves” then it looks like he’s getting paid correctly now.

 

Smashmouth Football At Its Finest

The NFC Championship game pits the Seattle Seahawks against their hated rivals, the San Francisco 49ers. I believe the Seahawks will come away with the win today, with some help from their 12th man; however, it will be a tightly contested, punishingly physical football game.

The Seahawks were the #1 overall defense, the #1 passing defense, and the #4 rushing offense during the regular season. It is almost impossible to pass the ball against this extremely talented secondary led by Richard Sherman. Sherman led the league with 8 interceptions, and the team had a total of 28. Colin Kaepernick will have his hands full against them tonight.

The 49ers defense will also have their hands full containing Marshawn Lynch and the Seahawks running game. Lynch went off again against the Saints in the divisional playoff game last week rushing for 140 yards on 28 carries for 2 touchdowns. He is looking to continue that success tonight and go “Beast-mode” on Navarro Bowman and Patrick Willis.

Those linebackers are the centerpieces of the #4 rushing defense in the league allowing only 95.9 yards per game. The 49ers were actually the #5 overall defense during the regular season. With these defenses going head-to-head, it will most definitely not be a high scoring game. The Niners though will also be grinding the ball down the field by running the ball with Frank Gore.

Gore pounded the Seahawks for 110 yards when the teams last played during the regular season at Candlestick Park, but only ran for 16 in their game in Seattle. How he plays today will determine how close this game will be. When the 49ers get the ground game going with Gore and Kaepernick, they are able to wear defenses down and control the tempo of the game.

I do not think that the 49ers will be able to get their offense going today in Seattle. They struggled the first time they played there this year, and the 12th man will be louder than ever before hoping to cheer their Hawks to the Super Bowl. I also believe Kaepernick will struggle to throw the ball against the Seahawks’ secondary.

Seahawks win, 27-13

Another thing we might see tonight is at least one ejection. Tension is high at this point in the playoffs and these teams absolutely hate each other. Both play hard-hitting, physical football and both like to talk trash as well. It will only be a matter of time before someone decides to take an extra shot or two after a play.