The 49ers have signed 25-year old linebacker Antwan Applewhite.  Applewhite played in all 16 games for the Chargers last year and he had 48 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 3 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 2 passes defensed.  He has now played in 30 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 68 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 2 passes defensed.  This was a solid signing for the Niners as Applewhite appears to be a player on the rise.

UPDATE:  (9/6/2011) – The 49ers have released Antwan Applewhite.

The 49ers have signed 26-year old linebacker Larry Grant.  Grant played in all 16 games for the Rams last year and he had 24 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, 2 sacks and 1 fumble recovery.  Grant has now played in 34 games in his first 3 years in the NFL and he has 48 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries.  This was a good signing for the Niners as Grant adds depth to the linebacking unit and he could also help out on kick and punt coverage units.

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 San Francisco 49ers have signed 31-year old kicker Jeff Reed.  Reed played in 9 games earlier this season for the Steelers and he connected on 15 of 22 field goals (68.2%) and 19 of 19 extra points good for 64 points.  Reed has now played in 127 games in his NFL career and he has made 204 of 249 field goals (81.9%) and 307 of 310 extra points good for 919 points.  This means that Joe Nedney must be hurt worse than the Niners are admitting to.

The 49ers will be without 37-year old kicker Joe Nedney this weekend due to a right knee sprain and a bone bruise.  Nedney has played in 9 games for the Niners this year and he has made 11 of 13 field goals (84.6%) and 17 of 17 extra points good for 50 points.  The 49ers have re-signed Shane Andrus who will handle the kicking chores against the Bucs this weekend.  Andrus played in 5 games last season for the Colts, Bucs and Niners in which he missed his only field goal but he was 10 of 10 on extra points.  This could be a problem for the Niners this weekend if they need Andrus to make a clutch field goal.

The Niners have signed 25-year old WR Jason Hill.  Hill played in 11 games for the Niners last season and he caught 9 passes for 90 yards (10.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He has played in 32 games in his NFL career (3 years with Niners) and he has caught 40 passes for 413 yards (10.3 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Hill will battle 25-year old Dominique Zeigler for the #3 WR spot until Ted Ginn returns to action.  Zeigler caught 2 passes for 10 yards against the Seahawks last Sunday.

The 49ers have signed 26-year old QB Troy Smith to a 1-year deal.  Smith played in 4 games (0 starts) for the Ravens last season and he completed 5 of 9 passes (55.6%) for 24 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT (21.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 8 times for 31 yards (3.9 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Smith has now played in 14 games (2 starts) in his three years in the NFL and he has completed 48 of 89 passes (53.9%) for 558 yards with 3 TD passes and 1 INT (79.7 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 29 times for 109 yards (3.8 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  Smith will be a huge improvement over Nate Davis as the Niners’ #3 QB in 2010.

The 49ers have signed 30-year old RB Brian Westbrook to a 1-year, $1.25 million dollar deal with another $1.25 million bucks in incentives.  Westbrook played in 8 games (7 starts) with the Eagles last season and he carried the ball 61 times for 274 yards (4.5 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 25 passes for 181 yards (7.2 avg) with 1 TD grab last year.  Westbrook has now played in 107 games (85 starts) in his 8 years in the NFL and he has carried the ball 1,308 times for 5,995 yards (4.6 ypc) with 37 TD runs.  He has also caught 426 passes for 3,790 yards (8.9 avg) with 29 TD grabs.  This was a great signing for the Niners as Westbrook will be Frank Gore’s top backup as long as he can stay healthy.

The 49ers have signed 28-year old OLB Travis LaBoy to a 1-year, $1.6 million dollar deal.  He missed all of last season due to serious ankle surgery.  LaBoy last played in 2008 with the Arizona Cardinals.  He has played in 67 games in his NFL career in which he has 136 tackles, has defensed 6 passes, he has 23.5 sacks, forced 6 fumbles and he has 1 interception.  The 49ers obviously are looking at LaBoy as a pass rusher which is an area they need help in so I like this signing for them.

The 49ers have signed 30-year old QB David Carr to a 2-year deal.  Carr played in 6 games for the Giants last season in which he completed 21 of 33 passes (63.6%) for 225 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs (93.6 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 9 times for 27 yards (3.0 ypc) with 1 TD run last year.  Carr has now played in 91 games in his NFL career and he has completed 1,346 of 2,251 passes (59.8%) for 14,366 yards with 65 TD passes and 70 INTs (75.2 QB Rating).  Carr has also carried the ball 302 times for 1,331 yards (4.4 ypc) with 9 TD runs in his career.  Carr might get the chance to challenge Alex Smith for the starting job in 2010 as he has a very strong arm and a lot of experience.  If nothing else Carr will likely bump Shaun Hill out of a job.