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Fooch's Update: Tarell Brown signed with the Raiders
The San Francisco 49ers are in the midst of welcoming cornerbacks and wide receivers to town for visits, but they still have cornerback Tarell Brown as a potential option to return. Things have been relatively quiet with him, but we're starting to get a few details. Matt Maiocco tweeted this out earlier today:
49ers are comfortable with Chris Culliver and Tramaine Brock as the starters, and they're willing to pay Tarell Brown 3 yrs/$10M per source.
— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoCSN) March 14, 2014
If you're on Twitter, you might have also seen him tweet that the team could have Walter Thurmond on a 1 year, $2 million contract. That was merely speculation, and not based on a source like this Brown news. Treat it accordingly if you see mention of it today.
On Thursday, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported that the Miami Dolphins had expressed some interest in Brown. It read a bit like a throwaway comment, but that's at least out there. There has been no further word on their interest.
If the 49ers could get Brown back on a multi-year deal, they'd have him, Culliver, Brock and Eric Wright competing for starting spots. Wright would seem to have a solid shot at claiming the nickel back spot given his previous work there. It would create some solid competition, but the 49ers could still add depth through the draft. Culliver and Wright are signed through 2014.
If they re-signed Brown, it does not preclude a first round cornerback, but I think it makes it a little less likely. However, the team still could find some talent to prepare for potential needs in the coming year or two. Maybe Aaron Colvin as a red-shirt makes a little more sense in this case? Or maybe grabbing an early cornerback who can contribute immediately opens the door for some serious depth at the position. While I get the idea of getting players in a rhythm, being able to roll out a variety of talent could help keep the group fresh late in games, and throughout the season as a whole. We saw the Seahawks do it with their defensive line, why not do the same with cornerbacks? It's just one idea for how the 49ers might decide to approach this.
Fooch's Update: Random tweet I figured I'd drop in:
.@ninersnation @MaioccoCSN FWIW, Chris Russell of DC's ESPN 980 and John Keim reporting Thurmond no longer coming to WAS for visit.
— Stuart Wexler (@jomolungma) March 14, 2014