Earlier today, word came down that the 49ers had released Brandon Moore and would have Takeo Spikes visiting to take a physical.  Well, it's now official: Takeo Spikes is the newest member of the San Francisco 49ers.

Spikes actually has some 49ers connections.  He played with Justin Smith during Smith's first two seasons in Cincinnati.  When Spikes moved on to Buffalo he played with Nate Clements and Jonas Jennings.  Said Clements:

"He was a groomsman in my wedding so he's a good friend and I've been in touch with him about coming here the last few months," said Clements. "He’s a great addition. He brings leadership, playmaking ability and experience to the table, and I’m excited to have him here.”

Terms of the deal were not released, but I'd imagine it is not too long term a deal.  Spikes missed the final two games of 2007 after having surgery to repair of torn rotator cuff.  With the latest moves and one exhibition game behind us, I'm planning on throwing an updated 53-man projection in the next couple days.  This move certainly heats up the Ted battle.

The 49ers announced the release of Brandon Moore today.  That announcement is coupled with the announcement that Takeo Spikes will be in Santa Clara later today to take a physical.

Moore was given a shot at starting last season and could not take advantage of the opportunity, leaving Derek Smith and Patrick Willis starting at the inside linebacker positions.  If Spikes is in town for a physical, I assume that means he's on the verge of signing, pending passage of said physical.  Spikes played 14 games for the Eagles last season before requiring season-ending surgery on his shoulder for a torn rotator cuff.

This certainly makes competition for the "Ted" linebacker position a little more up in the air.  Jeff Ulbrich had a solid grip on the position but Takeo Spikes brings talent Ulbrich lacks.  Ulbrich is a tough, hard-nosed veteran, but Spikes has natural gifts you can't teach. 

I'm going to guess Ulbrich starts this weekend with the first team as Spikes is so new and has to learn some of the details of the defense.  However, if Spikes is healthy I could see him sliding into that starting role in a way Brandon Moore simply could not do.  The big upside to Spikes winning the starting job would be the upgrade to the second level of talent (Ulbrich) in the linebacking corps, which is always a good thing.

[EDITOR'S NOTE 7/29 11:40PM: I've noticed many people googling "49ers training camp" are coming across this post.  If you end up here and have not been to Niners Nation before, feel free to explore the proverbial studio space.  If you want to leave comments here, scroll to the bottom and you'll see an option for registering.  Registration is free and it gives you the power of commenting and writing your own Fan Posts, which are like blogs within the blog.  Anyways, hope you enjoy your time here, as we've got a great little community that is growing every day.  We'd love to hear from you.]

The long "winter" that is the NFL offseason is finally at an end.  While games do not kick for another couple weeks, practice is officially underway today.  Thursday saw the 49ers report for duty and take care of phsyicals and whatnot.  Thankfully all the rookies are under contract and in camp.  To throw some cliches your way, in July everybody's a contender.  Some more than others, but every team has some reason or another for hope.  The 49ers hope comes in the form of Mike Martz and Justin Smith among many others.

We've broken down different training camp battles (twice).  We've looked at the new 49ers on the field and amongst the coaching staff.  We've even looked at possible best and worst case scenarios.  Consider this post then a quick overview for those who may have been away from Niners Nation awhile, as well as general info on training camp in Santa Clara.

Practice Facilities
Marie P. DeBartolo Sports Center
Santa Clara, CA
8 practices open to the public: July 25, 26, 27, 28, 30; August 1, 2,3

John Clayton with quick thoughts on the 49ers training camp and things to do away from camp:

• What John Clayton says: What's better than 49er camp? First, it's located on the outside of Great America amusement park, which could make for a great doubleheader for the entire family. Catch a morning or afternoon practice with one of the up-and-coming teams in football and slide over to the theme park. The 49ers train at their headquarters and have a nice setup for fans, with stands and refreshments.
• What to do besides training camp: Santa Clara is 45 minutes from downtown San Francisco; visit 49ers' camp in the morning and shop in Union Square in the afternoon. Other must-see places in San Francisco include Alcatraz, Pier 39, Golden Gate Park and the Ferry Building. Back at team headquarters, the Santa Clara Golf & Tennis Club is located but a few feet away, should campgoers wish to take some swings while in town. For a true taste of Silicon Valley history, the Intel Museum also is just down the street. And nearby Triton Museum of Art offers free admission.

Veteran Additions
Isaac Bruce, WR
DeShaun Foster, RB
Bryant Johnson, WR
J.T. O'Sullivan, QB
LaJuan Ramsey, DT
Alan Reuber, OT
Allen Rossum, KR/PR
Barry Sims, OT
Justin Smith, DE
Dontarrious Thomas, LB

2008 Draft Class
Kentwan Balmer, DT/DE
Chilo Rachal, G/T
Reggie Smith, CB/S
Cody Wallace, C
Josh Morgan, WR
Larry Grant, LB

Training Camp Battles to watch
QB1: Alex Smith vs. Shaun Hill vs. J.T. O'Sullivan (no snickering please)
Ted Linebacker: Jeff Ulbrich vs. Larry Grant vs. Brandon Moore
RG (winner does battle with Baas): Chilo Rachal vs. Tony Wragge
CB #2/3: Walt Harris vs. Shawntae Spencer vs. Tarell Brown vs. Reggie Smith
WR #2/#3/#4: Bryant Johnson vs. Arnaz Battle vs. Ashley Lelie vs. Jason Hill vs. Josh Morgan
FS: Mark Roman vs. Dashon Goldson
ROLB: Tully Banta-Cain vs. Jay Moore vs. Parys Haralson
World Wide Supremacy: Patrick Willis and Andy Lee vs. God (trick question, Lee and Willis ARE God)

We'll have wall to wall coverage of training camp.  I'm going to attend one of the eight practices, although that may expand to more if I have time.  In the meantime, if ANYBODY here attends training camp, we'd love to hear your thoughts in a Fan Post.  In the meantime I'll be scouring the Internet for information as things happen.  I hope everyone is as excited as I am for the return of football!

And of course, if you haven't yet signed up, the random drawing for spots in the first Niners Nation Fantasy Football League will be held July 31.  For those not selected, additional leagues will be created to fill all demand and there will be equal prizes to all winners.

The 49ers open training camp at the end of this week and we'll finally start to get some answers to the numerous burning questions facing the 49ers.  If you ask the mainstream media, the 49ers training camp questions boil down to learning Mike Martz's offense, the QB battle and, oh yea, the QB battle.

We all realize that there are a variety of battles to consider.  Some of them are pretty obvious, while others are a little more subtle.  Post-draft minicamp and the OTAs are done and while not a lot has been answered, the picture is starting to clear up.  I had considered titling this something to do with coming down the stretch, but there is too much training camp for us to already be coming down the stretch.  So here are my thoughts on the various battles and who the leader is after the first turn.

QB
Leader at the first turn: Alex Smith
We'll just get this out of the way.  Alex Smith is the more mechanically and fundamentally sound QB so it's natural that he would be the leader going into training camp.  Throw in the biggest contract and it makes the answer even easier.  Once we get into games, we'll see how things play out.

Ted Linebacker
Leader at the first turn: Jeff Ulbrich
Until recently this seemed like a 3-horse race between Jeff Ulbrich, Dontarrious Thomas and my boy Larry Grant.  Well, Mike Nolan and Scot McCloughan had a conference call with reporters yesterday and some interesting news came out.  According to them, Ulbrich has a clear handle on the position, but it is in competition with Larry Grant and Brandon Moore.  Apparently Thomas has been moved to the backup Mike position behind Patrick Willis.  It sounds to me like Thomas will end up in a super-sub kind of role.  It's also possible he's struggling picking up the defense and they figure he could do less damage backing up Willis.  Thoughts?

Right Guard
Leader at the first turn: David Baas (if you ask Nolan)
In the conference call, Nolan said the 49ers fully expected Baas to be ready in time for the regular season and step into the starting role.  Training camp however will see a battle between Tony Wragge and Chilo Rachal.  This leaves a lot of questions on the table, if Wragge or Rachal clicks with the rest of the offensive line.  Matt Barrows made mention of this last week and it is certainly something to consider.  On the plus side, having multiple guys playing well is certainly good for depth.  On the minus side, the offensive line is built on chemistry and cohesion.  You don't want to be bumping guys around throughout the game.  Looking at the 3 guys, Baas is only 26, Rachal 22 and Wragge 28.  So age really isn't an issue.  Of course, while it's all just rumor-mongering, throw in the highly speculative but still potential return of Larry Allen and it creates all sorts of confusion.  Larry Allen aside, the injury to Baas leaves things in limbo.  We'll have an answer as to who is ahead on the depth chart between Wragge and Rachal.  However, unless Baas has a setback or has a miraculous recovery in the next week or two, right guard will remain a question mark.

3rd/Nickel Cornerback
Leader at the first turn: Shawntae Spencer
Surprisingly there has been very little talk about this position battle.  Obviously the national media could care less, but even among local media things are quiet.  Barrows briefly mentioned the position in relation to Walt Harris's eventual successor.  The battle comes down to Spencer, Tarell Brown and Reggie Smith.  Brown got a little playing time last season but clearly he's still got a lot to learn.  Back during the draft, Scouts Inc felt Reggie Smith could step right into the 49ers sub packages.  He can play corner and safety so he certainly brings some versatility.  Of all the positional battles, this one could yield the most for team depth.  I'd expect Spencer to be the guy coming out of camp (if he's healthy), but I think Brown will see a lot more playing time from last year and Smith will get a nice chunk of time.  The 49ers play some receiver heavy teams this year so cornerback depth will be huge.  Furthermore, if the pass rush is weak and the corners are crazy-busy, the more quality guys they can rotate in the better.

Stick with these for conversation for now.  I'll have another post late this afternoon later tonight discussing the likes of right outside linebacker, wide receiver and free safety.

As we pass through free agency, the draft and offseason training activities and approach training camp, another benchmark of the offseason approaches.  Oh yes, that's right, Madden hits stores on my birthday, August 12.  Happy birthday to me indeed!  With that in mind, I came across the 49ers ratings in the newest addition of Madden.  One problem with seeing the ratings now is that somewhat significant roster and depth chart moves won't be reflected.  The good news is that with the online offerings of Madden you can update rosters accordingly.  Definitely one of the better advances in video game technology.

Offense

The highest rated offensive player is Frank Gore, who is a 93, and a 99 when used as a 3rd down back.  Alex Smith and Shaun Hill rate out at 79, with JT O'Sullivan in at 77.  To give you some comparisons one site has the rating of every starting QB.  They list Smith at 80 so it's a little off their.  Some comparable guys include Rex Grossman and Trent Edwards.  Among all the starters, 24 QBs rate ahead of Smith.  So take that for what it's worth.  The starting offensive line averages 85 across the board.  Not great, but that doesn't seem as awful as it could be.  Chilo Rachal is a 78, which makes me think he could turn into a very solid option in the franchise mode.

Defense

Patrick Willis is the highest rated defender and highest rated 49er at 96.  As with the wide receivers, some of the defensive positions are not completely filled out.  The middle/inside linebackers are missing the likes of Brandon Moore and Larry Grant, primarily due to the size of the depth chart.  If I was playing right now, I'd be very tempted to just trade Mark Roman and move Dashon Goldson into the starting lineup.  Even if I didn't deal Roman, I'd want to bump up Goldson.  When I go with dynasty mode I like getting the youngsters some quality playing time.

So what do you think about the 49ers rankings?  Any of them seem particularly out of whack or are they pretty spot on?

I realize this is probably insanely early to start looking at training camp battles, but it ties in well with the recent announcement that 49ers training camp starts July 24.  The 49ers will have ten practices open to the public so let's start prepping for those who make it to any practices (Hopefully I can get down there for another couple practices like last year).  The plan is to pull these out every so often over the next 2+ months.  I'll even create a section on the sidebar that keeps tabs of these posts and has them right at your fingertips.

"Ted" Linebacker
The Ted linebacker lines up on the tight end side of the field and takes up bodies, opening up the field for the Mike linebacker (Patrick Willis for the 49ers) to make many of the tackles.  Derek Smith fit the role perfectly as he was able to handle the grunt-work and didn't complain.  The question is who will take over the starting Ted role in 2008.  There were rumors the team was interested in Takeo Spikes, but we'll ignore that for now.  If Spikes were too sign before training camp, that would certainly be address.

Dontarrious Thomas
One of the newer 49ers in the mix, the folks at Daily Norseman provided some insight and the general idea is that Thomas is a great athlete but may not be an impact every-down guy right away.  Both Daily Norseman and Scouts Inc seem to think the mental part of the game is what has limited Thomas so far.  Clearly the mental side of the game applies to every position.  However, some positions allow for greater reliance on physical talent, while others require more processing of information.  Any ideas on how the "Ted" fits into this?  That would certainly have an impact on Thomas's ability to fill the role.

Jeff Ulbrich
Consider me not all that surprised to see Ulbrich in the battle for the Ted position.  Ulbrich has always been considered insufficient in the size and athleticism department and yet he continues to make contributions.  It seemed like this past year he made his name in special teams but was really all over the field.  Is Jeff Ulbrich the second coming of Derek Smith?  A guy who lacks the natural talent of many linebackers but still gets the job done?  I think of all these guys, Ulbrich is the safest bet to get a lot of playing time, even though he may not be as talented as Thomas.  I think Ulbrich has the inherent edge, but we'll see if he backs it up with production.

Larry Grant
Grant is a mere seventh round draft pick and is expected to make more of an impact on special teams this year.  However, the NFL has its fair share of players who have been after thoughts in the draft and end up as impact players in the league.  His scouting report indicates he's not a major playmaker, but that is not exactly a necessary trait for the Ted.  If he can stick around I could see him transitioning to getting time at the Ted in the future, particularly when Ulbrich is finished as a 49er.  We'll have to pay close attention to his special teams performances in 2008.

Others
Brandon Moore: Nolan has said Moore will spend his time as Patrick Willis' backup.  Moore has so much talent and yet he doesn't seem to have what it takes to get off blocks in the role of the Ted.  Maybe that is what makes him more suitable backing up Willis.  We all see great athletic talent, but he just isn't quite putting it together completely.

Dennis Haley: Another Ravens castoff joining the 49ers.  He's going to compete at the inside linebacker position in training camp, but barring injuries, I don't see him making the team.  Anybody out there know anything about Haley?

Ezra Butler: I completely forgot about undrafted rookie free agent Ezra Butler out of Nevada.  The team seems to be high on him and Barrows says Butler actually picked the 49ers over a couple teams who offered more money because he was psyched about the opportunity of playing for Mike Singletary.  The ultimate recruiter for linebackers.  If you want to vote for Butler, vote for the Other option.  Feel free to mention him in the comments if you'd like.