It's so early in the process that talking about how free-agent guard Chester Pitts would fit in San Francisco would be terribly premature ... On that note, here's how Pitts would fit on the 49ers:
I spoke with John McClain, the longtime writer for the Houston Chronicle, this morning. McClain raved about Pitts, both as a player and as person. Pitts is a bit of a Renaissance Man. He knows how to play the oboe, and last year joined the board of directors of the Houston Symphony. In that way, it seems he would mesh nicely alongside center Eric Heitmann, who is an accomplished pianist. Pitts also is the Texans' union representative, an indication he is both sharp and well-liked in the locker room. He will be in Hawaii for a union meeting this weekend where he no doubt will rub elbows with Takeo Spikes, who, along with Walt Harris, represents the 49ers.
But where would Pitts play? He spent his entire career on the left side, playing some left tackle but mostly left guard. The 49ers' left guard is David Baas, a restricted free agent who has been offered a one-year tender. That means that Baas likely will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2010 season and the 49ers need to think about a replacement.
McClain, however, points out that Pitts would be an asset to a young tackle the way he has been to Duane Brown in Houston. If the 49ers draft an offensive tackle, that rookie likely would play on the right side. That might place one inexperienced player, right guard Chilo Rachal, next to another, something the 49ers would try to avoid. Pitts hasn't played right guard, but is intelligent enough to make the switch.
Pitts' injury is the biggest concern. He went down with a right knee injury in Week 2, easily the most severe injury in a remarkably healthy career. He had microfracture surgery in September, and that's obviously something the 49ers and every other team that is eying Pitts will look at very closely. Pitts has been saying that he will be at full strength between May 1 and June 1. Any team that signs him, however, likely wouldn't put Pitts through any rigorous activities until training camp (late July) at the earliest.
As McClain noted, Pitts doesn't have as much wear and tear on his body as most NFL guards his age. After all, he didn't play football in college high school. And he was discovered in college, San Diego State, while working as a grocery bagger. It's one of the better rags-to-riches stories in the NFL, and one that won Pitts a Super Bowl video competition two years ago. To watch it, click here.
-- Matt Barrows
