Dan Skuta scouting report from a Bengals fan

Good friend and Cincy Jungle contributor Joe Goodberry hit me up on Twitter this morning to see if I wanted his take on former Bengals LB Dan Skuta, who signed with the 49ers last night. Of course I accepted his offer and so I thought I'd post what he had to say. Not only is Joe a huge Cincinnati fan, but he's a student of the game and I respect his take on players.

Here's what he had to say on Skuta:

Dan Skuta was your typical undrafted free agent out of college that didn't have a position, but made his mark on special teams. He's a high-motor, blue-collar, tough as nails, unsung hero. He's played all three Linebacker positions in Cincinnati as well as defensive end and full back.

Skuta was considered their fourth LB on the team because he filled in whenever somebody was hurt or needed a breather. It didn't matter what position. When a couple DEs got hurt, he played the entire second half with his hand in the dirt trying to put pressure on the QB. When the Bengals lost their only FB for a couple games, Skuta stepped in and didn't miss a beat. He's a valuable Swiss Army knife for any NFL team. I remember he cracked some discs in his back in 2009 and played with "discomfort" into the Playoffs without missing time. Yeah, he's that kind of tough.

He's an average athlete that can get caught in space or in coverage, but he's a sound tackler that will stick his nose in any pile. Skuta doesn't have any winning pass rush moves, but again, effort was always there. His true value is as a special teams ace. He'll play every situation and you'll almost never hear his number called after the play for a penalty. He'll be missed in Cincinnati, because of his attitude and versatility.

As expected, Skuta sounds like another Blake Costanzo type, a blue-collar guy who is an average backup at LB but should be a real special teams ace. The fact that he can play FB in a pinch sure doesn't hurt, either. Sounds like just the type of guy Jim Harbaugh loves: A football player.