And the Anti-Heitmann Crowd Suddenly Went Silent

It is always funny to see how the board overreacts mindlessly to a handful of people with some form of bias against a player.

The player in the crosshairs by a number of board "experts", for some very strange reason, as being unworthy of starting, let alone sharing oxygen with the rest of the planet, has been Eric Heitmann. If someone can explain this to me, it would be greatly appreciated.

Some of the crazy remarks recently have included replacing him with Baas...no, it was replacing him with Wragge...wait a second, it was putting in an untested, unproven rookie in Cody Wallace, to man the middle, make the line calls, and get the ball successfully to JTO.

It is very odd that nearly every professional expert lauds Heitmann as one of the best centers in the NFC (once again this week by the broadcasters), and yet, he seems to be only the 4th best center on this team, if you read from some of our board members. Maybe, it is fifth. I'm starting to lose track how bad Heitmann is.

I invite those without a bias to invest about...10 seconds to find the complimentary comments about Heitmann on the internet, from journalists, broadcasters, beat writers, opposing players, and coaches. But, then again, what would they know? They are not board members, so they obviously are oblivious to reality.

It is always funny to find a person who does a "proper evaluation" and "grade" of a player by finding the one fault out of twenty plays, saying, "See, I was right", completely ignoring the plays before and after, when two enormous chasms were exposed in the middle of the defense by Heitmann.

Once again, for the one millionth time, I encourage board members to not play favorites with particular players. Evaluate them fairly, whether you like them or not. Tip your hat to them when they do something well. Otherwise, you simply make a fool out of yourself in front of the board. Heitmann embarrassed the Lions defense on Sunday, and yet...not a peep by the board. Shocking!!!!!

The demise of Eric Heitmann is only a fantasy in some people's minds.

[ Edited by MadDog49er on Sep 23, 2008 at 14:10:28 ]

He wasn't good last year, part recovery of his injury, and part scheme.

The criticism of Heitmann is warranted.

You can act high and mighty bout defending Heitmann but tell me this:

if he is, in fact, good, then why haven't the 49ers signed him to an extension while drafting a player in the 4th round to potentially replace him?

Well put.

Something I noticed. Despite Frank Gore's 130 yards rushing, I still think Heitmann wasn't playing too well. If I recall correctly, most of the 49ers effective running came from sweeps and pitches that spread the Lions' defense out. For some reason straight up the middle running was unusually hard to do on a team who is last five in run defense.

Now, I don't fully blame Eric, but I did notice the inside running to be very lacking. I don't remember the full lineup. Was it Staley - Wragge - Heitmann - Snyder - Simms?

Anyone agree?

One of the announcers for Fox called him "One of the better Centers in the NFL" yesterday

Originally posted by dmbgeek87:
He wasn't good last year, part recovery of his injury, and part scheme.

The criticism of Heitmann is warranted.

You can act high and mighty bout defending Heitmann but tell me this:

if he is, in fact, good, then why haven't the 49ers signed him to an extension while drafting a player in the 4th round to potentially replace him?

You obviously do not read. Please do a ten second internet search. I'm begging you. Read what the people around the NFL have to say. He was injured early last season, but he played a lot better at the end of the season. He is considered one of the best interior linemen in the NFC. Once again, please feel free to search what the pros have to say.

I will add that the team thinks so lowly of Heitmann that they made him....one of the four captains on the team. Yeah, he stinks.

Heitmann broke his leg in 2006, and also is scheduled for free agency. Free means free, which means he is not obligated to return.

Finally, name all of the high priced interior linemen that Nolan has kept on the team. I count.....none. The Niners don't spend their money that way.

Originally posted by King49er:
One of the announcers for Fox called him "One of the better Centers in the NFL" yesterday

He obviously doesn't visit the board very often. He would think Heitmann was the worst player in the league.

Originally posted by MadDog49er:

Originally posted by King49er:
One of the announcers for Fox called him "One of the better Centers in the NFL" yesterday

He obviously doesn't visit the board very often. He would think Heitmann was the worst player in the league.

So true

I agree with dmbgeek87...

regardless MD, sometimes you need a dose of your own advice: I call to the stand Ashley Lelie. EOS.

Originally posted by MadDog49er:

Originally posted by dmbgeek87:
He wasn't good last year, part recovery of his injury, and part scheme.

The criticism of Heitmann is warranted.

You can act high and mighty bout defending Heitmann but tell me this:

if he is, in fact, good, then why haven't the 49ers signed him to an extension while drafting a player in the 4th round to potentially replace him?

You obviously do not read. Please do a ten second internet search. I'm begging you. Read what the people around the NFL have to say. He was injured early last season, but he played a lot better at the end of the season. He is considered one of the best interior linemen in the NFC. Once again, please feel free to search what the pros have to say.

I will add that the team thinks so lowly of Heitmann that they made him....one of the four captains on the team. Yeah, he stinks.

Heitmann broke his leg in 2006, and also is scheduled for free agency. Free means free, which means he is not obligated to return.

Finally, name all of the high priced interior linemen that Nolan has kept on the team. I count.....none. The Niners don't spend their money that way.

link?

Originally posted by adrenaline:
Well put.

Something I noticed. Despite Frank Gore's 130 yards rushing, I still think Heitmann wasn't playing too well. If I recall correctly, most of the 49ers effective running came from sweeps and pitches that spread the Lions' defense out. For some reason straight up the middle running was unusually hard to do on a team who is last five in run defense.

Now, I don't fully blame Eric, but I did notice the inside running to be very lacking. I don't remember the full lineup. Was it Staley - Wragge - Heitmann - Snyder - Simms?

Anyone agree?

Big gains up the middle. Heitmann was also pulling a fair amount yesterday on run plays, and also moved well up the field.

[ Edited by MadDog49er on Sep 22, 2008 at 20:22:10 ]

It don't matter.

This is all kinda besides the point. No matter what there will always be ONE player that will be singled out on the zone for a certain amount of time. It was Eric. It'sgonna be someone else pretty soon.

I liked when he flat backed that LB...that was awesome.

While I have always liked Heitmann, he did look bad last year. He was playing injured so he has a pass. This year the middle of the line has looked fairly solid and looked very good against the Lions. His experience is underrated as a line caller, and Baas or Wragge would have to learn that aspect of the game.

I continue to believe the line will keep improving their chemistry and be even better by mid-season. With Jennings coming back (hopefully), Bass or Snyder and two quality rookies on the bench the 9ers are in good shape...barring injuries...as always!

Of course, all of this may change when they hit a couple of great pass rushing teams!

Originally posted by bigwads:
I liked when he flat backed that LB...that was awesome.

Was that when Gore bobbled the ball and still scored? I remember the center had to hike the ball and pull like the guard. That was cool.

[ Edited by adrenaline on Sep 22, 2008 at 20:26:16 ]