Back in the Bay Area

Only two years ago cornerback Nnambi Asomugha was the biggest free agent in the shortened 2011 offseason. The Philadelphia Eagles signed him to a huge 5-year, $60 million deal. At least $25 million was guaranteed. Things didn't exactly go very well for Asomugha or the Eagles in the two years since that big day. It was a puzzling signing as Asomugha never quite fit in the Eagles zone-based secondary. The Eagles were in the process of putting together their "Dream Team." Instead of accomplishing that the team pretty much lost their minds. It's showed on the field ever since.

This past week the San Francisco 49ers signed Asomugha to a much smaller contract than the one that he signed two years ago. This one is only a one-year deal that could be worth as much as $3 million. In this era of greed it's remarkable that Asomugha wanted no guaranteed money. These days it seems that guaranteed money is the only thing that players want. Nnambi Asomugha is a classy guy. He must be ecstatic to be back in the Bay Area. His college days were spent in Berkeley. The first seven years of his professional career were spent in Oakland. There he established himself as the best corner in the game. Now, he's on the other side of the bay. Big plus, he's no longer in Philadelphia.

I'm happy for Nnambi Asomugha. The 49ers are, by far, the best team that he's ever been on. It's his best chance for a championship. Asomugha is one of my favorite Cal football players. He's been a fantastic player on the field. He's been even better off of the field. His impact in the community has always been great and far reaching. The Asomugha Foundation operates two primary programs. Orphans and Widows In Need (OWIN) and the Asomugha College Tour for Scholars (ACTS). Through OWIN, Asomugha and his family provide food, shelter, medicine, vocational training, literacy efforts, and scholarships to widows and orphans victimized by poverty and abuse in Nigeria. For ACTS, Asomugha teams up with students from Bay Area and Los Angeles area high schools on college tours across the country. About the time that Asomugha reached an agreement with the 49ers he was keeping himself busy by driving Bay Area students to tours of Cal and Stanford. Since 2009, Asomugha has participated in former President Bill Clinton's Global Initiative. Nnambi Asomugha is a difference maker in all that he does.

I think that Asomugha will be a nice fit for the 49ers defense. It will certainly be a better fit than he found in Philadelphia. The 49ers got better with the signing and Asomugha got closer to that Super Bowl ring than he's ever been before.