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Golden Nuggets: Anthony Davis applies for reinstatement

Saturday, February 27th, 2016 edition of the Golden Nuggets, a daily compilation of San Francisco 49ers links from around the Internet.

By Patrick Holloway@PatOHolloway Feb 27, 2016, 2:30am PST

Good morning and happy weekend. We already had a lot of news with the combine going on, but then the 49ers themeselves decided to give us more drama.

It began with Anthony Davis officially applying for reinstatement to the NFL. I wouldn't get too excited. Is it good he's back? Yes, especially for us because our O-line was better suited as the large piece of paper the team rips apart as they come out of the tunnel onto the field. But remember, he's been out of the league for a year, and getting into football shape isn't the easiest thing in the world. Of course, he said on Twitter he's been working out, and I don't for one second think that he wasn't going as intense as his body would allow, but there's still a possibility he may have some rust and need to work some things out. If he can get back to 2014 form, our O-line all the sudden has potential. And he's still young, it may take longer than we expect, but it's safe to have faith he'll get there.

The other big news of the day goes to one Justin "Cowboy" Smith whom Mike Florio says is contemplating returning to the league. I doubt it. Cowboy was severely beaten up his last year in SF and at 36, it doesn't get any better. Plus his numbers began regressing a bit compared to his previous seasons (arguably his worst season as a pro). Does he contemplate coming back? Sure! I contemplate going back to dealing blackjack at a casino all the time, but I never would. Something tells me this may be blown out of proportion just a bit. Like he said he's "thought about returning--"and the floodgates open before he can finish the sentence. This is, of course, Pato speculation. Maybe he does want to come back. But that's a huge hill to climb with the 49ers owning his rights. We'll see.