Golden Nuggets: Hopeful about the 'redshirts'

Good morning everyone. Over the last few years, the 49ers have invested in many players coming off serious injuries that have essentially 'redshirted' for a year before getting thrown into the mix. While we are very hopeful some of these players will show the value the team was hoping for when drafting them, the return on these investments has yet to come to fruition. In fact, the most famous case ended with the 49ers getting absolutely nothing in return from drafting Marcus Lattimore. Because of this, this strategy has come under fire from both the fans, and media.

However, there is still hope that some of these gambles will finally payoff this upcoming year. Now that both Ray McDonald and Justin Smith are no longer with the team, the 49ers are hoping to get big contributions from both Tank Carradine, and Quinton Dial this season. In addition, Brandon Thomas, Trey Millard, and Keith Reaser, will all have a chance to contribute this year coming off of their 'redshirt' year.

This past draft, the 49ers chose another potential value pick in DeAndre Smelter, who will most likely start the season on the NFI list. How some of these players contribute this year could end up making the difference in how the team chooses to invest its picks in the future.

Now on to the links from the day.

49ers haven't gotten much from 'redshirt' picks ... yet (Maiocco)

Former star RB Marcus Lattimore wonders why 49ers used draft pick on him (Edholm)

49ers RB Carlos Hyde a Candidate to "Make the Leap" (Fann)

Early odds to make 49ers 53-man roster (Maiocco)

49ers kicker Phil Dawson boots 65-yard field goal (Fox Sports)

49ers offseason report: Things may get rocky post-Jim Harbaugh (Middlehurst-Schwartz)

San Francisco 49ers: What We Can Expect from Torrey Smith in 2015 (Knowles)