In the continuing slog toward training camp kickoff in late July, NFL.com is back with another list! Dave Dameshek is breaking down each division in terms of an all-division team. He posted the NFC West, and it includes six members of the San Francisco 49ers. The group includes Anquan Boldin, Joe Staley, Daniel Kilgore, Alex Boone, NaVorro Bowman and Aldon Smith.
It is interesting that three returning offensive linemen are included. Kilgore is furthest down the radar for many NFL fans, but he looked really solid at center before his injury. If he is healthy, his return could make for a significant impact. It also opens the door to potentially moving Marcus Martin to one of the guard positions. If I were to suggest my "ideal" starting lineup, it would include, LT Joe Staley, LG Brandon Thomas, C Daniel Kilgore, RG Marcus Martin and RT Alex Boone. Thomas and Martin could certainly swap as well, but you get the general idea. It seems like Erik Pears is a likely starting candidate, but we'll see what training camp brings.
It is no surprise Russell Wilson leads the way at quarterback. While I still think Colin Kaepernick has the higher upside of the two quarterbacks, but Wilson is going to get the "preseason awards" love for now. This is a big year of possibilities for Kap, and a strong season could move him further up these kinds of lists. But for now, it is not surprising Wilson is on top of a list like this.
Michael Floyd and Doug Baldwin are the other two receivers on this all-division team. If the 49ers offense shows semblance of life in 2015, Torrey Smith could very well supplant either of those guys on this list. I'd be curious to see what Dameshek would put together for a postseason all-division team at wide receiver.
I would not expect many changes within that secondary. He includes Richard Sherman and Patrick Peterson at cornerback, and Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor at safety. The 49ers secondary could very well surprise some folks, but those four guys on the all-division team are pretty high profile. It would take an absolute monster season for someone to unseat them. And even then, the counter would be, "Well, those four have done it for a while now."
June all-division teams give us an idea of perception at this point in time. Plenty is going to change between now and the end of August, let along the end of the season. I kind of want to bookmark this and see what the team might look like later this year and early into next offseason.