D-Back-Tacular!

Well look at that. Jonathan Wade gets a little love in press today. Nice to see, and even nicer to hear that he's making the most out of his opportunity to be a big part of the defensive backfield's depth with Brown (potentially) out. It also sounds like there's something of a less notable position battle between Wade and Walls for the third cornerback slot.

The winner of that battle will be on the field as the nickel back in the appropriate situations. Because of that back's role in the middle of the field, I wonder some about Wade's size. At 5'10" 195 lbs, Walls (6'4" 195 lbs) has a few inches on him to go up and get the jump balls. It's probably a moot point, because Wade's raw skills probably won't trump Walls' experience anyway. Nevertheless, it's good to see indications that Wade figures to contribute this season.

Do you ever think that the Rams d-backs have an advantage because they practice against one of the top passing offenses in the league that feature two of the league's best wide receivers in Holt and Bruce? It sure can't hurt.

I can't say that I'm all that surprised about Mike Rumph getting cut. He was signed in the offseason for depth, and was never anything special prior to that. I think it was really more a question of "when" and not "if" with Rumph. It's also a sign that the coaches must be fairly pleased with what they are seeing from the d-backs in camp. If anything, Rumph's presence will mostly be missed on special teams, but it's really sounding like Wade can pick up that slack without missing a beat.

From the laughing at the misfortunes of others department, there are rumbles out of 49ers camp that #1 WR acquisition Darrell Jackson is having a little attitude trouble when it comes to adjusting to the team's practice schedule. This was a problem in Seattle, and it's the subtle kind of thing that can really take its toll when/if the young team struggles a bit.