In the next few days, Josh Branco will take a look at the 49ers opponents and what they accomplished in free agency. Since free agency is in full gear, I thought I'd open up the discussion for now on the 49ers divisional opponents.
Free agency has been incredibly busy for the Arizona Cardinals. Since Kurt Warner retired, the Cardinals have dealt Anquan Boldin, and they've seen FS Antrel Rolle and OLB Karlos Dansby head to the proverbial "greener pastures." Adam Schefter described it as "very bad for the Cardinals." At this point, where do the Cardinals fall in the divisional race? While they have last some talent there are enough question marks around them that it's hard to predict where exactly they'll fall in the standings. Much will depend on how the QB position plays out. Do they add David Carr and allow him to surpass Matt Leinart? Or will Leinart reach his potential in 2010?
The rest of the division has been fairly quiet thus far. The Rams applied the lowest tender to OJ Atogwe so we'll see how that plays out. We'll know approximately a week before the draft what's up with the various tender offers. For now though, as VanRam put it, it's all about patience for the Rams.
Of course, the Seahawks might be mixing it up in yet another big way, as Brandon Marshall is supposed to visit the Seahawks at some point today. While they would get a boost in offense, losing the #6 overall pick for Marshall would certainly be a tough loss. After all, Marshall is an incredibly talented receiver. The question is whether this would be worth what the Seahawks would have to give up in terms of a draft pick. After all, they have some serious holes.
In the meantime, we sit and wait on the 49ers. They're bringing in David Carr today, and he'll actually get a chance to visit with the local media. I don't expect any shocking revelations, but I'd imagine it'd be fairly interesting to see what comes of this visit. As Maiocco put it, the 49ers have done a good job signing players they bring in for a visit on the first weekend of free agency.
We'll be back with plenty more later today...