2016 NFL Hall of Fame nominee and pro football legend Terrell Owens has teamed up with Butterfinger to make the Super Bowl bolder than ever before with the Bolder Than Bold campaign by asking players to bring back the boldest moves on the field – the touchdown dances. Butterfinger has offered to cover up to $50,000 for fines that may be incurred by any player boldly celebrating in the endzone.
In the video above, we asked T.O. about his potential Hall of Fame induction, if he ever used HGH or PEDs, and his favorite endzone celebration.
The Santa Rosa Press Democrat is reporting that there’s a strong possibility that first round pick Michael Crabtree will start this week when he makes his NFL debut against the Texans. He would replace Josh Morgan while Isaac Bruce will remain at flanker.
There’s a good chance that Crabtree won’t have much of an effect on the Niners’ offense for at least a couple of weeks. They’ll remain a run-first team and Morgan will still see plenty of playing time considering he’s San Fran’s best run-blocking receiver.
The question I have regarding Crabtree is what kind of an affect he’ll have on the team’s locker room. Considering he held out for five weeks, he couldn’t have endeared himself to his teammates. And now at the first opportunity, he’s being thrust into the starting lineup.
With that in mind, Mike Singletary wouldn’t make a move like this if he knew he’d lose the locker room. He has the respect of his players and they trust his decisions. If he thinks that starting Crabtree gives his team the best chance to win, his players will follow.
Why not see if the rookie can sink or swim right away?
Up until their 45-10 loss to the Falcons in Week 5, Shaun Hill and the 49ers felt pretty good about how they started their 2009 season. Hill wasn’t setting the stat book on fire, but he kept the chains moving by making smart decisions and taking care of the football.
But on Sunday, Atlanta jumped out to a sizable first half lead and forced Hill to beat them through the air. What proceeded was a nasty performance highlighted by off-the-mark throws and inconsistency. He didn’t get much help from the running game, but he never got into a rhythm passing and his limitations as a quarterback were on full display. He struggled mightily with the intermediate and deep passes today.
That said, the Niners won’t be making a switch any time soon. It’s not like Mike Singletary didn’t know that Hill wasn’t Peyton Manning in preseason and Hill still beat out Alex Smith for the starting job. The bottom line is that San Fran will struggle this season when it can’t run the ball and the defense doesn’t step up.
Speaking of the Niners’ defense, Matt Ryan and Roddy White absolutely took them to school today. Ryan threw for 329 yards and two touchdowns on 22 of 32 passing, while White had his best outing of the year with eight receptions for 210 yards and two touchdowns. White, who had gotten off to a slow start this season, found holes in San Francisco’s defense and as he often is, Ryan was accurate with his throws.
Eugene Parker, Crabtree’s agent, is scheduled to arrive in San Francisco on Tuesday. Parker declined comment when reached. Niners coach Mike Singletary said Monday that he would still like to have Crabtree play for the team this season.
“Any guy that can play and help us win, I would never say, ‘No, we don’t need him,'” Singletary said. “We need all the good football players we can get.”
Crabtree, the 10th overall selection in April’s draft, is the only unsigned first-round pick. He has missed the first four weeks of the regular season.
I don’t think Crabtree is dumb. I think he got dumb advice from his dumb agent who only now realizes how bad a mistake he’s made with his client’s future. If I were Crabtree, I’d fire Parker immediately to ensure he doesn’t screw this deal up even more than he already has.
Parker and Crabtree played Russian roulette and lost. At 3-1, the 49ers have proven that they don’t need him to win and had Crabtree held out any longer, I’m sure the front office was thinking about cutting their losses and using that money to re-sign players like Patrick Willis.
This is a win-win situation for the 49ers. If Parker balks and Crabtree continues to holdout, then San Fran can use the money elsewhere and remove themselves from the situation. If Crabtree signs, then Mike Singletary can get his big paws around his young receiver’s neck and strangle some sense into him.
Either way, this is a positive for a Niner team that has a lot of hope building on this young season.
Comments Off on Crabtree, 49ers to renew contract discussions
In a recent interview with Sirius XM radio, former NFL legend Jim Brown had some advice for Michael Crabtree, the 49ers rookie who is holding out for a bigger contract offer.
Jim Brown, who made $85,000 in the final season of his Hall of Fame career, has a message for the 49ers’ first-round draft pick:
“Mr. Crabtree, get your butt in camp,’’ he said.
In an interview with Sirius XM radio, Brown told host Joe Madison that Michael Crabtree’s current stance is “totally ridiculous” and said that an athlete’s career is measured by the way he plays, not the contract he signs.
“You don’t realize that your legacy will be based upon how you perform, not how much money you made?” Brown said on the show. Brown visited 49ers training camp in August. Crabtree was absent because of a contract stalemate that shows no sign of a breakthrough three games into the regular-season. Reports peg the 49ers offer as a five-year deal that includes $16 million in guarantees.
It’s painstakingly clear that Crabtree is only about the money. If he truly cared about football he would have already accepted the 49ers’ original offer (which was for fair, market value by the way) and would be contributing on the field right now.
If it’s not killing Crabtree that his team is currently atop the NFC West standings at 2-1 and he can’t contribute in some way, then the 49ers should cut their losses and move on because the kid doesn’t have the fire to play.
And that’s just not going to fly on a team coached by Mike Singletary.
