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With this offseason deal, I'll be putting together a weekly post looking at potential offseason game-changing moves by the 49ers that could have an impact in 2010. In a bit of fortuitous timing, as we've already been discussing, the 49ers reached a deal with the Miami Dolphins today to acquire WR/Returner Ted Ginn in exchange for a 2010 5th round draft choice, pending a physical. The first thread is getting pretty full, so I thought it was time to open up a new thread. After the jump we open things up a bit...
The question to get things going in this new thread is how much of a "game-changer" Ginn could really be for this team. Given the relative lack of free agent moves by the team, this gets the first game-changer treatment. I like the Carr move, but does anybody view that as a game-changer, really?
Anyways, the addition of of Ginn could be a game-changer in the impact it has on the draft and on the team in 2010. Plenty of folks think this move means C.J. Spiller is off the board in the first round. I'm not quite sure that's the case. After all, Ginn is only costing a 5th round pick (not great, but definitely not that big a deal) and his contract isn't exactly cost-prohibitive. Accordingly, I think the team could still potentially justify a C.J. Spiller type of of pick in the first round.
Do I think it will happen? Not as much anymore. While you can justify the pick, I don't know if the team will go in that direction. However, now do they push more for a Marty Gilyard type of player? Or do you view this trade as your wide receiver/returner acquisition for the draft?
On the field in 2010, this would seem to mean Josh Morgan won't be returning kicks. This could prove quite valuable. While I loved his contribution as a kick returner, having that role, on top of being the #2 receiver, can only wear him down. Maybe this will allow him to stay strong all year, avoid those nasty return game injuries, and take the next step in his progression.
All in all, I think there is a lot of upside to this move, with relatively little risk. The people who won't like this move are the ones who desperately wanted C.J. Spiller. While he's not off the board, he would seem to have dropped a little as a potential pick in the first round. Nonetheless, I think this is a relatively smart move by the front office. It may end up being a complete bust, but the cost really isn't all that bad (again, unless you think Spiller is a once-in-a-decade type of talent).