Golden Nuggets: 3 days to training camp

Wednesday, July 24th, 2019 edition of the Golden Nuggets, a daily compilation of San Francisco 49ers links from the Internet

By Billy Kerr@bkerr725 Jul 24, 2019, 2:00am PDT

The 49ers are 3 days away from the start of training camp. The excitement around the team is growing with the return of Jimmy Garoppolo and the added pieces to the defense. In Kyle Shanahan’s 3rd season, it is expected that the team has enough players to make a push for the playoffs as long as they can stay healthy.

Jimmy’s health is the single most important piece that should allow the team to compete. But the upgrades to the defense could be nearly as important as Jimmy’s health. The 49ers made big upgrades with the acquisition of pass rusher Dee Ford and drafting Nick Bosa. Adding those pass rushers to help DeForest Buckner, who led the team in sacks last season with 12, will make them a much more formidable pass rush compared to the last 2 seasons. Getting Kwon Alexander to pair with Fred Warner gives the defense speed in the middle as long as Alexander can stay healthy. And adding a proven player like Jason Verrett at corner should help solidify the secondary. The big question with Bosa, Alexander, and Verrett really comes down to health. They all have talent to lift this defense as long as they are able to stay healthy. The track record of the team to stay healthy has not been great the last couple of seasons, but hopefully the team has some luck on their side this season.

On Monday, 49er great NaVorro Bowman signed a one-day contract with the team and on Tuesday, he officially retired as a member of the 49ers. He will go down as one of the best players the team has ever had and he is part of some of the greatest plays in their history.

49ers links

One agent is not a fan of how the 49ers and their contracts (Florio)

A look at the offensive depth chart (Inman)

Linebackers (Biderman)

Kittle and his receiving yards record (Madson)

2019 predictions (Branch)

Defensive line look (Maiocco)

Ahkello ready for a better season (Chan)

K Jonathan Brown waived (Williams)

NaVorro officially retires as a 49er (Inman)

Gould’s deal affected Jonathan Brown’s opportunity (Madson)

One media outlet thinks 49ers win the NFC West (Madson)