The 49ers have signed 36-year old kicker David Akers to a 3-year deal.  Akers played in all 16 games for the Eagles last year and he made 32 of 38 field goals (84.2%) and all 47 of his extra points good for 143 points.  Akers has now played in 189 games in his first 13 years in the NFL and he has made 294 of 357 field goals (81.9%) and he has made 443 of 449 extra points good for 1,325 points.  Akers is an upgrade on Joe Nedney, so I like this move for the Niners.

The 49ers have released 38-year old kicker Joe Nedney.  Nedney played in 9 games for the Niners last year and he connected on 11 of 13 field goals (84.6%).  He also connected on all 17 of his extra point attempts as he finished up with 50 points.  Nedney played in 86 games in his six years with the Niners and he has connected on 129 of 149 field goals (86.6%).  He also nailed all 154 of his extra points as he finished up his career with the 49ers with 541 points.  Nedney is still a good kicker but his age is starting to catch up to his body and that’s the reason the Niners let him go.

The 49ers have released 31-year old cornerback Nate Clements after he decided against restructuring his contract.  Clements played in all 16 games for the 49ers last year and he had 82 tackles, 8 tackles for a loss, 3 forced fumbles, 1 sack, 3 interceptions and he defensed 10 passes.  Clements played in 54 games in his four years with the Niners and he had 235 tackles, 21 tackles for a loss, 7 forced fumbles, 2 sacks, 40 passes defensed and 10 interceptions.  The 49ers are going to have to take the money that was going to go for Clements to find his replacement.

The 49ers have released 32-year old QB David Carr.  Carr played in 1 game (0 starts) for the Niners last year and he completed 5 of 13 (38.5%) passes for 67 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT (23.6 QB Rating).  Carr has now played in 92 games (79 starts) in his first 9 years in the NFL and he has completed 1,351 of 2,264 passes (59.7%) for 14,433 yards with 65 TD passes and 71 INTs (74.9 QB Rating).  Carr has also carried the ball 302 times for 1,331 yards (4.4 ypc) with 9 TD runs in his career to date.  As soon as Alex Smith was re-signed, Carr had to know he was going to get the axe.  He is 23-56 (29.1%) as a starting QB, so he will likely be lucky to get another chance in the NFL.

The San Francisco 49ers have brought back 27-year old QB Alex Smith on a 1-year, $5 million dollar deal.  On the surface it seems like the Niners are overpaying for Smith, but this gives him only one season to prove himself to the new coaching staff.  Smith played in 11 games (10 starts) for the Niners last year and he completed 204 of 342 passes (59.6%) for 2,370 yards with 14 TD passes and 10 INTs (82.1 QB Rating).  Smith also carried the ball 18 times for 60 yards (3.3 ypc) last year.  Alex Smith has now played in 54 games (50 starts) in his first five years with the Niners and he has completed 864 of 1,514 passes (57.1%) for 9,399 yards with 51 TD passes and 53 INTs (72.1 QB Rating).  Smith has also carried the ball 129 times for 450 yards (3.5 ypc) with 2 TD runs in his career with the Niners.  The 49ers are only 19-31 (38%) in games started by Alex Smith, so he needs to become a leader on the team.  He’s running out of time now that the Niners have drafted Colin Kaepernick, and he just might be the QB of the future.

Roger Craig is one of the most underrated RBs in NFL history for what he could do on the field.  The high stepping Craig could run the ball outside, between the tackles and he was also an outstanding receiver out of the backfield.  Craig played in 121 games in his 8 years with the 49ers in which he carried the ball 1,686 times for 7,064 yards (4.2 ypc) with 50 TD runs.  He also caught 508 passes for 4,442 yards (8.7 avg) with 16 TD grabs for the Niners.  His best season was in 1985 when he did something that no RB has ever down as he rushed for over 1,000 yards and he also caught passes for over 1,000 yards!  Craig played in 16 games for the Niners in 1985 and he carried the ball 214 times for 1,050 yards (4.9 ypc) with 9 TD runs.  Craig also caught 92 passes (led the NFL) for 1,016 yards (11.0 avg) with 6 TD grabs in 1985.  Craig made it to 4 Pro Bowls in his 8 years with the 49ers.  Craig is #2 in rushing yards (7,064) and TD runs (50) in 49ers’ history.  Craig is also #3 in receptions (508), #9 in receiving yards (4,442) and he’s tied for 19th in TD catches (16) in 49ers history.  In summation, Roger Craig was one of the best offensive players in San Francisco 49ers’ history.