49ers Are In Better Shape With Bum Shoulder

During the off-season prior to the 2005 NFL season the San Francisco 49ers hired Mike Nolan as their head coach in a move that also gave him full control of personal, as well as, coaching.

Nolan's first work of business was to sign the best offensive tackle in free agency. That player was Jonas Jennings.

He was an above average left tackle who had four decent years in Buffalo. So Nolan throws a truck load of money at him. How about 7-years contract worth $36-million.

Jennings got his payday.

He has also ripped off the 49ers. Jennings has missed 27-out-of-50 games and has missed parts of 6 of those games (of the 23 he's played in).

Now just two weeks deep into a season that Jennings was demoted and moved to the right side, and is conveniently injuried again. This time he has a shoulder injury. The exact injury is not known or is not being released at this time. 

Quarterback Alex Smith had a right shoulder injury last season that required him to have surgery, but he tried to play. Keep in mind he threw with that shoulder. 

On the other hand Jennings is out. If the 49ers are fortunate enough, he will be out for the remainder of the season and then will be released.

During the off-season the Niners were smart and signed veteran Barry Sims. He's a decent, hard-nosed, football player who sometimes gets called for penalties. But I'll take him.

He's a tough player who you can depend on to play next to you play in and play out. He's a player who trains and prepares himself for a brutal season.

Sims is exactly what this team needs. Not a player who cashes in and then checks out.