Doomsday101
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 107,762
- Reaction score
- 39,034
Viewed as one of the NFL's top young cornerbacks only three years ago, Ahmed Plummer suddenly is a man without a team, after the San Francisco 49ers released the six-year veteran on Thursday afternoon.
The move came after two injury-plagued seasons in which Plummer appeared in just nine games, and after San Francisco coaches grew increasingly frustrated at his inability to stay healthy. Plummer, 29, figures to merit considerable interest in free agency if he is healthy, but that is a considerable caveat given the last two seasons.
The team's first-round choice in the 2000 draft, Plummer was one of three veterans released Thursday by the 49ers, joining wide receiver Johnnie Morton and defensive end Chris Cooper in the unemployment line. In total, the niners released nine players. But the former Ohio State standout, who in 2004 signed a five-year, $25 million contract extension that included $11 million in guaranteed bonuses, is the most notable of the three.
"This is the most difficult part of a great business, and you don't make these kinds of decisions lightly when you are dealing with a player's future," head coach Mike Nolan said in a statement released by the club. "The reality of the current NFL economic system is that you are forced to make tough economic decisions that are not based entirely on the football field."
The 49ers also declined to use the franchise tag on two-time Pro Bowl linebacker Julian Peterson, making him an unrestricted free agent next month.
Peterson, who missed most of the 2004 season with a torn Achilles' tendon, was one of the team's most popular players and earned $5.289 million last season.
If the team used the franchise tag on Peterson as they did in 2004, he would have been guaranteed $7.169 million next season if he didn't sign a long-term deal. San Francisco could have matched any deal he signed or gotten compensation if he left with the franchise tag.
The release of Plummer, Morton and Cooper will save the 49ers some cap room for 2006 but not a great deal. The team still owned Plummer $12.5 million in base salaries for the next three seasons, including a base salary of $5.5 million for 2006, but San Francisco will incur so-called "acceleration" charges for bonuses paid to the players in the past.
Plummer missed only three games during his first four seasons in the league. A starter from the outset of his career, Plummer combined good size and coverage skills and was certainly an emerging cornerback before injuries truncated his 2004 and 2005 seasons. Victimized by shoulder, neck and ankle injuries, he appeared in just six games in 2004 and three contests last season. Some coaches felt that Plummer did not make a strong enough effort to get back onto the field.
Obviously, cutting the onetime highly-prized defender was a bit easier for Nolan, since his regime was not responsible for drafting him. It will be interesting to see now how many other teams contact Plummer to gauge the state of his rehabilitation. For his career, Plummer has appeared in 70 games, and has compiled 316 tackles, 12 interceptions and 51 passes defensed.
A 13-year veteran, Morton was signed by the 49ers in 2005 to lend experience to a very young wideout corps. But he caught just 21 passes for 288 yards and, while a good mentor for the youngsters, no longer figured into San Francisco's plans for 2006. Morton has 624 catches for 8,719 yards and 43 touchdowns in a career that has included stints with three different teams.
Cooper was primarily a backup end for the 49ers in 2005. A former sixth-round draft choice in 2001, he has played with three different teams.
Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.
The move came after two injury-plagued seasons in which Plummer appeared in just nine games, and after San Francisco coaches grew increasingly frustrated at his inability to stay healthy. Plummer, 29, figures to merit considerable interest in free agency if he is healthy, but that is a considerable caveat given the last two seasons.
The team's first-round choice in the 2000 draft, Plummer was one of three veterans released Thursday by the 49ers, joining wide receiver Johnnie Morton and defensive end Chris Cooper in the unemployment line. In total, the niners released nine players. But the former Ohio State standout, who in 2004 signed a five-year, $25 million contract extension that included $11 million in guaranteed bonuses, is the most notable of the three.
"This is the most difficult part of a great business, and you don't make these kinds of decisions lightly when you are dealing with a player's future," head coach Mike Nolan said in a statement released by the club. "The reality of the current NFL economic system is that you are forced to make tough economic decisions that are not based entirely on the football field."
The 49ers also declined to use the franchise tag on two-time Pro Bowl linebacker Julian Peterson, making him an unrestricted free agent next month.
Peterson, who missed most of the 2004 season with a torn Achilles' tendon, was one of the team's most popular players and earned $5.289 million last season.
If the team used the franchise tag on Peterson as they did in 2004, he would have been guaranteed $7.169 million next season if he didn't sign a long-term deal. San Francisco could have matched any deal he signed or gotten compensation if he left with the franchise tag.
The release of Plummer, Morton and Cooper will save the 49ers some cap room for 2006 but not a great deal. The team still owned Plummer $12.5 million in base salaries for the next three seasons, including a base salary of $5.5 million for 2006, but San Francisco will incur so-called "acceleration" charges for bonuses paid to the players in the past.
Plummer missed only three games during his first four seasons in the league. A starter from the outset of his career, Plummer combined good size and coverage skills and was certainly an emerging cornerback before injuries truncated his 2004 and 2005 seasons. Victimized by shoulder, neck and ankle injuries, he appeared in just six games in 2004 and three contests last season. Some coaches felt that Plummer did not make a strong enough effort to get back onto the field.
Obviously, cutting the onetime highly-prized defender was a bit easier for Nolan, since his regime was not responsible for drafting him. It will be interesting to see now how many other teams contact Plummer to gauge the state of his rehabilitation. For his career, Plummer has appeared in 70 games, and has compiled 316 tackles, 12 interceptions and 51 passes defensed.
A 13-year veteran, Morton was signed by the 49ers in 2005 to lend experience to a very young wideout corps. But he caught just 21 passes for 288 yards and, while a good mentor for the youngsters, no longer figured into San Francisco's plans for 2006. Morton has 624 catches for 8,719 yards and 43 touchdowns in a career that has included stints with three different teams.
Cooper was primarily a backup end for the 49ers in 2005. A former sixth-round draft choice in 2001, he has played with three different teams.
Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.
Point taken. I totally agree. The guy is a damn good foot ball player when healthy. I think he's the best LB in pass coverage........be it RB, TE or WR.
