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Trotter and Spikes: Do they belong in San Fran?

By Samuel Lam | May 16th, 2008

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The Niners are looking for a true “ted” linebacker and apparently Takeo Spikes and Jeremiah Trotter have gotten some time with the Niners to prove if they are the ones for it. Ted linebackers will play inside and will be required to be able to handle all the power that comes through the middle. But it requires a very intelligent linebacker, someone who has knowledge of the system and how to attack the ballhandler. The 3-4 defense is good for it, so the Niners can benefit from it.

Imagine if Trotter lines up right next to Willis. Not only will Trotter lessen the load for Willis, but they can be a pretty good tag team. For Trotter, who is a four-time Pro Bowler, we know what he is capable from seeing him in years past. The Niners are going through this huge change in overhaul. Is Trotter the answer? Maybe.

He had been released by the Eagles and played with the Bucs for one game last year. He still has the motor and ability to lead the team. But can he do it for a full season?

But also, the Niners are taking a look at Takeo Spikes. As many of you have asked me before, there wasn’t any new news that surfaced until earlier this week. Now, they had talked a few months back and nothing has come up since. But with the recent talks for Trotter, Spikes is now in competition. Spikes hasn’t been to a Pro Bowl since 2004, but you can imagine that he is determined to show the Eagles they made a mistake for letting him go. The biggest concern to me is if he can handle all the blocks.

The Niners at this point can take on either one of them. One of the things this team needs is to have someone run the line with Willis. Willis has honed his skills quite nicely, but to have someone who has been down that road to tutor him would be great. We’ll see what develops.

This entry was posted on Friday, May 16th, 2008 at 9:15 am and is filed under Takeo Spikes, Jeremiah Trotter, 49ers, General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.