The North County Times (San Diego) reports that despite his interest in playing for the Chargers, Joey Porter is not a good fit in San Diego, and has a visit to San Francisco planned "in coming days". Link:

http://www.northcountytimes.com/articles/2007/03/03/sports/professional/chargers/1_07_123_3_07.txt

If Nolan can stomach signing a whiner like Lelie, I think he could certainly handle a mouthy guy who can actually produce on Sundays, inspire the players around him, and already has a Super Bowl ring. It would also add a nice symmetry to their offseason moves to improve the defense -- signing a CB, S, LB, and DL.

I for one would be ecstatic with the Niners free agency haul if they could land Porter. What say you?

Matt Maiocco, the 49ers beat writer for the Press Democrat, writes in his blog that he thinks TE coach Pete Hoener is the most likely candidate to replace Norv Turner as offensive coordinator. According to Maiocco's most recent post, Hoener has more experience as a play caller (though exclusively at the college level) than the rest of the staff combined, was schooled in Turner's system, and spent a lot of time working with both Turner and McCarthy the last 2 seasons. He also confirms that keeping the same offensive scheme is a priority to Nolan.

Link:

http://49ers.pressdemocrat.com/default.asp?item=502547

[EDITOR'S NOTE] - I just noticed this at espn.com and I'm glad someone put something up about it. Samuel getting tagged, along with Lance Briggs, shakes up the value of the remaining free agents. However, if we can land Adalius Thomas and some d-line help it could make up for not signing a big name corner. Spencer is a solid option on one side and a better pass rush could help cover for weakness in the secondary.

Link:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2768800

The Bears laid the franchise tag on Lance Briggs too, but the Samuel move is the one that really hurts. The only top-notch CB left on the free agent market is Clements, who has already stated his desire to cash in big time. Now that he's the only real option out there, he'll likely get his wish.

***EDITOR'S NOTE*** I was about to post this, but someone jumped on it with a diary. This certainly changes the wide receiver picture. Some thought Smardzija had the potential to be drafted high, so obviously that's no longer the case.

Link

The Cubs have paid him handsomely to dedicate himself to baseball full time, Drew Henson-style. Personally, I'm glad. I was worried the Niners might draft him at #11, which I thought would be a reach even if his baseball career wasn't an issue. No chance of that happening now.

That leaves only Johnson, Jarrett and Ginn as WRs who could conceivably be selected with that #11 choice. I'm of the opinion that Johnson is the only one worthy of that high a pick, and they would almost certainly have to trade up to get him.

I hope I'm not stealing reppin the bay's thunder by posting this early, but I'm finding myself with a lot of free time today (thank you, writer's block!), and I'm itching to make some (inaccurate) picks for the games this weekend. Without further ado, here they are:

Colts 23, Patriots 20

I'm hoping and thinking that these 2006 Colts are football's version of the 2006 St. Louis Cardinals -- the weakest overall team they've sent to the post-season in years, who peak at the right time, and take advantage of favorable matchups and a somewhat weak field to win a long-awaited championship. The Patriots were handed their victory in San Diego this past weekend, and I think they are too slow on defense to keep up with the Colts stellar recieving corps (Don't expect them to drop passes like the Chargers WRs did on Sunday, New England). I think the Pats gamely hang in this one until the end, but are finally undone by a late FG by Vinateri. Isn't it ironic? Don't you think?

Saints 27, Bears 20

I'm not a fan of the Bears, who are inconsistent on offense and not nearly as good on defense as they were earlier in the year, thanks in large part to injuries. The Saints, meanwhile, have a ton going for them: lots of talent on offense, a constantly improving defense, momentum, and of course, Karma. Another factor going for the Saints: The weather is actually supposed to be decent (Mother Nature owes New Orleans). If Grossman has one of his patented bad games, I think this one could get out of hand, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and say he plays just well enough to lose by a TD.

Break out the champagne, everybody -- Grant will be back tomorrow. That is, unless his new bride bumped him off on their honeymoon in some kind of sordid plot to collect on his healthy life insurance policy. Of course, I seriously doubt Grant would marry that type of girl. I'm sure any woman capable of winning Grant's heart would be smart enough to wait until they've been married at least six months before she pulled something like that.

This is a thread, which is open, on gameday. Enjoy.