The quarterback deficiencies of Colin Rand Kaepernick

This is my Sunday column.

As Jed York and Trent Baalke search for someone who can make Colin Kaepernick a competent pocket passer, keep in mind that Jim Harbaugh, the Quarterback Whisperer, couldn’t do it; George Whitfield, the Quarterback Guru, couldn’t do it; and Bill Walsh, The Genius, almost certainly wouldn’t care to try.

Of course, I can’t prove that last part — Walsh passed away in 2007 — but 10 years before he passed, he wrote an essay for Pro Sports Xchange listing 10 traits a quarterback must have to become great. Kaepernick lacks nine of them.

Those nine are:

1. Instincts. Walsh wrote, “This is the area that can be the difference between a very solid quarterback and a great quarterback.” And then he added, “This isn’t an area you can do much with as a coach.”

Kaepernick has instincts, but they’re the wrong ones. He has athletic instincts, like which way to cut and when to slide. He doesn’t have quarterback instincts, like pocket-pressure awareness, play-clock awareness, game-clock awareness — any type of awareness. Kaepernick plays quarterback like Kramer from “Seinfeld” goes through life — blissfully unaware.

2. Accuracy. Walsh wrote, “It is a plus to be able to throw a ball on a line for 35 yards, but not if it is off target.”

Kaepernick throws the ball as hard as he can in the general vicinity of a receiver and hopes the receiver makes an impossible catch. Walsh didn’t value kind of accurate or accuracy’s second cousin. He demanded total accuracy.

3. Timing. “This involves understanding a system, the receivers in the system, and having great anticipation.”

None of that describes Kaepernick, who rarely throws a pass before his intended receiver makes his break. Kaepernick doesn’t anticipate openings. He waits for openings. He cheerleads his receivers from the pocket and, as he stares down his receiver, you almost can see a comic-book thought bubble form over his head. It says, “Get open, get open, get open. Please.”

4. Touch. “One of Joe Montana’s most remarkable skills was putting the right touch on a pass so that it was easily catchable by a receiver, who often did not have to break stride.”

One of Kaepernick’s most remarkable skills is firing a pass behind a receiver or over a receiver’s head or through a receiver’s hands so that the ball is easily catchable by a defensive back, who often does not have to break stride to make the interception. Kaepernick has zero touch. He throws so hard, he broke one of Randy Moss’ fingers in 2012.

5. An inventory of throws. Walsh defined the complete inventory as “screen passes, timed short passes, medium range passes and down the field throws.”

A quarterback doesn’t have to excel at all four throws, just like a pitcher doesn’t have to throw four pitches. Three is enough. Joe Montana lacked the arm strength to throw downfield, but he could make all the other throws. Kaepernick has just one throw — a fastball. He lacks the touch to effectively throw screen passes, short passes or deep passes.

6. A quick delivery. Walsh required quarterbacks “to get the ball up and gone with no wasted motion.”

Kaepernick wastes motion. He winds up a like a pitcher, brings the ball down and around before he releases it. His windup, plus his inability to anticipate openings downfield, makes his delivery the slowest in the NFL.

7. Grace during progressions. “This should work like a natural progression,” Walsh wrote, “not a situation where it’s, ‘Oh, my gosh, now I must look over here … no, over there.’”

Walsh didn’t know it, but he wrote that sentence specifically for Kaepernick. Kaepernick goes through progressions with the grace of a decapitated chicken. He bolts from the pocket before pressure arrives. Or, he stands still, stares at one receiver and gets blindsided by a pass rusher. How many times have you seen Kaepernick calmly look from one receiver to another, then throw the ball just before taking a big hit? Never?

8. Quickness. Walsh wanted a quarterback who could avoid a pass rush. So, Walsh valued quickness — the ability to move quickly and with agility in a small space, the pocket. Think Steve Young or Russell Wilson. Kaepernick has no quickness. His legs are so long, his first few strides he seems stuck in quick sand. Once he gets his legs going, his top speed is faster than other quarterbacks’ top speed. Walsh valued top speed in wide receivers, not quarterbacks. Sorry, Colin.

9. Spontaneous genius. “The single trait that separates great quarterbacks from good quarterbacks,” Walsh wrote, “is the ability to make the great, spontaneous decision, especially at a crucial time.”

If running out of bounds while his team is winning late in the fourth quarter counts, or if throwing the same three incomplete passes to Michael Crabtree at the end of the Super Bowl counts, or if testing Richard Sherman over and over again counts, Kaepernick deserves the Nobel Prize.

Walsh did not value Kaepernick’s two best assets — arm strength and speed. Toughness is Kaepernick’s only trait that Walsh valued. Kaepernick never has missed a start due to injury. He’s never had a serious injury, either. Can he function while injured? We don’t know.

If Walsh were alive, I’m guessing he would want to coach a quarterback who is more than merely tough, who has more than one-tenth of the qualities Walsh looks for. If Walsh were alive and Jed York hired him to run the 49ers, I’m guessing Walsh would recommend drafting another quarterback this year, someone worth Walsh’s effort, someone who has the ability to become great — I’m guessing Bryce Petty in the second or third round. Petty has demonstrated everything except spontaneous genius, and already is a better pocket passer than Kaepernick ever will be.

Kaepernick is just a placeholder, someone the Niners can trade when the next quarterback — Petty or whoever — is ready to take over.

Grant Cohn writes sports columns and the “Inside the 49ers” blog for The Press Democrat’s website. You can reach him at grantcohn@gmail.com.

This article has 692 Comments

  1. I really can’t disagree with any of these things. Grant, I think you nailed it earlier in the season when you described Kaep as a “tease”. Kaep will continue to tease us with potential based on a sensation play or two, maybe even a great half of football, although never a complete games it seems.

    I would also had that he has a very poor demeanor. His surliness and lack of public leadership is something that no great QB displays. I can not think of a single HOF QB that acts the way he does. Leadership in dealing with the public (media) does count, and all of the great QB’s interact well with the media in general. QB’s that turn their back upon the media/public are losers. That lack of leadership in dealing with the media seems to be a direct reflection upon their leadership overall, including upon the field. I just don’t think Kaep has the qualities to be anything more than mediocre.

    1. spot in Millenium, as a former player and coach, i can se things that clearly shows me that CK7 never will be that QB that will take us to a SB. As I have said it before, i would any day of the week, have a QB that have a mediocre arm and good desicions to a QB who have a rocket of an arm. I can NOT use a rocket to anything if o dont know where it is going…..most of these things that are named “entanglibes” is something that you are born with and these thing are hard to impossible to learn. CK7 doesnt have these things, thats the truth. he can throw like a cannon and run like the wind but he can not read defences, he doesnt show that he is the leader, the captain, he display himself as immature in a adult world. If I could talk to him i would say, grow up, dress up and show up in that video room, where you have to learn the game, you have to learn how to be a pocket passer and you have to learn it NOW, if you dont, you are gone. When that said we ha to adress 3 needs in the comming off season + draft, QB, WR and CB.

      1. CK will never take us to the Superbowl? Really? You are a coach and a former player and yet you fail to remember that CK did take us to the Superbowl. Oh, I forgot Alex Smith took us to the Superbow vs the Ravens, right? LMFAO. Stupid people shouldn’t post

        1. Well, it was also Kaep who was having a terrible game plus, if Kaep wasn’t so stuck on throwing to a completely covered Crabtree and read the field, he had Davis and Walker open( AT THE SNAP)!!!
          Kaep is just as the article states, a below average QB with physical talent.
          By the way, having a top 3 defense does wonders but it will never hide our QB problems.

        2. That was the biggest mistake that JH made as a coach. I believe that AS would have done it if he hadn’t been benched. He brought us that far before he go hurt.

          1. Would have done what? JH biggest mistake was bringing AS back in 2011 and then again in 2012 after failing to land Manning. It was amazing the team made it as far as they did with a bum like AS and then to make it back with the bum CK.

      2. Laren,
        As a former football coach I can respect your knowledge of the game. But it’s also the ultimate team sport in which everyone must give optimum commitment and their utmost abilities.

        I don’t make excuses for Kaepernick’ deficiencies because they are undeniable. But my contention is that he has shown me enough flashes in his game to give me hope.

        Just curios, what would your analysis be of QB’ like Dan Marino, Dan Fouts, and Jim Kelly?

    2. All y’all that I was able to read are real stupid for buying this crap this guy wrote.

      Bill Walsh ain’t nobody.
      After his first four seasons he was 24-33 with the San Francisco 49ers. The stuff he talking is bull. Of course the stuff he said was complimentary to Montana. That’s the kind of stuff that you could say about Montana. Didn’t make Montana great. What made Montana good enough–not great–was Roger Craig who averaged almost 9 yards a catch in Montana’s early successful years on that “checkdown” where Craig was running at the line of scrimmage–not parallel. And then Jerry Rice. All those desired traits of a quarterback like touch and “accurarcy” come out here today and not be Peyton Manning with a pass from the NFL where they can’t sack you and your O line has a license to hold every play and see where you go. Have say a combination of Desean Jackson and Eric Decker and a tight end say like not Gronkowski but say like Cumberland from NYJ–or Vernon Davis playing like he did this year. (Davis must have been playing hurt the whole year with no speed or explosion).

      Okay. Montana is nothing compared to Kaepernick. Y’all just don’t know.
      Don’t want to know. Don’t want to go back and look at Montana’s first 39 starts.
      Montana 22-17 and had “helped”–not “won” –his team win a Super Bowl with a 13-3. Get it?? See, he was on a team good enough to win a Super Bowl but yet overall was 22-17 while Kaepernick is 25-14. Y’all don’t even got sense enough to know what you got cause you to busy pining away looking for a white quarterback to play like Montana because in y’all’s mind Montana was better when the exact opposite is true.

      Montana and 39 starts —36 intereceptions. Yeah, Montana played in about 55 games to get the 39 starts but Kaepernick made quaite a few cameo appearances while Alex Smith was the starter. But Kaepernick has only 21 INTERCEPTIONs compared to Montana’s 36. Get it? Forget touch, forget accuracy–all the BS this writer is throwing at you. Kaepernick has played a a higher–championship–level than Montana did at the early and apples to apples comparative first four seasons. Far better.

      Y’all don’t want to hear it but, average yards per pass:
      Montana 7.3
      Kaepernick 7.53
      Touchdown Ratio:Montana with rice, dwight clark, freedie solomon, Brent Jones, AND roger craig 20.6
      Kaepernick with Vernon Davis (nonexistent in 2014) and who? Crabtree??? 22.3
      In 39 games
      Montana ran for 407 yards and 5 TDs, 3.8 ypc
      Kaepernick, 1576 yards ten TDs, 6 ypc
      Oh, and for all the BS about throwing the football, “he throw too hard”, “he has to wind up to throw it” “got no touch” —ain’t that the same as he throw too hard?????
      Montana .637 completion %
      Kaepernick .601 completion %

      But let me make sure you got the most important of these stats.
      Kaepernick 25-14
      Montana 22-17

      and

      Montana 36 interceptions
      Kaepernick 21 intereceptions.

      And for those stupid enough to look up the numbers and confirm that Montana had 199 more pass attempts and maybe say “Well, naturally Joe would have more interceptions, he threw the ball more.” Un-hunh!!!
      Kaepernick had 153 more runs. Get it?
      Instead of throwing under pressure and getting a pick six, Kaeperick ran instead of throwining passes that were more likely to be returned for a pick six.
      He is also smarter than Montana as a quarterback. But not according to y’all. According to y’all, running to escape the blitz is not as intellectual as going to your second and third and fourth progression. But your are getting picked. But according to y’all that is the measure of a smart quarterback. Reading the defense–wrong–and throwing a pick. Running instead of suffering a pick on a pressure throw is considered “just using your instincts.” Just being athletic. And of course, athleticism is never a good substitute for throwing an interception because you thought you were smarter than the defense.
      Y’all never say, “with the blitz the defense knows they are likely to open up running lanes for the quarterback for a 20+ yard gain before you can get out of bounds–if the qb can run–even a l’il bit.
      Ohhhhh, y’all stupid.

      1. How many brain cells did you kill posting this garbage? The MOST IMPORTANT stat? Joe Montana was 4-0 in the Super Bowl with 11 TD’s and ZERO interceptions. Plus he won the SB in his second full season as a QB…put your bong down before you hurt yourself…

        1. @Nick

          ‘don’t know for sure, but I’duck if I was you…I think it’s flying low….I’m too far North

      2. Can you even name any of the offensive fire power that Montana & the 49’ers had in the first super bowl year?

  2. Its interesting, the first attribute listed is “instincts”, which I completely agree with. Natural football instincts are highly important at every position. Its funny because I remember last year when we were discussing draft prospects and I mentioned instincts you scoffed. Now you are agreeing with Walsh that it is important.

      1. Correct, it was Gilbert.

        I wouldn’t write him off just yet, he’s obviously got some natural athletic ability, but he needs time to develop. Which is why I wasn’t high on him as a first rounder, and why I preferred other physically gifted guys like Johnson and Gaines that could be taken later and would also need time to develop.

      2. Though I also talked about Beckham’s instincts in the positive and you also scoffed at that.

          1. Yep, I said he has poor instincts. He still does. He does however have a significant size advantage and good hands to catch contested balls, and I misjudged how well that skillset would hold up in the pros.

            1. You mistook a go-to guy for someone who would be out of the league in a few seasons. Big whiff.

              1. We all have ’em. I did also say I’d take him in the 2nd round. I said he’s a boom or bust type, that to me was more likely a Jon Baldwin than a Plaxico Burress.

              2. Yeah, and I thought Beckham wouldn’t be effective in the red zone. He had 8 red-zone TD catches this season. He beat some bad cornerbacks, though.

              3. Heh, yeah, I remember that. The DBs he beat in the red zone may not have been the top guys in the NFL, but they were NFL starters. End of the day, I don’t think anyone really anticipated how well he’d play.

                From memory, didn’t you (and razor) say you’d take Marqise Lee over Beckham? Urgh, wasn’t a fan of Lee, and still not though he showed a little something towards the end of the year. I liked Allen Robinson and he was the best rookie WR on the Jags, before going on IR.

              4. Yeah, but I think I qualified that later on. Lee got beat up in college. He was great as a freshman and sophomore.

              5. Surely in a draft do-over Beckham would have to be #1. If he’d played a full 16 games he’d have broken nearly every rookie WR record there is.

                I’d go:

                1. Beckham
                2. Watkins
                3. Evans
                4. Benjamin
                5. Matthews
                6. Cooks
                7. Robinson
                8. Landry
                9. Brown
                10. Adams

              6. Just because he had 12 great games doesn’t mean he will have a better career than Watkins and Evans. Beckham is in a better system and has a better quarterback right now than those two. Beckham’s numbers wouldn’t have been as good if he had to play with Kyle Orton or Josh McCown.

              7. Fair enough.

                His next game he’ll be going for the record of 10 straight games with 90+ yards receiving (currently tied with Irvin at 9). And over the last 9 games of the regular season he led all WRs in yards with over 1,200 yards. That’s 133 yards per game on average. Imagine what he could do next year if he does play a full 16 games.

          2. I compared Beckham to Bruce. That was mostly based on his excellent route running, and they both have the same ability to run routes at full speed and not lose much speed out of their breaks and create separation. But Beckham is more physically gifted than Bruce was, and better at going up to get the ball.

  3. Grant:

    Glad to see that you now agree with me that Petty would be a good draft selection in the 2nd or 3rd round for the 49ers.

  4. Wasn’t Kap a great QB until last year? Honestly, I think Kap’s play this year is a SYMPTOM. The root cause is the injured and ineffective O-Line — that’s what we need to fix. This made the running game less effective, and also made Kap regularly run for his life. It also made him lose confidence and made him paranoid. Can you blame him? Give Kap a cohesive and effective O-Line, and he becomes the Kap of old. Any QB with a patchwork and constantly changing O-Line will struggle mightily, and that’s what happened to Kap this year.

    1. Finally…. Someone with some common sense. Kap is on the same pace as Steve Young… Give the guy some time, injuries killed this team this season. He’s got room to grow in areas only experience can teach.

    2. Spot on.

      The offense collapsed when the O-line did.
      It happens every time with every QB. See how bad Rivers looked behind a terrible line the last few years and how suddendly he looked the Rivers of good old times when the front office fixed it. You can make this argument also with Ryan, Eli, Big Ben and many others. Before NE fixed its own line at the start of the season even Brady was terrible.

      This team cannot waste a pick in the 2nd/3rd round on a QB project. In the next draft priority 1 is D-Line and priority 2 is WR. I think the O-line could be fixed without using a high draft pick. We need to see what we have in Brandon Thomas at OG and hopefully Kilgore and Davis will be able to be back at 100%. We just need some consistency over there.

      In the draft ideally i would go like this
      1 Rd: the best DE we can get or a WR if someone really good is still there
      2 Rd: Pass rusher or a WR if we didn’t choose one earlier.
      3 Rd: TE (Vernon is done)

      Later rounds: CBs, O-Line, RB

    3. I’m sorry Shemp, whomever you are but your comment couldn’t be anymore wrong.

      The dominant O-line in 2012 and to a lesser degree 1013 MASKED Kaepernick’s deficiencies

      Kaepernick has rarely ever shown the ability to quickly read the field POST snap and make a quick decision and throw.

      The offense had been configured to work around Kaep’s limitations and take advantage of his athleticism. But defense figured out much of those changes and have forced the Niners and Kaepernick to play the game from the pocket and read the entire field. and yes the poor line play made things worse.

      1. Kaep was never that good from the start.
        He caught the league by storm with his running NOT his passing, remember he plays QB Not running back!
        Balke brought in Lloyd, Johnson and drafted Ellington for the sole purpose of elavating Kaeps game, it never happend.
        The O line has nothing to do with Kaep over, under throwing wide open receivers or locking onto one receiver, predetermining where he’s throwing the ball without knowing coverages. CMon Man, Kaep has been exposed point blank!

    4. You can’t protect a guy who doesn’t stay in the pocket 95% of the time. Quit making excuses for an undeveloped no read and run version of Jeff Garcia

  5. As is your style, another hatchet job on CK.

    Sure, it’s always a safe analysis when drawing from the great Bill Walsh well.
    But if I recall, Walsh missed on Druckenmiller and Carmazzi, enough said on that.

    How do you know for certain that BW would have passed on Kaepernick?
    Didn’t Steve Young have many of the same traits as Kap before he became a HOF type QB?

    CK has shown what he is capable of doing when his strengths are utilized. He had a bad year and regressed. But this team was in a unique situation all season with FO/Coach issues that migrated to the playing field and also had a turnstile turnover on the O-line.
    CK shown enough for me to put this bad year behind him and have faith that he can recapture his groove again.

    Btw, here’s a quote from another well known former headcoach that fared well against Walsh.

    “All these quarterback gurus around the country, these so-called quarterback gurus, if they’re all so great, how come we don’t have more great quarterbacks playing?” Parcells asked. “The great ones have these attributes you can’t see that allows them to go forward and be successful. In other cases they have attributes you can’t see that act as deterrents for them.
    “I think Kaepernick is right at the crossroads right now. He’s showed he can do something.”
    ~ Bill Parcells

    Not a slam-dunk ringing endorsement by Parcells on Kap, but like myself, Parcells says that CK has shown something.
    Some conveniently forget that Kap has won playoff games in Atlanta, Carolina, and Green Bay. He also beat a Packer team in his 1st playoff game after throwing a pick 6 with his first pass.
    You want to rile against Kap it’s your blog and that’s fine, but at least try to point to some of the positives that CK has provided.
    At the moment your comments mirror those of Fan77 (completely one sided).

    1. AES
      Something didn’t seem right when you pinned Druckenmiller on BW. Druck was 1/#26 in 1997. Walsh wasn’t there; Dwight Clark was Dir.FootballOpns and Vinny Cerato was Player Personnel Dir. Mooch lobbied for Druckenmiller.
      Bill was GM ’99-’01 (consultant ’02-’04), so did preside over Gio 3/#65 in 2000, but again Mooch pushed for the pick.

        1. I had to look it all up before I posted. I was going to give BW a pass on Gio too, but Doh!

          1. Brotha,
            Here’s an old article written in 1999 by a friend of ours (Matt Maiocco) regarding the BW/Druckenmiller connection. In this article Matt is interviewing Dwight Clark.

            “Walsh worked as a consultant for the 49ers leading up to the 1997 draft. Clark said the story of Walsh’s recommending the 49ers draft Jake Plummer ahead of Druckenmiller is revisionist history.

            “I was in those meetings; I heard Bill say (Druckenmiller) was the most talented quarterback in the draft and that Plummer fit the offense better,” Clark said. “I was there; I know what was said.
            “Bill never said which one he would pick. He just made that statement and it was really up to us.”

            Through a team spokesman, Walsh declined to respond to Clark’s comments.

            After watching Druckenmiller at the NFL combine in February 1997, Walsh was quoted by USA Today as saying, “I didn’t see anybody else in his class.” But Walsh has since been a vocal supporter of Plummer, comparing him to Joe Montana. Recently, Walsh said the selection of Plummer might have been the necessary ingredient for the 49ers to remain a dynasty for 10 more seasons.”

            In any case, interesting story to say the least.

            1. As it turned out, eventually Walsh was right about Druckenmiller. And when D.Clark later moved on to Cleveland to assist Carmen Policy, he made a monumental whiff by drafting Eric (Ouch) Crouch.

            2. Good work AES. It also shows that Wiki can miss a few details; they didn’t show his consulting in 97. But reading that I remember BW weighing in on Jake The Snake.

            3. Oh AES Try watching the games with your eyes and leave your heart out of it. The kid isn’t mentally tough. The only school that offered him a scholarship was Reno. That’s a big deal, why? I think he should have played baseball. He’ll probably go the route of Tim Tiebow. You can have a good career as a back-up.

              1. Oh Mary, you’re quite the gem.
                How did you’re theory work for Akili Smith, Vince Young, and to the mental part you speak of Harvard graduate Ryan Fitzpatrick who had scholarships at major universities work out?

                You either have it or you don’t in sports, and CK has shown that he has what it takes.
                Now run a long and find us some c-hawks news we so avidly want to hear.

      1. Jake Plummer????
        Replace Drunk with that bill Walsh miss.
        I know he wasn’t drafted by SF but if Walsh had a body language motion showing his want for Plummer. It would have been a man jumping, with his hand raised and fingers wiggling.
        He was in love with Plummer. And he was a bum.

    2. AES, where do you get the energy on constantly have to defend CK from all these one-sided critism of him? This blog talks so much of the negative side and it is taking the fun part out of it. But thanks for being around bro and I hope you do not get tired of it.

      1. Ricardo,
        Thanks for the kind words.
        Having said that, I take full responsibly for my misstep in connecting Bill Walsh to Druckenmiller.

        1. AES: Ok, point accepted and you’re right sometime a “gem” does slips by. Suppose you’re right — do you hire a really good back-up so you can salvage your season if CK is not playing well?

          1. Mary,
            I want to see CK play at his strengths with a less injured O-line. If he fails to deliver it’s time to move on without him.
            Gabbert is going to push Kap, period. We do need someone that can give CK some competition to either push him forward or push him to the bench.

            But for beginners, let’s see what he can do with a capable O-line. Don’t know if you saw the Dallas/Detroit game yesterday, but Detroit was dominating the cowboys O-line in the 1st half and Romo looked like Romo of old.
            2nd half, completely opposite story, O-line blocks much better and Romo starts to light it up. His last TD pass to Williams Romo had enough time to make all his reads and even go shake hands with Jerry Jones if he wanted to.

            Anyway, back to Kap. I want to see how he plays with a little more time in the pocket to throw, then I’ll be able to make a better evaluation.

            1. AES: Yep you and the FO are giving hm a year. Seems fair.

              You bet I saw that Denver game and wish we were playing either one, would be a better game than Carolina. It will be a close game, allways is AND they have absolutely nothing to lose. But Seahawks will prevail;)

    3. Walsh also thought Rick Mirer was the next Joe Montana. Even the great ones make mistakes sometimes.

      1. I love Walsh. However, if we are listing his mistakes at the top of the list should be his conviction that Terry Donahoe was the man to run the 49ers.

    4. AES,
      I’ve stated numerous times my issues with Kaep. It’s my opinion, back when it was a little unpopular to say these things. I’m on the side that really matters, the right side!

      Name a game that kaep really won — and that was the GB game in the SB year. He single handedly won that game. But once the read option is not there, what then? We can’t turn back the clock now. Teams have neutralized the read option and truth be told, don’t you want the QB to be multi-dimensional???

      People don’t want to admit it but his lack of development and stepping up is what held the offense back. He’s also not a very good leader and not accurate. Can you really trust him to make an accurate throw when it matters?

      Here’s a stark difference between RW and Kaep. In the final Seattle game, the Niners were up 7-3. Seahawks are driving and they face a 3rd and 10. RW drops back to pass and when he completes his 5 step drop, he fires an accurate pass to rookie WR. First down. They eventually score. Now they’re up but there’s plenty of time left in the game.

      Niners get the ball back. Now they face a 3rd and long. Kaep drops back, then steps up in the pocket, starts to scramble, now it’s a broken play again. He sees a wide open Boldin for a first down and more. What does he do? He throws it hard and about 5 feet over his head. Niners punt and fire their coach a few games later.

      He’s started 40 games now and still plays like a rookie or 2nd year player. That’s an issue.

      Steve Young wanted to be better, and was willing to put the time in. Not so sure Kaep is really that hungry. He might not be wired that way.

      1. Fan77,
        Did you not see my post?
        I named several games that Kap won.
        While we’re at it, you can throw in the Bears game (his 1st start) and his win against Drew Brees in New Orleans.
        Looks like you kinda missed those bud.

      2. Fan77, Did you see this kid Marcus Mariota he’s the real deal. The 49ers should trade for this guy. Maybe we can package Kaepernick and another player and our 1st round selection for Mariota? Marcus is a winner anywhere he goes too, check this kid resume his going to be a great QB in the NFL.

      3. “I’ve stated numerous times my issues with Kaep. It’s my opinion, back when it was a little unpopular to say these things. I’m on the side that really matters, the right side!”
        ~ Fan77

        You’re right, I give you prop’s for critiquing CK in early season and except for a couple games where you said Kap played well, you remained consistent in your criticism.
        But your argument never took into consideration other factors that were involved with many of CK’ issues.
        And that doesn’t make you right, it only affirms your distain for our QB.
        What makes your critiques right are giving fair and balanced arguments, those have been lacking on your end bud.

        The only side you’re on right now is the one that likes to pile on.

        1. He played great in the bears game. Alex played great in bills game. So what?
          Niners gambled with kaep and lost.

    5. Kap’s regressed every year for three years. Any other job on the planet and he’s fired. Why should playing QB for the 49ers be a free pass. Deal with it Fan Boys. Time to move on.

      1. I’ll be glad to move on when he’s off the team, but last I looked he is still the starter.
        Maybe it’s time for you face that fact and move on.

  6. Funny, I’ve seen Kap do many of the things you say he can’t do, like throw a soft ball with touch. He was running for his life this year with repeated breakdowns by the offensive line, which yielded the most sacks in the NFL. I’ll agree with you, in part, on instinct; he’s certainly no Russell Wilson. But the game has changed a lot since Bill Walsh’s time, and I’ve seen Kap do some amazing things like throw a completed pass 50 to 60 yards downfield and 20 or 30 yards across field. And how about his game against Green Bay last year when he accounted for 400+ yards of offense. I think he needs the right coach and the right offensive line. Glad Roman isn’t coming back.

  7. From an article on PFT about Quinn:

    “And that speaks to a deeper issue with the hiring process that the league should address. Interviews are permitted, but offers can’t be made, until the coach’s current team ends its season. Surely, there’s a way to tweak the rules to allow teams to hire assistant coaches under contract with other teams before those other teams have ended their playoff runs.”

    1. The problem with that is the assistant coach could be under fire from his front office and fan base for selling out, especially if he signed with an arch rival. It would worsen still if his unit struggled because he would be accused of quitting on the team.

  8. Lately Grant you’ve been writing some great pieces, but this is off target. Indeed Kap had a down year, but you have to look at the complete body of work of this passing offense – it stunk. Receivers run 15+ yards downfield and don’t look for the ball, pass patterns take to long to open up. The line can’t protect for more than 2 seconds. There’s nothing quick about the Niners pass offense. It’s very generic. If you really pay attention, the problems Kap had are extremely similar to the problems Alex Smith had on year one under Harbaugh. Took way to many sacks, lots of delay of game penalties, and no one ever seemed to be open.

  9. Another bash the current 49ers QB column. You used to get me riled up with your bashing of Alex Smith until I realized you were right. You were right about Smith and you are right about Kaepernick. They are both 49er QB bums. But then you will probably do a 180 as soon as Kaepernick is gone and say you were wrong and too tough on him. Then it will be on to bashing the next 49er QB whoever that might be.

  10. Despite what I think the fan base would like to see, a “Walshian” offense that is smart with great execution (see Green Bay), this team is set up by Balke who is a Parcell guy. The 49ers will never have the high octane top ten offense as long as Balke here. Smash mouth offense and hopefully a dominate defense is the the recipe. Of course this recipe falls flat when the defense starts to regress.

      1. Disagree Mid. Cam and Russell are in the PO with it in their quiver. If it fits your QB its a way to threaten the D.

        1. Ault is an untapped mastermind who has added some more chambers to his pistol that Kaepernick is not even aware of. He would be the perfect Quarterbacks coach for the 49ers….

  11. Grant…

    I think that this is a very important article, and I give you a high passing grade (IMHO). I have been CK’s bad side for just over 2 years, and I don’t believe that he will ever be an adequate much less a franchise-type QB. His line can’t cover the whole field in blocking, and because he has left or is leaving the pocket so early, it renders a blocking scheme useless. I remember some of the Vikings line complaining about the same thing about Fran Tarkenton…”You can’t keep them blocked forever…” (paraphrased). His windup telegraphs his throws, aside from the fact that every team has a Bobby Wagner playing ‘spy’ without leaving his defensive position. There are,as you pointed out just too many holes in his game. In that we’re in the market for a Head Coach, I’m sure that the interviewees will ask the same question; “Will I have any say about who the QB is?” I can’t think of any candidate who is going to have his record go onto his resume keeping CK.

    1. “I can’t think of any candidate who is going to have his record go onto his resume keeping CK.”
      ~ OREGONINER

      So are suggesting that the potential new HC is going to eliminate CK’ games against the Patriots (regular season), Green Bay, Carolina, Atlanta (the last 3 being playoff wins) from the resume?
      Your knee-jerk reaction to one bad season by Kap is starting to blind all reason bud.

      1. @AES

        You are talking about history…those games have been played….I’m talking about the future….What have you done for me lately..? Remember Alex Smith?

        1. OREGONINER,
          I do remember Alex Smith. I remember him being replaced by Kap and now he plays an KC. And he has yet to get the chiefs over the top.

          Yes, this is a “what have you done for me lately” league, but 31 other QB’s that fall short of winning the SB each season could be guilty of having that question asked of them.
          Heck, while we’re at it, let’s ask that question of your elite QB’s like Tom Brady, Payton Manning, Drew Brees, and Aaron Rodgers who have not won a SB in more than a few years now.

          Why not get rid of those guys like you want to do Kap? Shouldn’t you hold them accountable and have them adhere to the same standard that you place on CK?

          Btw, maybe the reason why the afore mentioned QB’s are still playing is because they DO have a HISTORY. They have a history (one you want to forget when it comes to CK) of winning.
          And guess what? whether you choose to accept it or not, so does Kaepernick.

          1. #AES

            You seem to have a ‘selective’ memory as to how Alex Smith got to KC…it was because he sustained a cuncussion, and had to go through the protocols of that injury. Do you not remember the ruckus that was raised when his head coach replaced him with CK “you don’t lose your position for an injury!!”

            You ask about Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, and Aaron Rodgers…THEY all have Super Bowl victories…THEY all have contributed to countless victories.

            Let’s just call it a draw, because it’s out of our hands, and we’ll have to wait until next year to see who’s right

            1. Yes I remember what happened to Alex Smith. He was replaced by CK.
              When Alex passed all concussion protocols he never because the starter for the 49ers again.
              That’s not selective memory that’s a fact.

              And you’re the one who tried to quantify the “what have you done for me lately” card not me. I never said the QB’s I mentioned never won a SB, I only went off your theory that they haven’t won the big one lately.

              You either stand on your premise or not. So, I ask you, is SB wins is your only measure of a QB, what have they done lately?

          2. “And he has yet to get the chiefs over the top. ”

            Just to clarify because it seems you are off base today…..Alex did get the chiefs over the top,

            He got them a 11-5 record after a 2-14 season…… third playoff appearance in 10 yrs….

            1. One
              Boy you sure do set the bar low don’t you? If taking a team to the playoffs and then loosing the playoff game is “over the top” then by comparison reaching the SB and accumulating more road playoff wins then montana and young combined would be considered outer space.

              Lets face it Alex Smith is a fly ball that died at the warning track. CK is a deep shot that is slicing in to foul territory right now but could still straighten out and be a home run. By the way I have been labeled a “Smither” by this board previously

      2. AEs, please no more excuses for Kaepernick, Harbaugh gave up on his protege he jump of the ship, he knows that Kaepernick won’t be a great QB in the NFL.

        1. Jamaican,
          If that is your logic as to why Harbaugh left the 49ers, it only proves two things:
          1. you didn’t pay much attention to the FO/Harbaugh issues throughout the season.
          2. you just indicted yourself as a CK hater.

          1. Many here jump to unsubstantiated opinions on all that we discuss, and especially if it fits a predisposition.
            JH did not leave because he thought CK, the guy he advocated to draft, can’t make it in the NFL. Not so.
            Kevin Lynch writes that Tony Jerrod- Eddy told him that Jim said he didn’t want to leave. Check it out at SFGate.

  12. You seem to be blind to anything good that Colin has ever done, which smacks of a writer trying to generate hits rather than make a fair analysis. Nevertheless many of the deficiencies you list are valid. However, you have to keep in mind what a poor offensive mind Harbaugh is. It is hard to judge anyone in the Niner offense with the amateurish schemes they ran in 2014. But I completely agree that Colin needs to spend his precious time developing footwork, accuracy, and anticipation (and not so much on speed, strength, and endurance).

    1. Bill, All of what you’d said kaep developing his foot work, accuracy and intelligence is not going to happened. You don’t learned it overnight and it’s natural for a good QB that has football IQ.

  13. Amber Alert! Someone’s missing.
    Look, it was critical and it was half-right & ALL subjective (like all of us), but a heck of a lot tamer than some of the stuff you let stay in print. A bit arbitrary there.

  14. Grant, the article is kind of a straw man. Would have loved to see you post this during the a super Bowl run. Kap had a bad year, but you should have seen SY in TB.

    Gavin said that, however, one of the things that Walsh repeatedly said is he wants a QB with good feet, and he meant the ability to move quickly, avoid danger, and plant properly during the throw. Kap has always struggled here and it is the largest concern going forward. Still I think he can develop like Garcia, serviceable and in some instances very good and better than most others. Still not great like Montana and Young, but here are maybe 2-3 every decade who fall in this category (Aaron and Brady – I know Manning is great only during regular season). All the others are good or very good (Roth, Rivers, Manning, Bree’s). Some are still developing (RW, Cam, Kap’s). Romo is like Garcia. Good but you worry about his capacity to finish the job, same goes for Flacco.

  15. I find it funny when many of you older gentlemen forget all of the players of the past who were terrible players, bad with media, on drugs, etc but they still pulled it together. Takin Kaep’s age out of it, I do not think he does that bad with the media. Screw the media. “Attitude reflects leadership”. The niners owner, GM, and coaches do not want to deal with the media. I’ll just say he’s following their example.

    As far as Kaeps on the field play, which matters the most, he progressing. He did not do much this year but who did. He worked with a QB Guru for a few months and you guys think he’s supposed to be an all pro. PLEASE. These are unrealistic expectations. He showed he can stay in the pocket, go through progressions, deliver strikes, when the pocket was clean. The fact the Grant Says he throws the ball too hard through receivers hands is ASININE. A Receivers most important job is to catch passes. If his passes are too when they NEED to be on a line and it goes the the receivers hands – that’s not Kaeps fault.

    As others have said, many have forgotten the things that Kaep has done. He beat Brady in New England, Rogers twice, beat one of the best defenses in Carolina, and a couple of inches away from beating Seattle. He was also the main reason we were in that game.

    I get it, a lot of you older gentlemen do not like Kaep because of who he is. That’s your opinion and I respect that. To discredit the things he has done because of this one season thag was bad all around is crazy.

    1. Well said KY but I guarantee it will fall on deaf ears. When it comes to the QB of this team, there’s a rampant case of tunnel vision.

        1. By that reasoning every single QB we have for the rest of time will be run out of town.

    2. KY:

      Kaep changed his mindset with regards to dealing with the press several weeks ago and his performance is much improved. Like I said weeks ago, it’s part of his job description and he is the face of the franchise – like it or not. I don’t think the press conferences will be a concern anymore.

      BTW: Is it a coincidence that by changing his attitude that his play has also improved. What I mostly saw was that his press performances were mostly affected by a general negative demeanor. The demeanor improved and so has everything else. In my opinion, it was a learning experience for him and is nothing I would ever hold against him.

    3. Thanks Rocket.

      Cubus as I said, attitude is a reflection of leadership. Maybe him and Harbaugh did have a talk about him leaving. That’s when this changed. He relaxed. When you’re in the trenches fighting for a man jobs, you follow the leader(s). Where was Jed during all of this? How about Baalke? You want to say Kaep is the face, what standard do you hold the owner to?

      That’s all I am saying. The face of the franchise was doing the EXACT same thing the man who signs his paychecks was doing – avoiding the media.

      Going forward there may be change but majority of the people on here expect greatness after 4 years in the league, we might as well become the Browns. Greatness doesn’t happen that fast.

      1. Agree that Kaep did not have many good role models in the organization for some of these issues. Certainly others within the organization (York, Baalke, Harbaugh) could have done things better, but to me that’s no excuse not to improve your own performance. But as I said it’s a learning experience. It’s perhaps unfortunate that he had to learn some of these things the way he did, but it was necessary. Bottom line for me is that his demeanor is much improved and that bodes well for getting optimum performance from him on the field.

        With regards to Jed, he is also inexperienced. He should have controlled the whole situation better, but just didn’t have the experience. I blame part of this on the lack of knowledgeable football people in the FO (Baalke’s the only one).

        1. Cubus

          I agree Kaep should have done better. He needs to do better. I expect him to do better next year. We should see a lot of growth next year.

    4. “Arm strength is somewhat misleading. Some players can throw 80 yards, but they aren’t good passers. Good passing has to do with accuracy, timing, and throwing a ball with touch so it is catchable. This all involves understanding a system, the receivers in the system, and having great anticipation. It is a plus to be able to throw a ball on a line for 35 yards, but not if it is off target or arrives in such a way that it is difficult to catch.

      “Remember, the goal of passing a ball is to make sure it is caught … by your intended receiver.” — Bill Walsh

      1. It also helps when your receivers don’t drop passes and get separation – but why mention that when it’s much more convenient to put the entire offensive implosion on Kap.

        You were remiss in giving CK a couple of the virtues that BW said as a requirement for a good QB: Courage and an intense competitive nature. Kap in not lacking in these, but again, why mention anything that remotely puts a positive slant on CK.

      2. Actually, it is more than that. Placement is important but giving the receiver the ability to catch in stride is all inportant for RAC. No one could do it as well as Montana, Aaron comes closest.

  16. If our games had ended at halftime this season, what would our win-loss record have been? I’m positing this question in good faith (haven’t looked up the answer to it in advance), thinking that maybe the answer supplies another small hint as to what went wrong. My own view is that our big mistake was in not firing Greg Roman two years ago.

    1. That may have cost Harbaugh his job, not firing Roman. Don’t know what was off or the “philosophies” that Jed mentioned. Don’t know that the FO has a clear idea of how to fix it either. That is deeply troubling.

      If GRoman is the problem, why was he not dismissed immediately after Harbaugh “mutually agreed” to step down? What is going on with the Niners?

  17. I just watched the PapaJohns ad w/ PM and Joe. The size difference between Joe and Payton was striking. That got me wondering what the blogosphere reactions would’ve been when Montana got drafted.
    Too short/noodle arm/ skinny legs/ system guy at ND/ never accomplished much with Big Time program / happy feet/ looks wayyy too much like Barry Manilow / blah, blah, blah

    1. Brotha:

      I noticed the same thing. But I’m wondering since when has Montana done so many commercials? I always thought he was averse to doing commercials.

  18. For the most part I agree with Grant’s assessment of how Kap fits Bill Walsh’s criteria. However, we’re not looking for Kap to be the next Joe Montana or Peyton Manning, we’re hoping he’ll be good enough to take us to the promised land. After all, Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl. The decision making, read progressions, and feel for the game will improve with time and experience. And I think the touch passes will get better. One reason not to despair is that the offensive line really wasn’t very good this season, the passing scheme didn’t look very intelligently designed, and the receivers weren’t getting open much. A great quarterback may have been able to overcome those problems, but Kap couldn’t, and most quarterbacks couldn’t have. Since Kap’s thinking and decision making may be a little slower than average among quarterbacks, an offensive line that gives him time is more important than it would be with some other QB’s. IF the offensive line improves dramatically (in other words, if it looks like a number of other offensive lines in the league, which give their quarterback an unbelievable amount of time) and IF the receivers are able to get open, I suspect that Kap would suddenly look like a dramatically better quarterback – maybe a top ten level. Remember, his arm strength and running ability are way above average, and in the right offense might elevate him from an average to a well above average quarterback.

  19. When you penned the piece that Kaepernick should be the 49ers starter over Alex Smith how many of those listed traits did you feel at the time he had that made him the deserving starter? When you look at film of Kaepernick in college did he exhibit any of those traits and if so what happened and if not then how did he ever get drafted?

  20. I agree with some of this article.
    I agree CK doesn’t have 4-8.
    As far as instinct and having the wrong one… Can’t back that one completely. His instinct on some of his scrambles destroys the notion he has only run instincts.
    The rest of this article is wrong as far as saying he doesn’t have it. He had it his first two seasons and regressed this season. So he didn’t have it THIS season.
    You pick a bunch of things Walsh wants in a qb, but only put out bad results in these areas and not the good results he’s had in these areas.
    How can anyone really buy this? Especially when using words like “Doesn’t” and “Don’t” as definitive statements when he’s shown you’re wrong.
    Not backing him. Because he needs work, but your take on Walsh wouldn’t want to work with him is opinion. And it sucks. :-)

  21. I loved seeing Marion Grice get a TD carry today. He was a draft favorite of mine and although he hasn’t done squat so far It was still a nice surprise to see him in post season play.

  22. Kaep is awful. That isn’t going to change. You can cite Young and Kurt Warner and Alex Smith all you want. Those guys have very different mental makeups than Kaep. And there are the exceptions. This is the last time I’m ever going to post about Kaep.

    1. 4 years into Alex’s career his brain was just as screwed up at Kaep. It took Alex 6-7 years before it clicked. Kurt Warner was in a heck of a system, it was very innovative. It’s also well documented how Steve Young’s development changed from Tampa to when he arrived San Fran. Brett Farve was screwed up as well, until he landed in Green Bay. You can’t change QB’s every four years.

      1. Ky49er, it took Alex Smith 4 years to get through the disgruntle Hc and OC who were all terrible in what they do. Kaepernick came to a 49ers team that has young talents in place and the team was ready to win. It won’t be too long kaepernick will be next to leave :-)

        1. I disagree. We obviously see there was more disarray going on behind the scenes than we knew about during Kaeps tenure. We can get rid of Kaep, it’s only going to set us back. You’ll eventually get what you wish for. A below .500 team

          1. Interesting comparative question:
            Is it better to have 4 different OC’s in 4 consecutive years (AS)? or to have Greg Roman as your OC 4 consecutive years(CK)?

  23. Both Kaepernick and Alex are starters on good teams. They have average stats and are probably average Qb’s. Of course that makes them among the best in the world. I agree that Kaepernick has many deficiencies and may never get much better. However, what’s the alternative? It’s always a gamble in the draft. Do you take your chances and hope you get lucky or do you live with what you have and build around an average QB? The importance of the position was demonstrated today when a very good Arizona team lost to an inferior team because they had a very poor Qb.

  24. I am so baffled on how many sports writers jump on the band wagon to crucify the qb and HQ of a team that they brought to a SB a few years ago. Fans and writers (this means you) need to look at the starting qb’s of the 9ers of late and realize Kaepernick is the teams franchise qb for the next few year. He is not a place holder, he is a starter who has won NFC Champhionship games etc.

    Give Kaepernick a break, he is a winner.

  25. So we are thinking for Bill Walsh now and even drafting in the “third round” for him too. Amazing.

  26. One of a few things I think BW would be dissatisfied with CK is his accuracy. Grant is right that he was a stickler for accuracy. I recall when Jeff Kemp signed as a back-up QB he was astounded at the degree of precision that BW demanded. Definitely paraphrasing here, but Jeff said: ‘I thought was supposed to throw it to the right guy. Bill wants me to deliver on time into breadbox!’
    Where I differ from Grant is that I think that coming up under Walsh, CK would’ve developed enough of those skills and brought them and his athleticism to Walsh’s Offense. Bill didn’t like or trust Steve DeBerg, but he held Joe back until Joe was ready.

  27. I’m thinking along the same lines as Grant. 45 games as starter, 3 gurus in Jim Harbaugh, George Whitfield, Geep Chryst should equal some pretty refined pocket skills. Will a 4th QB guru really be the tipping point?

    The 27 year old “kid”, “young” Colin Kaepernick is quickly becoming the Dick Clark of quarterbacks. No matter how old he gets, everyone thinks he’s still a teenager with plenty of time to groom into an elite QB.

    (if) Colin ever develops pocket skills, his legs will be past their peak. That combination of pocket QB with sprinter speed we all wished for after 2012 is highly unlikely. What we have instead is a genuinely hardworking, sincere, likeable guy who’s a knee injury from being Drukenmiller 2.0

      1. If Colin got a really bad knee injury, his skill set would resemble “The Druck” better then any other 49er quarterback I can think of.

        The good news is Colin’s knees are fine and he exhibits great work/study habits.

  28. FINALLY. Some gets it. Normally you’re a tad much Mr. Cohn, but this time, you’re spot on. Harbaugh lost his job because of Kaepernick. Niners lost a Super Bowl because of him and missed out on almost a shoe in window for multiple rings because of him. Harbaugh made the decision to start him, but that doesn’t mean he deserves to stay.

    1. The Niners went to the Super Bowl because of Kaepernick. Harbaugh’s tenure lasted about what it should have. He rubs people the wrong way and always has. Anybody who has followed his career knows this.
      He may never develop into a top flight QB, but blaming him for not winning multiple SB’s is stupid considering the makeup of the team. Alex Smith couldn’t get this team to the SB, there isn’t a better QB in FA and a rookie won’t beat him out on a team that is considered Super Bowl capable.
      He was the toast of the NFL a year ago because of his ability. If he is surrounded by the right coach, he may very well get back on track and excel. Steve Young had Shanahan later in his career and it made a huge difference in his development. There is no reason that Kaepernick can’t do the same. As a fan, you should hope for that outcome instead of popping off about getting rid of him, especially since you didn’t validate your opinion by mentioning who you would replace Kaepernick with.

      1. BigP, The Niners went to the Super Bowl because of Kaepernick. Harbaugh’s tenure lasted about what it should have. He rubs people the wrong way and always has.

        I disgree with you on your comment! The truth is the the 49ers defense are the main reason why the 49ers had been succcessful in for the last 4 years. The 49ers got to the Superbowl in 2012 because of Fangio defense. You’re giving kaepernicik too much credit in the 49ers success, Kaep who lack the intelligence and football IQ, if you’re hoping that he’ll be a above average QB in the NFL give him a couple more years and he’ll proved you wrong:-)

        1. Jamaica
          That “elite” defense gave up 26 pts to an inferior Baltimore team and allowed some $hitbum named Joe Flacco to throw for close to 300 yards and 3 td not to mention the ST TD they gave up. Now in most cases scoring 31 points is enough to win the SB (In fact 31 points is tied for the most points scored in the SB by a losing team tied with SB13 loser DAL) but in this one it was not.

          Love them but the SB loss was on the D and special teams

        2. Jamaican,
          Sounds like you’re trying to revise a little history here.
          You may want to retrace your steps bud. Kap ran and passed the 49ers past the Packers in the playoff game.
          Kap helped win the game against the Falcons in the championship game.
          Obtw, CK brought the 49ers back against the Ravens in the SB and only lost the game on the last drive.
          Sounds like you’re trying to revise a little history here by saying that the defense is the only reason we’ve won games.

          1. Let’s get one thing straight, kaep lost the Super Bowl. He couldn’t make the play to win the game. He had a horrible first half.
            If it wasn’t for the blackout it would have been a huge blowout. What turned the game around wasn’t kaep but a fumble by ray rice and a big return by ginn.

            It was the read option, the gimmick and running game

            Kaep won the Green Bay game in the playoffs, but it was gore against ATL.

            1. So Kap brings the 49ers back in the SB against the Ravens and you give the credit to the blackout?
              Ha! That has to be the mother of all excuses.
              Looks like CK won’t ever get any credit in your world bud.

      2. Alex Smith would have won the Super Bowl because he proved he was clutch repeatedly, especially the game against the Saints. Anyone who says otherwise is simply stupid. Kyle Williams threw away the first chance in the NFCCG and Harbaugh threw away the second when he allowed Kaepernick to start. From there, Kaepernick threw away the ball and any chance of winning a SB dozens of times.Think Crabtree in the end zone… I’ve already said I would go with Mariota, but I’ve also said that the defense is what got us to the Super Bowl and it was Kaepernick and the terrible offense this year which caused the team to fail this year. Harbaugh was fired because of this massive blunder. Considering that, any consistent pocket QB might be enough, but the team is already used to a scrambler. That’s why I mentioned Mariota. Mariota is the accurate, smart version of Kaepernick. But if the defense can come together, there is no reason to believe that a steady average QB would not be enough.

        1. So Alex smith would’ve thrown for 300 yards and led the niners back from 20 down? Get real! He couldn’t even get a first down against the Giants. Idiot.

          1. First of all, the management of the game would have been much better and the defense would have stopped the Ravens’ offense from rolling. The 49ers offense just sucked the first half of that game. Second, Alex Smith put the 49ers closer to a position of getting a game winning field goal, but Kyle Williams destroyed the chance multiple times. The Giants didn’t suck that year in case you thought so. Besides, Kaepernick lost that Super Bowl and you have no way of defending that if you wanted to.

            1. THE DEFENSE LOST THE SUPERBOWL the 31 pts that Keap scored are the most in SB history by a losing team. Fact not opinion

              1. Let’s not forget that the ref’s turned a blind-eye(s) on the Ravens 2nd half kick-off for a TD while Bruce Miller was being held for about 20 yards upfield.

                Oh my bad, I should be blaming Kap for that one as well.

              2. It was Kaps fault the defense played poorly during that playoff run. Get with the program guys.

    2. I don’t think Harbaugh lost his job because of poor performance this season, or because he didn’t win a superbowl. People paying attention know its not because of that.

      1. You’re telling me Jed York wasn’t pissed off that his coach chose a failing QB and benched a perfectly adequate QB which ultimately squandered a very very promising SB window? You know what should drive every 49er fan crazy? Harbaugh’s ugly pride. Who’s got it better than us? The 49er team that could have been but wasn’t because Harbaugh started Kaepernick. What an epic collapse. When people get over the shock, they will come around. I have complete confidence because I predicted this exact thing when Harbaugh went with the “hot hand.” It’s silly to assume this was some mysterious grievance against Harbaugh. It’s clear. Harbaugh utterly ruined the 49ers chances of winning a SB by clinching his jaw around his pride and not finding an actual QB to push Kaepernick… which is a clear statement that it was Kaepernick or bust for him. Well, he busted, big time.

  29. For anyone who is interested, the BASG has a very nice (extensive but good) article regarding all of Baalke’ moves since being hired as GM.

    Grading Trent Baalke’s tenure as 49ers GM
    Bay Area Sports Guy January 02, 2015

  30. I think is to early to give up from CK. Actually the 49ers won 4 playoffs games (3 on road)with CK, and the 2 defeats were so close. For me the superbowl defeat is not CK fault, but a disastrous play calling in the end zone on the last drive. The guy can win in the postseason and that is the most important. What we need is a OC, who understand the CK strengths and use that on game plane. I’ll love if the 9ers ran a offense like the Urban Meyer’s Ohio.

  31. Grant, welcome aboard my Parker WR in the first and Petty QB in the second bandwagon. Now let’s see an article about trading Kaep and possible destinations.

    1. Put your sabre away young jedi, Kap isn’t going anywhere soon.
      The force is still strong with him.

      1. Trade Kaep THIS offseason. There’s someone out there who will give up assets to take a swing on his upside. Someone who hasn’t watched every single pass he’s thrown the way most of us have.

            1. You’d be making a Mike Ditka for Ricky Williams trade type deal. That didn’t fare to well.

              1. Yes, when it comes to the hype they both received coming out of college I would venture that Ricky Williams had more, and that was well before social media.

              2. Not only that but running backs translate to the NFL much better than spread option QB’s. But i think most are forgetting how good ricky’s career was in the NFL 2341 carries 10009 yards 4.1 ypc 66 TDs

  32. Ever notice that our local media doesn’t exactly cheer on our team? Really, the local ‘writers’, like this guy are brutal on our 9ers.

  33. Kaepernick was the 7th most accurate QB up until mid-November according to PFT, his receivers dropped a lot more catchable balls than in previous years. His makeshift O line was also a lot worse than in previous years. Let’s see if he can get back to winning with a healthy team around him. He needs a big receiver or a burner instead of several No. 2 receivers. He also needs a coaching staff that understands that this is a running team, so let the RB & QB run!

    http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles/2262777-why-colin-kaepernick-is-the-nfls-ultimate-enigma

    1. PJ Evangelista, Have you been watching the 49ers games the last two season to who is he throwing the football too? Maybe Boldin is main reason he had good completion ratio when throwing the football to him other than that his accuracy in find other option receivers sucks :-)

  34. Lowell’s column today nails it, IMO. The list of candidates being interviewed is entirely uninspiring.

  35. I was surprised and saddened to learn of Stuart Scott’s passing this morning. He was always “as cool as the other side of the pillow.” That was one my favorite of his lines.

    God speed old friend.

  36. I’m part of the espn generation having watched since it’s early inception. Mr. Staurt Scott was a fresh and energetic personality that brought an entertaining and interesting twist in sports reporting.
    His style was made for sports tv and espn has his fingerprints on it for life.

    RIP
    Stuart Scott

    1. You said it well, AES. A lot of love and respect from his colleagues at ESPN. He’ll be missed.

    2. The Rich Eisen and Stuart Scott combo is what got me watching Sportscenter. I would always tune in and watch but would the volume down if they weren’t the anchors. :-)
      My favorite saying of Scott’s was ‘It must be jam cause jelly don’t shake like that!’. Thanks for that memory and many more Stuart. You will be missed.

    1. Kubiak was terrible as Houston’s coach and Fangio won’t stay with the team if he is bypassed for the HC position.

      1. Mid:

        I agree that Fangio won’t be happy if he is passed over, but where will he go? Are you aware of any teams that have been granted permission to interview him?

        1. I agree, Cubus. He’s unlikely to get a HC job outside of the 49ers, and the 49ers have him under contract for 2015. The only way I see him getting out of San Fran is if he quits, or the new HC doesn’t want him.

        2. He can easily resign from his position with the team so that he can have another opportunity elsewhere if he is passed over.

            1. That link really doesn’t say whether Fangio can resign from his post or not Scooter, just that the team can refuse him from being interviewed.

              1. I can’t find any information confirming or denying my point, but I am pretty sure I’m right.

                If coaches could quit and go elsewhere whenever they wanted, you’d see it happen.

      2. How was he terrible, Mid?

        His problem at the Texans was his defense was terrible until 2011, and in 2013 Schaub was hopeless and Foster was hurt much of the year.

        Interesting thing with Kubiak – one thing you regularly hear from players that have played under him is how great a teacher he is. Sounds like someone Jed would be interested in.

        1. Ok, I take back what I said. Kubiak wasn’t terrible, but he wasn’t good either as a HC. He needed a strong DC in order to successful, so I can’t really say he’s what our team needs, especially if Fangio leaves and our defense falters because of it.

          1. That’s not unique to Kubiak. Just about every head coach needs a strong defensive coordinator to be successful.

            1. It’s not unique, but it is an indicator that his offense can’t carry a team if need be.

              1. Kubiak had some very good offenses in Houston Mid. If we truly want to improve the offense here, he is exactly the type of HC who should be considered.

                You need a good all around team to win. Right now we have a defense that is top 5. The offense is what needs to be addressed.

              2. I’m not arguing that point Rocket. I just think Kubiak is a better coordinator than HC.

              3. Mid, not many coaches focus on both sides of the ball. If you get an offensive minded coach, you’ll need a strong DC, if you get a defensive minded coach, you’ll need a strong OC.

                We already have a strong DC in place, with a strong D. Kubiak has an excellent track record installing a good offense. And as I said in another post, a lot of his ex-players extol his virtues as an excellent teacher.

                He had the Texans turned around, playing some good football in 2011 and 2012, until injuries and Matt “Pick-Six” Schaub cruelled them in 2013.

              4. That’s all a given Scooter, but it still doesn’t lead me to believe that Kubiak is HC material.

              5. I think Fangio would be able to keep the team as a whole in line on and off the field plus hire an OC that could call a system playing to the strengths of Kaep and the offense. And I believe his defense can carry the team when healthy if need be. Can I see him as a HC? At the moment, yes.

              6. But as I have said before, I’m not too enthralled about the coaching pool this year. That includes Fangio being in it or not.

              7. Fair enough.

                Personally I think Kubiak would be a good hire as HC to turn the offense around, and his time as the HC of the Texans provides valuable experience.

                On the flip side, I’m not sold on Fangio as a HC. And I think it is worth noting that prior to coming to the 49ers, his record as a DC was pretty ordinary. He’s done a great job with the 49ers, but he’s had some pretty good players to work with too. Is he really that irreplaceable?

              8. He’s done a great job with the 49ers, but he’s had some pretty good players to work with too. Is he really that irreplaceable?

                That can also apply to Kubiak as well Scooter as he has had some pretty good players on his offenses.

              9. Kubiak has a long and significant history of success on offense, wherever he has gone. In 20 years as an OC or HC, his offenses have been in the top 10 for yards 13 times, and top 10 for points 14 times. His offenses have fallen outside the top 15 for yards only twice, and for points only four times.

                Fangio has had two good years with the Panthers, and four good years with the 49ers. After his initial success at the Panthers it went downhill quickly, and his defenses performed poorly at the Colts and Texans.

              10. Can you really say that his defenses in Carolina and Houston were his own? Capers was the coach in both situations, so I’d be more inclined to believe those were Capers’ doing and not Fangio. And the Colts weren’t a team that would make an effort to make the defense better during the early part of Manning’s career, which does include Fangio’s time there.
                But let’s skip that and go straight his current tenure with the 49ers. He had been out of the league for a while and had probably worked on his coaching craft while out in order to distinguish his scheme from Capers’ scheme. And it has shown, especially this past season with being able to plug in player after player and still keep the defense relevant.

              11. Who do you think Fangio learned defense from? Fangio’s defenses are based a lot on what he’s picked up from Dom Capers and Rex Ryan.

                At the Panthers and Texans he ran a version of the 3-4 very similar to the Steelers at the time (what is sometimes referred to as the the Dick Lebeau 3-4). It isn’t far removed from what the 49ers currently run, though used a lot more zone blitzing and typically had the DL simply occupy blockers rather than try and penetrate. He learned some new tricks from Rex Ryan at the Ravens, in particular about using a 3-4/ 4-3 hybrid. But at is heart, the defense Fangio employs can be traced back to Capers.

                Fangio has been great with the 49ers, but as I said, he’s had a lot of talent to work with. At other stops, running a similar defense, he’s been less successful.

              12. My point is that you can’t really say whose defense it was when he was under Capers and his time out of the league could have given Fangio the time needed to make the defensive scheme better and his own.

              13. True, that could be the reason. Or it could just be that he’s had excellent talent on the 49ers roster.

                My guess is its a combination of good talent and a good DC that struggled in previous stops due primarily to lack of talent on the roster. But you can find other good DCs if Fangio does decide to quit, and the defensive roster will still have good talent for a new guy to work with.

              14. Or it could just be that he’s had excellent talent on the 49ers roster.

                That talent was pounded with injuries and suspensions this season, and yet Fangio was able to keep it in the top 10. That’s says something about the scouting of defensive players by our personnel department and Fangio being able to get the most of out the players he coaches.

              15. Credit to Fangio and Baalke, for sure, but I think it says a lot about Jim Tomsula, Jim Leavitt and Ed Donatell as well. Those guys do an excellent job of coaching up the DL, LBs and DBs, respectively.

                Say what you want about Harbaugh, the guy knew how to assemble a top class coaching staff.

          1. Forgot about Daniels, but he was actually a big loss. Kubiak likes to use his TEs, and Daniels is a good one.

  37. From Ian Rapoport:

    “At least a serious option RT @JasonPhilCole: #49ers CEO Jed York told one source that Mike Shanahan was “high” on his list of candidates.”

  38. Sweet Jheezuz Grant, Make sure you clean the blood off of the axe when you remove it from Colin’s back, best wipe off the fingerprints too. but then you are a seasoned veteran when it comes to hatchet journalism, It’s all you seem to be willing to do.

    My two pence, Colin hated Jim, Jim is gone, addition by subtraction. someone here said that Colin’s performance improved when he loosened up with the press, i think more than anything that seems to be the point at which Colin checked out on Harbaugh.

    I’m of the opinion that Harbaugh really wore this organisation down, It had to be bad, the man won a tonne of games and that is how we are supposed to measure success in this league. Stands to reason Colin got worn down too, probably more than anyone else except Jim and Trent.

    The idea that Colin should be dumped is reactionary and stupid. He has shown flashes of otherworldly abilities, Alex in 7 years never once made me sit back and say “my god that was awesome, who else could have done that” Colin has prompted me to do that many times in less than 3 years of play. As usual the lack of good play from the O-Line is being almost completely overlooked.

    Bottom line, Jim is gone Colin will be better.

    1. DClark –
      I loved your rant. I agree that the notion of dumping Colin is wrong. I also agree that the loosening up with the Press was some sort of watershed moment for him to loosen up on the field. Don’t play to avoid losing, play to win.
      Where I’ll guess that I disagree is in CK not liking Jim. There may well have been a pressure overload on him from Jim, but Colin also respected and appreciated him. His statements and tweets after Jim’s departure made that evident. Lombardi’s guys talked about Love/Hate relationship with him. Jerry Kramer used to say it was love/HATE relationship back then and Love/hate in hindsight.

  39. Kubiak could provide that aggressive mindset that has been missing from this offense….

    1. Razor … you talkin’ as HC … or OC ??

      (btw .. who did he play for back in the day ?)

    2. Agreed Razor.
      But Kubiak would be a very good OC. I would like to see the team go in-house for their HC (if they do, Fangio is my fav).

      OC will be a huge selection for the Org, probably as big as finding the right HC.
      I’m good with our defense because we should be at good strength with many of key players back and playing for a full season.

      Offense will need to break loose next year, and that means CK will need to play much better. The O-line may need some new blood and the running game has to have a break-a-way threat. The WR corps needs speed, period.
      Our offense looked as if it was playing in quicksand due to lack of speed. That must be addressed or it may be a long and miserable 2015 season.

      1. Kubiak is a very good OC, for the Ravens. The 49ers won’t be getting him in a lateral move.

  40. I hope we don’t draft Petty. Great college QB. Not a great pro prospect. Just a slightly better version of David Fales.

    1. A dominant running game and play action helps every quarterback. Petty has shown he can carry an offense from the pocket without a running game — he showed that against Michigan State. Mariota hasn’t shown that.

      1. Also, I agree that Petty is a good college QB. I don’t think he projects as a good pro.

        And you can’t downgrade a QB for playing with a good RB. Aikman had Emmit, Elway had Terrell, Montana had Roger Craig… the list goes on.

        1. Why do you think Petty doesn’t project as a good pro?

          Who was Aikman’s running back at UCLA? Who was John Elway’s rb at Stanford? Who was Joe Montana’s rb at Notre Dame?

          1. Ok, I can see where this is headed. Let me put it this way, my Bevell/Mariota would crush your Petty/DelRio by two TDs every week. Petty-Del Rio… how 6-10 does that sound? Sheesh.

            1. It’s Del Rio plus Koetter plus the best available receiver in the first round plus Petty in the second plus Ameer Abdullah in the third, or something like that.

              That’s a better haul than Bevell plus Mariota plus nothing.

              1. Petty in the second round?!?! You’d have to be Mr. Fantastic to pull off a reach like that.

              2. He could be but I’ll be very surprised if he gets picked outside of the 4th.

              3. I don’t know the specifics of the team so maybe the team dynamic changed from one year to the next but I question his drop off in production in his second year as a starter. I also don’t like that he took 7 more sacks then he did the previous year. His completion % was up by 1% but most every other metric was down from the season before.

                Maybe you’ll be able to point to a key weapon that was missing or offensive line struggles that lead to the extra sacks but at this point I’d like to see a third year in college to see what direction he’s truly trending.

              4. I also didn’t answer your question; I believe teams will see him as a work in progress with a lot of questions but potential high ceiling. I don’t think they’ll be willing to invest more then a late 3rd to a 4th for that kind of project.

              5. I’d take Mariota over that package simply because I think he has the potential of Aaron Rodgers. And I think Petty has the potential of Any Dalton. Too big a gap for me.

              6. Petty averaged 10.4 yards per attempt as a junior and 9.8 yards per attempt his final six games as a senior. Dalton never came close to that. Carr never came close to that. Petty can throw the ball downfield. He has a complete inventory of throws.

              7. PETTY WEAKNESSES per CBSportsline: Often predetermines his reads and locks in to his primary target, struggling to consistently diagnose the defense to work through his progressions. He is always in shotgun formation and isn’t asked to move his feet unless he has to and once he’s pressured, Petty is out of his element, struggling to reset his base or eyes.

                Petty doesn’t throw for a high percentage downfield and often throws up passes that can be best categorized as 50-50 balls.

              8. Bryce Petty Release/Arm Strength via ESPN: Three-quarters release that almost appears sidearm at times. Gets it out quickly and can change launch points to find throwing lanes. However, height and lower release point bring up concerns about batted balls at the line of scrimmage. Arm strength is average to slightly above-average. Can make most of the NFL throws. However, ball has a tendency to hang in the air with deeper out throws from the opposite hash. Average ability to stretch the field vertically and has to throw a flat ball in order to get the adequate distance.

              9. Most scouting reports I see have Petty going in the 3rd or 4th round. But maybe he’ll prove people wrong.

              10. The biggest difference between Mariota and Petty is that Mariota will likely be drafted far higher than his talent dictates he should. Both are system QBs but Petty goes downfield a lot more and will be a better value in the 3rd or 4th round.

                I can’t believe how much people are overrating Mariota. Average arm at best in a system that has him throwing the ball 10 yards or less the majority of the time.

              11. The only way Abdullah falls is if he suffers another injury. He’s a character guy on and off the field plus a factor in both the run and pass game.

            2. Sully: I think I read or heard Del Rio may go to the Raiders. I think his family lived not far from the stadium and had season tickets.

          2. Elway had a mediocre record at Stanford. He didn’t carry them anywhere. He was all unrealized potential. What’s your point?

            1. Elway’s arm was the focal point of Stanford’s offense. Rodgers’ arm was the focal point of Cal’s offense. Mariota’s arm wasn’t the focal point of Oregon’s offense.

              1. Fine, but Elway’s arm never took any of his teams all the way. He has an amazing running game when they “won one for John.”

                Occasionally Elway’s arm created heroic comebacks, but it didn’t create any memorable seasons. Rogers arm didn’t take Cal anywhere either. Maybe an “arm” just isn’t enough.

                If all Oregon has is Mariota’s arm then they won’t finish their season with a win either.

              2. Grant’s point is simply that these top QBs in college didn’t have a running game to rely on, to take pressure of them to make plays. They were the focal point, and defenses were geared to stopping them pass. It was, therefore, harder for these guys to make the passing game work, and also much easier to get a read on their talents passing the football.

                Not so with Mariota. It is one of the factors that make him a tough evaluation.

              3. He has > He had

                The fact that Colin is also short on accuracy and touch makes it clear that he needs a powerful team if he’s going to win a Superbowl.

            2. htwaits: If the Broncos don’t make it to the SB Fox is gone I imagine although Elway runs that team and makes the decisions. I thought Fox was history last year.

  41. Here’s my a bit early top 5 draft WR rankings;

    Cooper
    White
    Strong
    Montgomery
    Coates

    Parker deserves to be on the list based on talent but I think Crabtree has taught us to be incredibly weary of using a high pick on a WR with foot issues. I’m not sure If I’ll still have Montgomery on the list by draft time but at the moment I’m thinking he’s a bit of a sleeper. If White is a good route runner and it’s tough to tell with the video available he’s the lock #2 receiver in my mind.

    1. Coffee, I think you’re right about Strong. Seeing film, he’s a little faster than I thought at first. Ridiculous hands and catch radius of course. I do think Parker has a lot of talent, though. I’d have Cooper at 1, Parker/Strong at 2, White at 3.

    2. Cooper, Parker and White are the only WRs I’d consider in the first round.

      Coates is too reliant on his physical gifts at the moment. He’s basically Ashley Lelie right now. Ran a very limited route tree, his routes are sloppy, his hands are hit and miss, and he can struggle to track the football deep. Will he develop into a legit WR?

      Strong reminds me of Davante Adams, but not as good. He’s not a first rounder in my book.

      Montgomery is dangerous with the ball in hand, but like Percy Harvin he isn’t a good WR, he’s an offensive weapon you need to manufacture ways to get the ball to, but isn’t adept at getting himself open. Like Harvin he can be a difference maker, but I don’t like having WRs you need to manufacture ways to get the ball.

      Green-Beckham has first round talent, but I wouldn’t take him. Funchess is the other one being talked about as a first rounder, and I have no idea why. I don’t like him.

      1. Montgomery also would be the return specialist so he holds extra value at whatever slot he’s taken because it’s almost like taking two players.

        1. True, but is that worth investing a high round pick in?

          Take this with a grain of salt, but when it comes to WRs there are a few key things I look for:

          1. Crisp route running and ability to set up DBs. Keys here are a smooth and quick deceleration into, and acceleration out of breaks, not tipping off where they are going by which side they shade to, and I love to see good use of a head fake.
          2. Good, strong hands, with few bobbling acts.
          3. High pointing of the ball – i.e., good timing on jumping.
          4. Smooth movement to the football when tracking it deep, and savvy to gain position on the DB.
          5. Come back to the football, don’t wait for it to come to you.

          There are other things I look for as well, depending on the type of WR they are. For big, physical WRs I like to see them use their body well to box out defenders and create separation with good use of their hands and body. For smaller WRs I like to see them eat up a DBs cushion quickly, get the DB turned and accelerating/ running hard, before going into and out of their breaks.

          For mine, Montgomery ticks some of the boxes, but his route running isn’t very good and he doesn’t do a good job tracking deep balls and gaining position.

      2. I gave Coates the benefit of the doubt plus the the waters become much murkier in this class once you get around the 5th pick. I like Stefon Diggs but not enough to put near the top 5. He should probably go back to school for another year.

        1. “The waters become much murkier in this class once you get around the 5th pick.”

          I agree. I think after the 3 WRs I listed, it gets tough to decide. I think I’d have Jaelen Strong as the 4th WR, but as I said, I’m not convinced he’s worth a first rounder. Good physical traits, strong hands and can go up and get the ball, but still very raw in a lot of areas. I’d probably have Coates next, but I see a lot of bust potential in him.

          Green-Beckham is the wild card of the group. He’d be in the mix for first WR taken if not for his off-field troubles.

  42. Mike Wallace may get cut by Miami. For all of us who’d like to have a real downfield threat…he’s still in his prime. A little bit of attitude, but no more so than Crabs. And obviously he’s much more dangerous. The kind of guy Sherman would have a hard time staying with.

    1. I fail to see where some people here have laid the bad attitude label on Crabtree.
      I’ve never seen Crab quit on his team like Wallace did a couple of weeks ago in Miami.

      Sure, Crabtree has shown frustration on the field when a pass is not thrown to him when he is open – but I don’t know if that equates to having a bad attitude.
      MC came back from an achilles injury in time to play at a good level towards the end of the 2013 season and playoffs.

      If some people are still holding his rookie holdout against him and his frustrating post game comments after the NYGiants championship game, that would be unfortunate.

    2. The Steelers have a history of holding onto the players they really want to keep. They let Wallace go in favour of Antonio Brown. Now the Dolphins are talking about letting Wallace go after he failed to live up to the hype.

      He has a bad attitude, and thinks he is much better than he really is. I doubt he’d want to come cheap. If the 49ers want to spend money on a FA deep threat, go get Torrey Smith.

      1. Torrey Smith would be a decent signing, too. But he doesn’t have the talent or aggressiveness when the ball is in the air that Mike Wallace has.

        And let’s be fair, the Steelers did try to keep Wallace–they just didn’t want to spend an average of $13 mil a year to do it. Same with Miami. Yes, he quit at the end of a meaningless game. But it’s the $12.7 mil they’re trying to get out from under.

        At this point, on the open market, I think Wallace would sign for $7-8 million. That’s for one of the top 5 deep threats in this league who can also run every other route on the tree.

        1. I disagree on two points there.

          1) I think Torrey Smith is more aggressive to the ball than Wallace, and is better at hand catching – Wallace is a body catcher from way back.

          2) Wallace is a poor route runner, with a limited route tree (at least, a limited route tree he runs well). He’s a deep threat, that the Dolphins have tried to turn into a #1 WR because they are paying him to be a #1 WR.

          What Wallace has going for him is flat out speed, which he uses to cover some of his other deficiencies.

  43. I think Colin Kaepernick is a capable QB. I don’t disagree with your analysis, but I think many of these issues can be overcome.

    On another subject, what positions do you think the 49ers will draft in 2015? I’m assuming Michael Crabtree, Justin Smith, and Mike Iupati will be gone. With that in mind, I assume the 49ers will look for WR and defensive line help. They will also probably draft some OL in the later rounds. Any other opinions?

  44. Colts are playing with good intensity; playing fast.

    On another note, Lowell’s article today reminded me of a restaurant critic rating a place by the kitchen smells as he walks by instead of actually trying the food. How the f can he rate them when he doesn’t even have the information on who they’re really interested in? LC has no more clue about what they’re doing than any poster on here. No Bill Walsh out there? No Chuck Noll? And Colin’s not Montana either. So it’s bag a “star” or fail. Star being defined by sports writers’ approval.
    Sure, and you always play the 50-1 odds because the payoff is so big.

    1. I don’t read Bleacher Report much nor trust their football analysis or player evaluations. I will break that pattern to mention one article I stumbled across because it was one journalist critiquing another, not specifically football. Those who are interested may want to search for an article titled ‘Gasbag Cohn Thinks Jed Might Not be too bright. It pokes holes in LC’s pomposity. It is so unflattering that it would be a bit too rude to post a link on Grant’s site.

      1. found it BT ..
        (had to google it) .. and you’re right ..
        pretty scathing retort on Grant’s pop .. and ..
        I do agree with your decision to not post the link ..

        (Grant would probably delete it anyhoo ! .. ;-} .. )

  45. On the NFL.com page there is a link titled; Harbaugh: Flacco is best QB in league. My first thought was, shouldn’t that have been a semicolon and my second thought was, oh please let that quote be from Jim.

    Oh well, that would have been fun.

  46. Mariota averaged 12.1 yards per attempt on play-action passes and 8.0 yards per attempt on non-play-action passes this season. His passing production was inflated big time by the threat of the read option. Won’t be the same in the NFL. Defenses were more concerned with Oregon’s running game than it’s passing game.

    1. I’m not defending Mariota but I’m not sure your last sentence holds true. If he’s on a team with a strong run game then why wouldn’t he find the same success with play action in the NFL?

      1. Mariota used play action on more than 50 percent of his pass attempts this season. Alex Smith used play action on 31 percent of his pass attempts this season and led the NFL in that stat.

        1. He averaged 8.0 without and 12.1 with so if he’s only using play action a third of the time instead of half then his average will only be 10.0? Still sounds pretty decent to me.

          1. Impossible prediction to make. Depends on coaching, teammates, health, etc. But Mariota is overrated. He’s no Aaron Rodgers. He’s a zone read guy. He needs a lot of development. I wouldn’t spend the top pick on him.

            1. I agree. His arm strength doesn’t match nfl standards.
              I think he’s a waste of a #1 pick. Leihnert anyone????
              That’s who he reminds me of. He will fail in the nfl.
              Copy this!

              1. Do you think the team with the first pick in the draft would be interested in the QB that you think is a failure?

    2. Mariota is a tough one to evaluate as he runs such a specific offense. He’s a master of the zone-read system he operates.

      How will that translate to the NFL? If he goes to a team that runs the same system, I’m sure he’d run it well, but would the system be successful?

      In a more traditional system it is hard to gauge how he’d go. He rarely needed to anticipate throws for Oregon, the receivers he threw to were typically wide open. And the high completion % is something of a product of running a system that uses a lot of high percentage passes. On downfield throws his accuracy can be spotty.

      1. … and most of the time against exhausted defensive teams that are much less athletic than the Ducks offense. That reality will distort data.

    3. I do not see one QB in this year draft that in 3 years we will be saying he is the next Rodgers, Luck, etc. For my money, the best pro-prospect is a sophomore Cal, named Jared Goff. I believe he will be the first pick in next years daft if he decides to come out.

      1. Daniners: I do think Mariota could be the next Rodgers. However, I agree with you on Goff. Fantastic QB. And, yeah, I think he’ll be the first QB off the board next year.

        1. Positives for Mariota:
          a) Much better overall prospect than Kaepernick coming out.
          b) Better accuracy.
          c) Quicker (Kaep is fast but not quick).
          d) Higher football IQ.
          e) Awareness (senses rushers and keeps eyes downfield)

          Negatives:
          a) Still misses too many open receivers.
          b) Gimmick offense that makes even Sanchez look good.
          c) Rarely forced to throw into tight windows.
          d) Going to crappy team, will be running for life, making it more difficult to transition to pocket passer.
          e) Success rate for athletic, gimmick offense, running QB’s is almost nil at this point.

  47. I can’t help but think if Baalke goes WR he’ll pick Parker. Sometimes when you have a person that clings too strongly to the ideal of a system or philosophy it’s easy for them to repeat the same mistake. Trent’s eccentric personality makes me believe he’s the type to have tunnel vision within the confines of whatever system he subscribes to.

      1. Me too provided the foot checked out ok. Didn’t seem to bother him too much over the second half of the season.

        1. While the Falcons may be questioning the wisdom of trading so much for Julio Jones, I bet they are mighty happy to have him despite his foot injury history.

  48. I’m not sure if the next HC will continue down the road of trying to make CK into a pocket passer. If York chooses a defensive minded coach who will also emphasize special teams I could see him putting a good O line in front of CK and just letting CK be CK. As long as CK can take care of the football, the RB’s can run for 140 per game and CK can make 2 to 3 big plays per game [like 2012] the niners can win.

    1. The 49ers don’t need a perfect Kaepernick. The flawed but dangerous 2012 Kaepernick can get them deep into the post season… if they don’t mess with the formula too much.

      If the 49ers make drastic changes in scheme, 2015 will be a ugly.

  49. Kaep just doesn’t have it between the ears aka all Braun and no brains. He will never be a precision passer or field general.

  50. Our head coach got fired becuse he was an advocate and supported troubled players and guys with injuries from college.
    Jed is concerned about making money and he knows he can’t do that with a team with a tarnished image. It’s not about Balke. He is gonna do what Jed tells him to do. Watch what our draft looks like this year. We won’t draft 1 injured player this year. Won’t draft one player with character issues.
    Jed wants to win with CLASS, as he says. He wants to steer clear of players with troubled pasts. That’s what he means by winning with class. He wants this team to be squeaky clean like the yuppie fan base in Santa Clara.
    Jed is meddling with this team. That’s why we won’t win until he’s gone. Jed wanted to cut McDonald the 1st time. Jed took the heat for letting Aldon play after the tree fell on his car, lol. Jed made the decision to cut McDonald after the sexual assault allegations. That was without consulting with Harbaugh. (obviously) crazy thing is that McDonald won’t be prosecuted. Soon, the players won’t trust this front office. We are in trouble as a franchise, no matter who the coach is.

    1. “Our head coach got fired becuse he was an advocate and supported troubled players and guys with injuries from college.”

      Why would you bother to rewrite that bit of history? Baalke is the one who goes after discounted “troubled players and guys with injuries from college.”

  51. Pretty sure Jim Caldwell is the best coach around over the last 3-4 years. John Harbaugh knew it.

    1. I agree that Jim Caldwell is a very good coach, but Jed would fire him. He blew a 14 point lead and is one and out. He also let Dallas win their first playoff game in forever. Jed might not even use the “mutual” word. Just Win the Superbowl Baby or Bust!!!

      1. That’s an exaggeration htwaits..Four years straight of bust..is not comparable to Caldwell losing his first playoff game as lion’s coach..It did however remind me of Harbaugh games..probably why I feel bad rite now for the lions and their fans..No way they should’ve lost that game..a Harbaugh staple…Jed made the right move.

  52. It’s amazing that Kap is even a QB in this league. Considering the fact that, in your opinion, he does absolutely nothing right at all. You’re writing has really taken a turn in the wrong direction in the last year or so. I see you becoming your dad, which isn’t a good thing at all.

  53. Wow, Dallas probably just got a 2nd round playoff game handed to them by the officials.
    One of the worse calls I’ve seen in a while.
    That was an obvious PI call, that somehow was changed to a no-call.

    1. I don’t like Detroit, they got SCREWED!
      Love to hear the leagues poor excuse on the official’s horrendous PI call to a no call.

      1. Yep..how do throw a flag and u say it’s pass interference..then say nevermind..pick flag back up..I’ve never seen that before..that call dictated the outcome of the game from that point on.

  54. I’m sure many of you have watched the entire Harbaugh “QB Clinic” video. In addition to some very graphic instructions on the Center/QB exchange, he discusses a quarterbacks throwing mechanics. Essentially, he says that everyone throws differently and that they’re all pretty much fine (clearly I’m paraphrasing). I agree with Grant, and have said for a long time, that it looks like Kaep is on the mound in the pocket. I think Harbaugh failed Kaep by not adjusting his mechanics. Hopefully the next coach & QB coach will work on it. In fact, Kaep has said that he takes pride in throwing the ball harder than any other QB. Clearly that’s not the right attitude.

    All that said, the guy is a phenomenal talent. I also believe him to be a high character guy and a good leader. He takes responsibility when things don’t go his way and he took a crappier contract with the understanding that the extra cash would help keep talent (Crabs) in SF. Ultimately Crabs hasn’t proved all that talented, but I respect the move. My hope is that with a better O-line, a true QB whisperer, some talent at WR/TE that he can be the Kaep of old. Sorry for the essay!

  55. I can’t decide what’s worse, the fact averse troll-like trashing of Kaepernick or the fact averse fanboy defenses of Kaepernick.

    1. Maybe Jed has expanded from tweeting to anonymous posting on that dump bleach report. The “author” shows an amazing ignorance of Lowell’s satirical writing. When one takes a satirist literally, it makes it even more fun.

      The point being made is that Jed isn’t smart enough or mature enough to realize that he needs mature NFL advisers.

    2. anyone who calls someone else unintelligent with the “i maybe wrong but caveat” is an idiot be a man and say what you mean or shut up:

    3. Claude
      Yep that article. I don’t think it s a good article. It is a hatchet job. But aren’t you a big fan of irony?
      An incindiary headline. A full all -in attack mode. Parsing quotes and making leaps of logic for over-the-top accusations and conclusions. Selective slicing of quotes to emphasize or ‘prove’ points that may or may not be correct or fair.
      Does any of that sound familiar? It’s how both LC and GC sometimes approach their writing when they’ve got their claws out. To their credit they didn’t dignify it with a response, but I wonder how Lowell enjoyed a taste of his own medicine.

    4. @ claude balls : If you read the other stuff the writer has posted on bleacher report its pretty obvious the writer is part of the 49er organization.. The writing is too personal and the fact the author is anonymous makes me suspect it could even be someone that’s works directly for the Yorks. .

        1. That’s fine, but its not Quinn’s system they run in Seattle. It’s Carroll’s.

          I’m sure Quinn has a pretty decent grounding in the system now, but how will Quinn fare without Carroll providing insight?

          1. Scooter: I read last year that Gus Bradley was in touch with PC on a weekly basis except for the year we played Jacksonville. But this isn’t unusual. Bevell will always be in touch with PC and Cable. But this isn’t unusual.

  56. Hey Grant what do you think of Mike Shula as HC or OC or even QB coach? Look what hes doing with Cam grat play calling plus hes got lot of experience even did a good gob with David Gerrard in jax plus has HC experience with university of Alabama

  57. Jack,

    I think the comparison of CK to Kramer, while funny as a meaningless, throwaway line, is way off point. After all, Kramer couldn’t even keep a job he wasn’t being paid for (Kramer:…but I’m not even being paid; Boss: I know, that’s what makes it so hard to let you go…). No matter what you think about CK, he’s nowhere close to that category.

      1. Kaepernick plays like Cosmo in the 2nd half of games. He’s kinda stoned and aloof, forgetting to do things like stay in bounds. Seriously…… 4 years in the league and he doesn’t know how to do that? That’s just ridiculous.

        But hey once a season we get to see him run for 95 yards and a TD. Hooray Cosmo!!!!

        1. Since Kap is the root of all evil and the very bane of your niner fanship existence..lol..Who do u want playing Qb?

          1. Why in god’s name would I want a QB who is in the bottom 3rd in stats and efficiency, who is horrible inaccurate and continues to brain fart at the worse possible time?

            1. Good question for Jed and Trent – after all, it will likely be those two who decide that Kap is the starter.
              Maybe they know more about football than you.

            2. “Why in god’s name would I want a QB who is in the bottom 3rd in stats and efficiency, who is horrible inaccurate and continues to brain fart at the worse possible time?”
              ~ Fan77

              Ahhh, because in his first three years he took his team farther than Brady, Rodgers, Brees, Matty “Ice” Ryan and Rothisberger.
              But then again Fan, who’s counting those right?

              1. AES,

                But, he only won because of the defense. The defense sucked during the SB run, but he still only won because of them. Always remember that it’s his fault when they lose and the defense is responsible when they win.

              2. rocket,
                Yup. But aren’t the Kap detractors blaming CK for the more than 30 points the D gave up in the Superbowl?
                Go figure.

          2. Deezybee, i’d rather have Marcus Mariota be the starting QB for the 49ers. He probably be more intelligent than Kap, and might have the ability to be a great QB in the NFL.

      2. Jack,

        Yep, it’s not just anyone who can make a hole in one, and fewer still are capable of a blow hole in one.

  58. Kubiak is NOT leaving Jim Harbaugh’s brother’s coaching staff to take an OC position working for Jed and Baalke.

  59. Didn’t even read the article probably a waste of time. But your dad made me proud during York press conference. And now for the real reason I’m posting…….” How bout them cowboys yeaaaaaaaah!!” I hope you get the job to cover your favorite team one day. And for once I’ll agree with you, baalke had no business drafting aj Jenkins over your draft crush tight end of 2012.

    1. The reversal of that call does give the appearance that the outcome of the game was rigged. Was it rigged? The head ref gave a credible explanation, but with so much money at stake, I would not put it past them.

      1. Was it rigged? It’s hard to believe there is one single multi billion dollar company anywhere on the earth that didn’t get there by cheating it’s way, cutting corners it lying it’s way to huge success. Sadly this league has become to big, and is starting to turn into Boxing. A once great sport. A huge sport pre 90’s. Corrupt to the core now and is sinking into a distant memory. Te introduction of PPV has destroyed all integrity of the sport for ppv sales and of course money.
        The nfl is following the same path. A commissioner that lies and covers up a HUGE eye sore to the public. Should be all you need to know about this business.
        Like boxing with ppv when the salary cap was introduced. And waiting a decade for the super teams to finally erode, the nfl had it’s “level playing field” so much easier to rig games with evenly matched teams in closer games instead of blowouts by the same few teams. This opens up their market for little franchises and brings in millions more fans and dollars. I don’t blame them for wanting to make it successful. And it has. But like most big companies. Millions more are never enough.

        That call yesterday was just another blantent attempt to manufacture bigger ratings down the stretch.
        Dallas is a money machine. Detroit isn’t. Seattles latest “fake 12th man/best fans in the league” hoax is another money maker. And they want their money and ratings.
        Sorry never wanted to think this great sport was influenced by money and the integrity was shot. But after some obvious bad calls, and Super Bowl crew that was out in 2 years ago for ” equal opportunity” and sitting the best scoring refs in the league at home for the biggest game of the year, lying to the public over domestic violence, and now leaks like the head official partying on a bus with a soon to be owner for his dad’s team. It isn’t a “conspiracy” anymore. This game is rigged!

      2. The head ref gave a credible explanation, but with so much money at stake, I would not put it past them.

        Even if he gave a credible explanation for that (which he did not), there was zero explanation for why Bryant wasn’t flagged for charging onto the playing field without his helmet and challenging the officiating crew, which is a clear violation of the rules.

        1. On the same PLAY!!
          The ref ushered him back ton the sidelines. Smh.
          And after the call is announced there is no credable explanation as to why a flag is picked up. It was an obvious PI, they knew Detroit had momentum. Thank God it wasn’t the 49ers again.
          Barry Church said it should have been called. Wonder how much that’s going to cost him. Lol

      3. At the very least, Dez Bryant should have been flagged for coming on to the field.
        No bueno all around.

      4. George: I’m assuming you’re referring to the Dallas/Detroit game. I missed it but it’s not like it was a game-deciding play. Detroit had it’s chance to win that game.The failed Mary in Seattle — that was a game-changing play. I think there was one in NE or somewhere this year.

        The way they handled that play was atrocious and it should have been reviewed and I think they’ll start doing that. However there were 8+ minutes left in the game and players know these types of things happen. Pull it together.

        What do you think Dallas thought when Ndamukong Suh was suddenly allowed to play???????

        Detroit was gifted right there. Things happen — Doesn’t mean there’s a conspiracy.

    2. PFT had an article about the call today that echoes how I feel about it. I don’t buy conspiracy theories; it comes down to incompetence. I’ve seen numerous missed calls/bad calls all year, every year and unfortunately once in awhile it directly affects the outcome of a game. Picking up a flag rarely if ever happens and the head linesman should be fired for telling the official who threw the flag he had a better view and there was no infraction. It was a blatant PI, it also featured a holding call earlier in the route that was also missed. Not penalizing Bryant I get because they often give the sideline some leeway over reacting to penalties, but the picking up of the flag was just an official doing his job poorly and unfortunately it happens every week.

      1. Rocket
        I saw that article today and had 2 thoughts.
        1/ have we forgotten the drop off in reffing during the lockout? Gawd! As flawed as these guys are, the others guys were worse.
        2/ the lawyers in NY writing the rules don’t seem to give enough thought on how they should be interpreted and enforced in the high velocity play of the NFL.
        The owners don’t want to do what they should for their multi-billion dollar industry:
        Make people compete for full time jobs with benefits as refs. Have a limited conditioning and training off-season program with internships for hopefull applicants. Guys would move up or down or out based on standardized ratings of their performances.

        1. BT,

          Some good Ideas there and I agree with you. There has to be an incentive for these guys to master their profession and that includes benefits for good work and fines/termination for bad. The standard has to improve. Sure it’s better than the travesty of the replacements, but it is still nowhere near what it should be. I also think HC’s should have the right to challenge bad calls.

          1. There is incentive. They get the bigger paying jobs like the superbowls. You know the big game where when we were in it they let a multi colored crew work it. Because they wanted to be well…”fair” yeah the top officials got to sit out on that game and filed a grievance against the nfl.

            Yeah it might be mistakes. But it’s the teams that are benefitting from these “mistakes” that has to make you wonder.
            Sorry won’t buy it’s mistakes from a league Who’s leader lied and covered up a domestic violence case.

            1. The easy way out of a debate with close minds is to call it a conspiracy. It’s an old tactic that deflects any real facts that those refuse to believe.
              If you trust Goverment then you believe any question is a conspiracy.
              They literally made up that term. IJS.

      2. What I’ll never understand is why they change up the refereeing teams for playoffs. These guys work with the same crews for 17 weeks, then all of a sudden are made to work with a bunch of different guys.

        1. … and it turns out that some of the guys working the playoffs are ranked in the bottom 50 percentile.

  60. When discussing FO people and moves, Mark Schlereth often reminds the audience that the Locker Room isn’t the only Ego Corral on teams. As you go higher up the ladder you find huge egos up in the FO too. Every team has friction and jockeying for position in the FO on-going. SF messed up letting it get away from them.
    Saw a story on PFT today that Marrone so hated the big trade up for Watkins that he left the draft room at the time. Obviously I don’t know if it’s true, but then at year’s end he’s got the opt-out clause, no as yet reliable QB, no 1st or 4th round pick in 2015 and not enough say in who gets drafted. So he hit the Eject Button.

    1. 2014 was one expensive draft to move up in round one. The 2015 first + 2015 4th to move up five spaces?

      I totally get why Baalke didn’t move up for Beckham. It would have gutted the draft. (I might have grabbed Aaron Donald anyway)

      1. I think that’s more of an indication of how much the NYG’s wanted to draft Beckham for themselves. Sure if someone was foolish enough to match their price they would have passed on him but otherwise they intended on using the pick.

      1. In my Barrows link below, he mentions that Tomsula hasn’t been formally interviewed. But he wonders if it’s because the interviewers feel comfortable in knowing what they have with Tomsula. Still, wouldn’t Tomsula need to present a plan on how he plans to fix the 49ers offense?

        1. A big part of the coach interview is finding out what team of assistants and coordinators the candidate has in mind. I remember reading when Singletary was interviewing with other teams, before becoming our own HC, a rumor came about that one of the reasons he was being turned down because he didn’t have a group of coaches already picked out to work with.

          I’m not even sure how interested Baalke is in hearing someone else’s plan to fix the team outside of agreeing with his own ideas on how to do it.

    1. I think most of us new that considering Baalke is still around. No way those two would be able to coexist.

      1. Sucks too. Not even an interview. Smh. From the sound of it he might not want all of that control some think.
        He turned down a job already(betting it was Oakland) because he only wants to coach for one team.
        If he’s that dedicated. Why would he want something the front office won’t give?

    2. Holmgren was not my first choice, but he is a lot better than some of the candidates the 49ers are interviewing. The fact that Holmgren coveted the 49ers job, yet Jed/Baalke looked the other way suggests what I’ve suspected all along.

      Baalke is a fraud and doesn’t want to get exposed by someone more accomplished and experienced than he. Baalke appears to have a major inferiority complex and that may explain his insecurity.

      By the way, I’d be insecure too if my claim to fame was drafting AJ Jenkins, LaMichael James, Vance McDonald, passing up on numerous stud WRs (Odell Beckham, Dez Bryant (twice), Paul Richardson, Jordan Mathews, Rueben Randle, Alshon Jeffery, T. Y. Hilton), failure to land Cliff Avril or Michael Bennett in free agency, AND pushing to fire Jim Harbaugh.

      1. I’d go to a BBD 10/10 times over a Chevy’s. Unless the goal is to get hammered, then it’s Chevy’s long islands and an expensive cab ride.

        1. Hah! Looks like SF is trying to shake the Chardonnay & Brie image with their interviewees.

        2. Chevy’s food is OK. What I can’t stand is the “bums rush” to turn over tables as fast as they possibly can.

          I once had to leave a table for a brief moment after taking only a few bites of my meal. When I got back my plate was gone. It got ugly fast.

    1. Shanahan was also interviewed by the Raiders. He’s going to get a job somewhere I’m guessing.

  61. Welp. After reading Holmgren was turned down by the Niners, I got a little more depressed. They really want a new young coach. We should be finding out soon which guy is going to lead us to the promise land within the next 4 years.

    1. KY,

      Not necessarily. They don’t want Holmgren, but that doesn’t mean they are looking young or defense for the hire. Holmgren has been out of the Coaching circle for a long time. That likely has as much to do with the non interest as anything else.

  62. Does the next “quarterback guru” have to be a head coach?
    Can’t an offensive coordinator or quarterback coach also be a “quarterback guru?”

    My Denver expert said Shanahan was staler then a mummies lunch before the DC hire. He predicted Shanahan would “ruin” RG3.

    I’m fine with Fangio. Kaepernick’s 4th quarterback guru can be an OC or QBC.

    1. Brodie:

      Good question. In an article from Maiocco that I linked yesterday, he took a shot at Chryst for not doing a better job with Kaep.

    2. Brodie,

      Sure a QB guru could be the OC or QB Coach, but the reason you hire a HC with an offensive background is so the system stays for the duration of his employment. We saw what happened with a revolving door of OC’s during the dead period after Mooch was canned. If you get a good OC who works well with the QB, he’s usually gone in a year or two because somebody else hires him as their HC.

      Shanahan didn’t ruin RGIII either. They had him playing extremely well his rookie year and then injuries derailed him the following year.

      1. Rocket:

        I posted on this very “revolving door” OC topic a couple of days ago, but it generated little interest for discussion. Is this one of the reasons you would prefer an offense minded HC?

        1. Cubus,

          Absolutely. I think it’s much easier to find a DC who can coordinate a defense and retain him, than it is to find a good OC and keep him for a long period of time.

          I also think an offensive minded HC would be a better option considering the king of the division is a Defensive minded guy who is winning because of great defense. I want an HC/OC that can figure out a way to attack and beat that defense.

          Funny thing is Kubiak’s Texans had their way with Seattle for most of the game when they played them last year. A Matt Schaub pick 6 turned the game around.

              1. Yep.

                In saying that, if Kubiak is hired by the 49ers, and the Raiders release Schaub as expected, I wouldn’t be averse to bringing him in as the backup QB to mentor Kaep in Kubiak’s offense.

  63. Playoff picks;

    Bal/NE; Bal
    Sea/Car; Sea
    Ind/Den; Den
    GB/Dal; GB

    Bal/Den; Den
    Sea/GB; GB

    Den/GB; GB

      1. The Pick ‘Em league has been a pain this year for me. There have been several times that either I haven’t been allowed to log in or the site has crashed when I’m in the middle of making my picks.

      2. My pick’em season was going fine until I shat the bed in week 11. Haven’t been able to make up what I lost that week.

    1. CFC: I won’t predict Seahawk games, bad luck. But I think you might we wrong about that game. But in the last 6 games which, granted is a sampling, the Seahawks’ D is allowing 6.5 pts and GB 20.5. Seahawks entire year is 15.9. We defend the pass and rush very well. Keeping in the spirit of what Jack said earlier, I wonder how healthy AR will be.

      Here’s a video from AR on their last game with Seahawks.

    1. If he’s sober the 49ers would show a lot of class giving him another chance, plus Baalke can use all the help he can get.

      1. As for being sober, McCloughan is one of those guys who think drinking beer is OK. The guy who spent a week with him, writing about what went wrong, pointed out that McCloughan didn’t think his problems were related to beer.

    2. Great just what we need. Another team built exactly like the niners, that gives us hell when we play them. Can we please give this man a job and extra support.

    3. I think Baalke is too insecure to have another football person in the front office. He’s got a good thing going now – for him that is – and he’ll gladly reject any potential changes.

  64. Grant,
    You still sound bitter. You’ve become a one trick pony – slam CK whenever you can. CK has limitations, but you make it sound like he’s the worst QB in the NFL. He’s a top 15 QB in my book. With further minor improvements, he’ll easily be a top 10 QB.

    1. Within his pay grade, Kaep is the best. I will take him over Cutler, Stafford, and you can make a legit argument about Romo. Romo isn’t as bad a people make him seem.

      1. KY,
        Actually I give Romo huge prop’s when considering how much he has accomplished after being signed as an undrafted free agent.
        Not bad at all.

      2. KY49er, you’re funny! You give kaepernick too much credit. His lacks a lot of football knowledge, i’m sure he can play as a back up in the NFL:-)

  65. Jack:

    Who cares?

    I don’t know whether anyone really cares, but with the 49ers not in the postseason, one time-wasting conversation is as good as another.

    1. Mary ..

      Who cares ?

      You should post that link .. Over Here .. instead..

      (I’m sure you’ll find more people, there ..
      who actually give a darn)

  66. Does anyone else wonder whether “lindsey robinson” is Kaepernick’s birth mother?

    1. You know Claude reading halfway through that garbage, fighting a headache just getting there. I have to admit I thought this person is using race or will use a race card. As soon as they left Gronk out of the te conversation. Then….. BAM there it was. “Y’all jus hopin 4 a whitey to play mighty.. Like ol Montana dit”…
      Saw that coming from a mile away. Lol but I do have to say I believe there are a couple on here who do think that way. Knocking a guys character without knowik them. Isn’t a good look in the politically correct world we live in. I wonder are some still hung up on the black qb??

    1. Probably wouldn’t be a terrible hire, KY ..
      but, that would be giving Jed and Baalke too
      much credit for intelligence

    2. You are right about the intelligence part.

      What are your thoughts on the Shanahan/RGIII ordeal. That’s my only concern. Kaep is who we have to roll with, we do not need that type of debacle. Although I feel Kaep is a lot better than RGIII

      1. I of course watched that game and there was no question but Shanahan should have never started RG3 in that game. RG3 was re-injured in that game and Shanahan allowed RG3 to make the decision to stay in while it was painfully obvious to a layperson that he should never have been in that game. RG3 has never been the same since.

        But I remember that time and how hungry the team was for a SB — the fan base, FO, the entire city. I can’t imagine the pressure Shanahan was under — and have a headstrong QB like RG3 . . .

          1. But CK is not that kind of QB. He’s not a coach killer.
            —————-
            What do you think the CK stands for?

      2. I think the problem might go back
        to the answer to the question, of ..
        who’s idea was it to give up the farm
        to draft RGIII .. in the first place ..

        Who was it that had the man-crush on him ..

        Was it really Shanny ..?

        Or someone upstairs ?

    1. yeah.. clicked the link ..

      Oh.. a noob poster, here ..
      (Missed it first time around ..)

      We seem to get a lot of them, huh ?

    1. Fangio’s viewpoint is typical of a DC. Don’t over-analyze or over-think. Go with proven offensive formula that does not put much burden on the D — ball-control O with power run game featuring 12, 22 personnel sets with play action passing.

      Will it win the Niners a SuperBowl? Maybe it will. It did establish base camp near the summit, to paraphrase Bill Walsh. Considering the delayed development of pocket passing skills of Kap, it’s perhaps the best course for now.

      One needs to recall the nightmarish Jimmy Raye-days for the caveat that a simplistic offense often leads to simplistic and predictable play calling.

      What is needed is imaginative play calling where there is just enough variety to keep the defenses guessing but not too much crazy variety that leads zero offensive rhythm like we saw this season.

      For imaginative play calling, there will be some risks taken, especially for going for the jugular after having established a 2-score lead or more. Here is where the ex-DC HC often stumbles — by going conservative instead of going for the kill. That results in run-run-incomplete pass-punt and snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. DC-turned-HCs look at a game very differently than OC-turned-HCs.

      I’m fundamentally against DCs becoming HCs — unless they are an exception like Bellichick who changed/evolved his outlook of the game and has actually designed offensive plays.

      1. Yep. You can be imaginative and creative in your play-calling while still playing a ball-control offense that relies on the strength of the running game. See Kubiak, Gary.

        1. Who would want the 49ers to go after that fits that idea if they do hire Fangio or another DC as the next coach?

        2. Agreed. There are not that many of them. Don’t think Kubiak is leaving the Ravens though. Linehan on the other hand is available.

  67. Shanahan is a burned-out leftover of a coach. His son is a jerk. If hired, you can pretty much figure 6-10 at best. We are heading into territory last visited a decade ago. If folks boycott the team, sooner or later the Yorks will be forced to sell. It’s the fans only hope. Boycott the Niners…

  68. Mike Tanier has some thoughts on HC candidates in the middle of the article whose link is pasted below:
    http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2319173-mike-taniers-monday-morning-hangover-colts-cam-cowboys-conspiracy

    Typical Tanier wit: Marrone as “Chip Kelly with training wheels”, ” the guys at Dewey, Cheatem & Howe may have just reminded Scott Pioli and Thomas Dimitroff that they used to work for the Patriots (as if they ever forget such things): Josh McDaniels is high on their very predictable list”, “Adam Gase’s cellphone exploded by midday Wednesday: To be Peyton Manning’s offensive coordinator is to be a man in demand during the wild-card bye week. Gase’s predecessor, Mike McCoy, could lose his second offensive coordinator in two seasons if Frank Reich departs to be Buffalo’s Jason Garrett.”

    Good stuff!

    1. hey Mood …

      Wasn’t Frank Reich on the Bills team that
      went to 4 Super Bowls (in a row) … ?

      Ya kno .. the teams that had Scott Norwood on ?

      “…W-I-D-E …. R-r-r -i-ght …!! “

      1. Yup. That’s right. Reich backed up Kelly quite well during those years and then was picked up by the expansion Panthers team. Norwood missed just one key kick (the 47 yarder that won the Lombardi for the Giants) but his name lives in infamy (recall that missed kick reference in Ace Ventura Pet Detective?). But that 1990-91 brings back those awful memories of The Roger Craig Fumble :(

    1. Yeah, good on him though for not letting head coaching jobs distract him and interfere with his focus on the Ravens.

    2. Jan 3

      Ian RapoportVerified account
      ‏@RapSheet
      Candidate generating interest under the radar: Gary Kubiak. After (if) #Ravens are out of playoffs, expect #49ers to talk to him.

        1. I take it you believe the Ravens emerge victorious against the Patriots, as do I….

        2. The Ownership rules for Classy Owners doesn’t allow them to step on publicity for the playoff games and they don’t have a minority interview scheduled until Thursday. There may be a crack for them to consider Gary Kubiak. My question is would Gary Kubiak consider them?

  69. Only eight head coaches in NFL history have lost more than 10 games in a row: John McKay (1976-77), Dick Nolan (1980), Rod Rust (1990), Mike Reilly (2000), George Seifert (2001), Cam Cameron (2007), Rod Marinelli (2008) and Gary Kubiak (2013).

    1. The odd thing with the Texans last year is they lost 8 of those 11 games by 7 points or less.

      1. A good head coach doesn’t allow an 11-game losing streak to happen, especially with that much talent.

        1. I’ve seen some great teams, and great coaches, put together long losing streaks in many sports. It shouldn’t happen, but sometimes the ball stops bouncing your way for long stretches, key players get injured, and key players lose confidence and start losing you games. Last year was the perfect storm for the Texans.

          1. Harbaugh has never lost more than 4 games in a row, going back to Stanford. Del Rio never lost more than 4 games in a row until he got Gabbert in 2011. Del Rio lost 5 in a row that year.

        2. The 2013 Texans weren’t that talented. Their QB was terrible and their best RB, TE, LB played less than half the season.

          1. Bill O’Brien got 9 wins out of pretty much the same team.

            How do you lose 11 in a row with the best player in football on your team? Unprecedented. Kubiak is an offensive coordinator, not a head coach, like Norv Turner.

            1. Pretty much the same team, except they had Arian Foster for most of the year, a different QB that didn’t keep throwing pick sixes, DeAndre Hopkins no longer a rookie and going through rookie growing pains (and developing into a very good WR), and Brian Cushing back.

              Little things can make a big difference on a team that lost a lot of close games the year before.

              1. Brian Cushing was bad this season. Kudos to O’Brien for getting a career year out of Fitzpatrick.

                Still don’t understand how any coach loses 11 in a row with J.J. Watt. Kubiak is not a head coach. He’s an offensive coordinator.

              2. Is that your only reasoning as to why he isn’t HC material? Because he lost 11 in a row?

              3. Seems to me he’d be a good fit at OC for us. I agree he doesn’t instill a ton of confidence as a head coach but if you wanted an OC that wouldn’t require a big overall in personnel. This is from PFF:

                What we see here is that Kubiak runs a fairly balanced offense, but he wasn’t afraid to lean heavily on the run when the team was strong at tailback (thank you, Arian Foster). Despite the “lean on the defense”/run-first scheme, the Houston offense was at or above the 2.36 touchdowns-per-game league average each season from 2008 through 2012. The entire team stumbled in 2013, however, which led to Kubiak’s firing.

                Target distribution shows us that Kubiak offenses tend to lean towards throws to the in-line tight end, and away from slot receivers. Consider that players lined up in the slot failed to combine to exceed 21 percent of the team’s targets in any season in our sample. The league average in the department is 27 percent.

                A look at Kubiak’s offensive personnel package data shows further evidence of his preference for balance. Contrary to the NFL’s movement towards ‘11’, Kubiak’s favorite package has been ‘21’ four of the last six seasons. He’s used ‘21’ on 33 percent of his offensive plays, compared to ‘11’ on 28 percent and ‘12’ on 22 percent. Last season, 50 percent of all NFL plays included the ‘11’ package, while only 13 percent rolled with the ‘21’. Note that Kubiak hasn’t exceed 36 percent usage of the ‘11’ during any of the last six seasons.

              4. I just posted that for the sake of the conversation, as pointed out already there is zero chance that he’s going to leave for anything less then a HC job and it seems terribly unlikely that he’s about to get fired.

              5. That 2.36 TD/game ratio bests SF’s for 3 of the 4 years of Rombaugh’s tenure.

              6. “Kubiak underachieved with stacked Texans teams for years.”

                He turned Matt Schaub into a serviceable QB, and found no-name or re-tread RBs and made them good. He made the most of guys like Kevin Walter and Jacoby Jones. He took a bunch of relatively low profile OL and turned them into a good unit. He turned that whole offense into a good unit, and he did it mostly with a bunch of relatively low profile guys outside of Andre Johnson.

                It was the defense that let the team down for a long time, that underperformed. Are you blaming Kubiak for that? JJ Watt and Wade Phillips turned that defense around in 2011, and the team went 10-6 then 12-4 the next two seasons.

              7. Kubiak had Pro Bowlers at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end, left tackle, guard, center, defensive end, middle linebacker and cornerback, and he still couldn’t make any noise in the playoffs.

                Pass.

              8. The Texans were not a stacked team. They had a number of players voted to probowls because they won 12 games but their talent wasn’t as good as a number of other playoff teams.

                Kubiack did a nice job in Houston, even won a playoff game with TJ Yates at QB.

                Hopefully the Ravens lose this week so he gets an interview.

              9. The Texans had a Pro Bowl quarterback, a go-to receiver, a go-to running back and the best defensive player in football. That’s most of the puzzle. Del Rio had one piece — Fred Taylor. Del Rio still had a higher winning percentage than Kubiak.

              10. And he had nothing to do with transforming any of those offensive players into pro bowlers due to his coaching and scheme?

                How many of those guys would you say are/ were elite talents on offense? I’d say one – Andre Johnson. You can make an argument for Arian Foster, but I think you can make an equally strong argument that he’s a good player that is made great by the system. Much like a lot of low round RBs at the Broncos while Kubiak was there.

              11. No arguments from me on Del Rio, I thought he did a good job with the Jaguars too, and I’d have no qualms with the 49ers hiring him.

              12. Matt Schaub was a product of Kubiaks system. Pretty near every RB that has played in the Shanahan/Kubiak system has had success. The man knows how to put an offense together and really only had the one bad year when injuries and Schaub killed their chances.

              13. Good OC, underachieving head coach. Had much more talent than Del Rio and a lower winning percentage.

              14. Del Rio had a losing record 5 out of the 9 years he was there and had a lot more talent than you think. No playoff success, a 4 year spiral downward before he was fired…no thanks. Kubiak was fired less than a year after a 12 win season.

              15. That 2.36 TD/game ratio bests SF’s for 3 of the 4 years of Rombaugh’s tenure.
                ———————-
                I said that wrong. Houston’s TD/game ratio bests SF’s for 3 of the 4 years of Rombaugh.

            2. Del Rio never had a QB with talent above second string; Garrad, Leftwich, Brunell and of course Gabbert. It’s amazing they ever broke .500 with any of those guys.

              1. Garrard had a couple of good years as did Leftwich, but they weren’t asked to do a whole lot.

            3. What talent?

              John Henderson and Marcus Stroud were one of the most dominant DT tandems in the league and were the key to the defenses success. They also had Mike Peterson and Daryl Smith at LB who were very good. Rashean Mathis in his prime, Donovan Darius, Fred Taylor, MJD, They also had a pretty good Oline from what I remember.

              The Jags won with defense and a running game when they actually did win. If the Niners want to continue in that direction they should just hire Fangio.

              1. Henderson and Stroud were good run defenders. Del Rio never had a dominant pass rusher. Kubiak had Mario Williams and J.J. Watt.

                Fangio has no head coaching experience and no top offensive coordinator to bring to the table.

              1. He won a playoff game with TJ Yates at QB. His offenses were consistently top 10. He was fired less than a year after winning 12 games because his team suffered a rash of injuries to key players and his QB developed a habit of throwing the ball to the other team. He’s turned Baltimore’s offense around completely and made Justin Forsett look like an NFL RB. The guy deserves another shot and I hope he gets an interview with the Niners.

        3. Are you saying all those guys fail your “good coach” test? Seifert won two Superbowls with outstanding talent, and lost a lot of games with poor talent.

            1. He no longer was a good head coach in 2001.

              So he forgot how? This comment makes no sense Grant. He didn’t have success in Carolina because he didn’t have the players. Same excuse you are giving Del Rio only Seifert actually had a history of success.

              Again I’m not sure why Del Rio is even being talked about as he isn’t even on the radar. The Raiders are the only team that have asked to talk to him.

              1. Seifert lost the ability to effectively lead an NFL team and retired after 2001. John Fox and Jack Del Rio turned the Panthers around the very next season.

              2. No they turned the defense around with the help of the #1 pick in the draft which turned out to be Julius Peppers. The offense was just as bad or worse than it was the previous year under Seifert.

                That 1-15 team under Seifert lost 7 games by 4 points or less. Much like with Kubiak in Houston, the Panthers were not nearly as bad as the record stated. The difference was adding a dynamic defensive player in the draft and Steve Smith stepping up as a big time weapon in his second season.

              3. The Panthers went 30-34 under Dom Capers, then 16-32 under Seifert, then went to the Super Bowl two years later under Fox. Seifert was not a good coach in Carolina.

                The defense was ranked 31st under Seifert in 2001 and 2nd under Del Rio in 2002. Nuff said.

              4. Capers was 4-12 his final year. Seifert went 8-8 a year later. Nice spin job attempt though.

                Del Rio is not a hot candidate for a reason Grant. Not sure why you jumped on this guy as who the Niners should hire, but it’s not going to happen and I’d be surprised if anybody hired Del Rio.

              5. Seifert went 1-15 his last year. Seifert never had a winning season in Carolina. No one wanted Seifert after that stint. He was only 61 years old in 2001. Pete Carroll is 63.

                Del Rio and Koetter is the best coaching combination available this offseason. We’ll see who is smart enough to figure it out.

              6. Del Rio and Koetter is the best coaching combination available this offseason. We’ll see who is smart enough to figure it out.

                Only in your mind is that remotely true. My guess is nobody hires Del Rio. Koetter will find an OC job somewhere.

              7. Only in your reality Grant. Del Rio is not on anybody’s radar other than the Raiders who just as likely interviewed him to gain some insight into the Broncos as seriously considering him as a HC candidate.

              8. It’s OK, I’m happy to explain it to you. Del Rio has been a successful defensive coordinator for two teams and a successful head coach for one of the worst franchises in sports. He has the best resume out there. His resume dwarfs Fangio’s resume.

              9. Del Rio has a better HC resume than Fangio because Fangio hasn’t been one. 3 winning seasons in 9 years is not a resume that dwarfs many people who have been a HC. It also shows that Del Rio has benefited greatly from Coaching under John Fox because he wasn’t able to do it on his own.

              10. Fangio is five years older than Del Rio and has been a defensive coordinator since 1995. No one wanted Fangio until now, until he coached a defense with Hall of Famers in the front seven. He never coached a top-6 defense until he got to SF, his 12th season. Del Rio has coached 7 top-6 defenses. Fangio’s resume cannot touch Del Rio’s resume.

              11. You changed your comment so I’ll address one more thing:

                In no way shape or form would anyone consider Del Rio’s time in Jax a success other than you and his Mother. If that’s the standard for success in your mind then you had no business criticizing Harbaugh for anything because compared to Del Rio he was Vince Lombardi.

              12. The Jaguars had zero Pro Bowlers on defense from 2008 to 2011. No coach could have gone anywhere with those teams. Del Rio overachieved in Jacksonville. That’s obvious.

              13. When you are the HC of a team for nearly a decade you don’t get the benefit of the doubt when it comes to players. Del Rio was involved with the personnel side so he’s as much to blame as anyone for the talent drop off. 3 Winning seasons in 9 years is not overachieving. I have no idea where you get the idea that is the case.

                For the record, I’m not in the Fangio for HC camp. I mentioned him simply because if they are going to hire a DC HC, he’s as good a candidate as any of the names being mentioned. My preference is a guy with an offensive background.

              14. No, James Harris and Gene Smith built those teams. That was Smith who drafted Tyson Alualu over Earl Thomas and Jason Pierre-Paul and Demaryius Thomas and Dez Bryant.

                Who is your preference? This ought to be good.

              15. Let’s also not forget that part of being a Coach is the development of players. In that area Del Rio has a poor track record as well.

              16. From what I remember Del Rio had a lot of say in personnel until they hired Gene Smith.

                I also looked up some articles after he was fired and he was not highly thought of. A couple of quotes because I can’t post more than one link:

                ESPN:

                They will remember Del Rio’s tenure as one that lasted too long and was filled with quarterback chaos, inconsistency, staff turnover and late-season collapses. There also was the decision to place an ax and a wooden stump in the locker room to remind players to “keep chopping wood.” It backfired miserably when punter Chris Hanson accidentally hacked into his leg and was placed on injured reserve.

                This season, Del Rio released veteran quarterback David Garrard five days before the season opener, then benched journeyman Luke McCown after two games. He turned things over to rookie Blaine Gabbert, who has panicked under pressure, misfired on short throws and shown little progress in nine starts.

                Del Rio also botched quarterback decisions involving Mark Brunell and Byron Leftwich in 2003, and Leftwich and Garrard in 2007.

                Equally troubling, Del Rio showed a penchant for throwing players and assistants under the bus. Del Rio fired 19 assistant coaches during his tenure, creating enough tension that could make it tough for him to get another job in the league.

                Fox Sports:

                Del Rio’s tenure will be remembered for putting an ax and a wooden stump in the locker room in 2003, settling up a situation in which punter Chris Hanson hacked into his leg, and for repeatedly failing to properly handle quarterback situations.

                Jack Del Rio
                WE’VE HAD ENOUGH
                Jack Del Rio got too many chances he didn’t even deserve in Jacksonville, FOX Sports Florida says.

                He announced he was benching Mark Brunell and giving rookie Byron Leftwich the job in 2003 before talking to the players. He insisted Leftwich was his starter in 2007, and then cut him days before the season opener. He did the same thing to David Garrard this season, cutting him five days before the opener and naming Luke McCown the starter.

                Man I had forgotten about the whole Axe and Stump debacle. What an idiot.

              17. It’s not Del Rio’s fault he had to choose between bad quarterbacks. Del Rio coached a Pro Bowl season out of Garrard. Unprecedented.

              18. Did you read those comments? He made a number of errors and threw assistant’s under the bus. You keep talking about how he would come in a package deal with Koetter and yet there’s a real possibility Koetter doesn’t even like the guy. He wouldn’t let Koetter interview for other jobs when the Jags refused to extend the assistants due to the likelihood they were going to fire Del Rio if he had a poor start again.

                I had forgotten how much criticism had been directed at him and how poorly he had handled the players his final few years. Everybody in Jax hated the guy.

                No wonder he isn’t getting many calls.

              19. That’s a lot of speculation. You clearly don’t know what you’re talking about, as usual.

              20. Neither do you. At least I provided some quotes to back my speculation. If I don’t know what I’m talking about, then you need to find a new line of work because I’ve been right a lot more than you have.

              21. You’re never right. I told you the offense would fall apart without a dominant Vernon Davis, you didn’t listen. I told you the 49ers were going to go 8-8 this season, you didn’t listen.

                You clearly don’t know more than an average fan if you think Koetter doesn’t like Del Rio.

              22. Wrong as usual Grant. There was no argument about Davis’ importance to the offense. The argument was who was more important Kaepernick or Davis. As usual you were ranting about something you put little to no thought into and wrote the following:

                Vernon Davis is more important to the 49ers’ 2014 offense than Kaepernick. Josh Johnson can hand the ball off and throw deep to Vernon Davis, too.

                Speaking of Davis remember that entry where you went crazy over turtles and were going on and on about how Davis had the team over the barrel and they would have to give in? Wrong.

                Remember when you said Kap wouldn’t be signed long term? Wrong.

                Remember when you said Stephen Hill was the best WR in the draft and bet me he’d go in the top ten? Wrong.

                Remember when you bet me Josh Johnson would be a quality starting QB in the league within a couple of years after he was let go by the Niners? Wrong.

                Those are just off the top of my head. If you want to get into a discussion of who’s been right more often, I’ll make you look really really bad. You don’t want to go there. Not to mention how wishy washy you’ve been on opinions going from one extreme to another.

              23. You said the offense would be just fine without Davis. Don’t say you didn’t.

                What have you been right about? You were wrong about Alex Smith keeping his job after his concussion. You were wrong about Greg Roman being a good offensive coordinator. You were wrong about A.J. Jenkins being a good player. You were flagrantly wrong about LaMichael James being a good player. You were repeatedly wrong about Harbaugh’s 49ers. How many years did you pick them to win the Super Bowl before the season started? You never saw the collapse coming. You predicted 12-4 this season.

                Just stop.

              24. Now you’ve resorted to making stuff up. I agreed with the switch to Kaepernick. I never predicted the Niners would win the SB this year. I never said they didn’t need Davis, just that they could survive without him which they did seeing as though he had no impact and the offense was up in passing across the board.

                Give it up Grant this is an argument you can’t win. The fact you are making stuff up is a new low though.

              25. You agreed with it after the fact, but you didn’t see it coming. When I predicted it before the Bears’ game you flatly said I was wrong, like you always do. But you were wrong, like you always are.

              26. Across the board? Which board are you looking at? From 2013 to 2014, the following 49ers’ team stats dropped: passer rating, yards per attempt, touchdown passes per game.

              27. You always go back and change your entry after I post a rebuttal.

                Greg Roman? You have praised Roman more than I ever have.

                AJ Jenkins I said should be given a chance not that he would be a good player but sure I’ll take the hit on that one.

                LMJ didn’t get a chance here and that’s all I questioned because he was a dynamic player in College. Never said he was great. I also said he was a better KR/PR than people gave him credit for and that was proved correct this season when Ellington didn’t play up to that standard.

                Should we go back over players you praised that didn’t work out? There’s a lot of them.

              28. You attacked me for criticizing them just like you attacked me for praising Del Rio. You backpedal when you’re inevitably proven wrong.

              29. You agreed with it after the fact, but you didn’t see it coming. When I predicted it before the Bears’ game you flatly said I was wrong, like you always do. But you were wrong, like you always are.

                Up until that Chicago game there was nothing to base an opinion on. As I remember my point was I didn’t think Kap was ready but it turned out he was. I don’t remember flatly saying you were wrong. Please post that I’d like to see exactly what was said.

                I’m really amused that you keep saying I’m wrong when I’ve already showed you clear examples of bets I won against you and the numerous things you’ve been wrong about . I haven’t even mentioned Tyler Wilson or David Fales yet. Fales in the second or 3rd round you predicted I believe. Tyler Wilson was too much nonsense to even remember now. There is a lot of material here to work with. You’ve said a lot of dumb things the past few years.

              30. There was plenty to base an opinion on, which is why I put myself on the line.

                You rarely put yourself on the line. You never see the forest through the trees. You just tell other people why they’re wrong. I’m still waiting to hear who you think the Niners should hire to be the next head coach.

              31. You backpedal when you’re inevitably proven wrong.

                You are accusing somebody else of backpedaling? You are truly that self unaware? You are the King of changing your opinions when they are proven wrong. There are countless examples of that and they are constant. You never admit when you are wrong even when it’s obvious. You just spin and backpedal and try to shift the narrative.

                I was having some fun with you before now, but I see you are truly delusional with this statement.

              32. Grant its just a little bit disingenuous you calling some one out for not admitting they were wrong. Everytime i have asked you to use the phrase I was wrong in a post you have either ignored my post or made a lame passive agressive attempt to defend an opinion that the majority here have found to be false. So I have one thing to say to you on the subject, Pot meet Kettle.

              33. Grant,

                This argument was over as soon as you tried to pass off the idea that a two time 4000 yard passer with 29-12 TD to Int ratio, who had also been the QB of back to back playoff teams, was developed by a guy who didn’t Coach him until he was 5 years in. Ryan was going to reach the heights he did no matter who the OC was at that point and had made most of his improvements under Mike Mularkey. Koetter got to step in and call plays for a QB who was already developed.

                You are either too stubborn to admit you made the statement before checking the legitimacy first, or you have no idea what develop means.

            2. Grant, you are a one legged man in an ass kicking contest. I’m sorry to be so blunt, but you arguing that somebody else is always wrong is like Jed York arguing this team wins with class. Nobody has been more wrong than you. That isn’t debatable.

              I’ll tell you who I want to be HC. I want an Offensive Coach and would be fine with Kubiak, Shanahan, Gase or McDaniels. The defense is already top 5. We don’t need a Defensive HC. We need a new offensive identity and any of these guys would achieve that.

              1. Not blunt, just cliche. That’s your style.

                You picked three failures and a guy who has no experience as a head coach or developing quarterbacks. Brilliant, Rocket.

              2. Koetter developed Matt Ryan, raised his completion percentage to 68 and his QB rating to 99 by age 27. The Niners need someone who could do that for Kaepernick.

              3. Ryan was already developed by the time Koetter arrived. The biggest difference was Julio Jones which made Ryans numbers even better.

                In regards to Kap, he was on pace for the best passing season of his career before things fell apart at Thanksgiving. Davis was not an issue, and really never was. The inconsistency of the running game, Kaps inconsistency and the pass protection were much bigger problems.

              4. Julio Jones was there before Koetter. Jones averaged 73.8 yards per game in 2011 and 74.9 yards per game in 2012.

                Koetter developed Ryan. You need to learn how to admit when you’re wrong, Rocket.

              5. “In regards to Kap, he was on pace for the best passing season of his career before things fell apart at Thanksgiving.”

                Only because he was throwing more. His yards per attempt was lower even before that point.

              6. Matt Ryan recorded passer ratings in the 90s in 2010 and 2011. Koetter did not develop Ryan, he was already performing well by the time Koetter got there. All Koetter did was put more reliance on Matt Ryan by making him pass the ball more often. Worked well in 2012 when they had ridiculous talent around him. In 2013 when Jones went down, it didn’t work well at all. And not getting the run game going this year also hurt them.

              7. Ryan was not developed. He was young and talented. Kaepernick posted passer ratings in the 90s in 2012 and 2013 but he was not developed, either. Koetter made Ryan more efficient.

              8. Wow, if he wasn’t developed then I can tell you that every OC wants to get their hands on a QB as undeveloped as Ryan was to mold.

                Ryan improved (marginally) under Koetter’s guidance, as you’d hope from any player that is still relatively young. But by 2011 Ryan was already playing at a high level. And unlike Kaep, it was while playing as a more traditional drop back QB.

              9. He improved significantly. He never came close to a 68 completion percentage or a 99 passer rating before Koetter.

              10. Julio Jones was there before Koetter. Jones averaged 73.8 yards per game in 2011 and 74.9 yards per game in 2012.

                So what’s your point? Ryan was very good before Jones and improved even more with Jones.

                Koetter developed Ryan. You need to learn how to admit when you’re wrong, Rocket.

                No you need to give up and stop arguing because you are looking silly now. Ryan was already an excellent QB before Koetter arrived. His two seasons before Koetter got there under Mularkey were similar to his best under Koetter, in fact the Falcons ranked higher in points scored under Mularkey than they did at anytime under Koetter.

                The idea that Koetter came in and developed a QB who was throwing for over 4000 yards and 29 TD’s before he even arrived is laughable.

              11. Ryan had his biggest statistical jump the year Koetter joined the staff, not the year Jones joined the team. Koetter developed Ryan into a more efficient quarterback.

              12. Only because he was throwing more. His yards per attempt was lower even before that point.

                His YPA before the Thanksgiving game was 7.5. At the same point the year before it was 7.4.

                His completion percentage was 62%, the year before it was 57%.

                Overall yards were higher and TD passes were the same.

                If we want to look at his half season, then the numbers are higher but in terms of looking at starting the season as a starter between 2013 and 2014, his numbers were the same or better across the board before the Thanksgiving game.

              13. Ryan had his biggest statistical jump the year Koetter joined the staff, not the year Jones joined the team. Koetter developed Ryan into a more efficient quarterback.

                Smh. He had a line of 29TD,12 Int., completion percentage of 61.3, yard per attempt of 7.4 the year before Koetter arrived.

                He had a line of 32TD, 14 Int. and a completion percentage of 68.6 and a yards per attempt of 7.7. The only significant difference was completion percentage and that can be greatly affected by completing as little as one extra pass a game.

                This is truly one of those times where you just can’t give it up and keep digging the hole deeper. Just admit you pulled that comment out of your butt without checking and be done with it.

              14. Only you would competley discount efficiency to try to win an argument. Weak.

                The difference between a 90 rating and a 99 rating is the difference between solid and excellent.

              15. I wouldn’t discount it at all if it actually meant something in terms of points scored or wins and losses, but it doesn’t. The overall numbers are pretty much the same across the board and Ryan was clearly a very good QB before Koetter arrived. When you give a Coach credit for developing a player it means from the ground up; not coming in and improving already top tier numbers. Mularkey got as much out of Ryan as Koetter did and they ranked higher in points scored with him as well.

              16. Of course efficiency matters. Wow, the things you say. The Falcons won three more games in 2012 than they did in 2011.

                Ryan was good before Koetter. Koetter made him elite.

              17. I was basing my comment off his totals from the previous two seasons, not specific points in time.

              18. Of course efficiency matters. Wow, the things you say. The Falcons won three more games in 2012 than they did in 2011.

                They won 13 in 2010 with Ryan putting up similar numbers to his time with Koetter and more points. Efficiency is important, but 62% completion is already pretty good. Completing a few more passes while putting up the same numbers everywhere else is not an example of being developed Grant. Ryan was clearly already playing at a high level when Koetter arrived. Koetter did not develop him. He oversaw 3 years where Ryan put up the same kind of numbers he had under Mularkey and completed a few more to make the completion percentage look better. It had no affect on his production overall.

                Ryan was good before Koetter. Koetter made him elite.

                Whatever you say Grant. You just can’t stop digging.

              19. You refuse to acknowledge reality, as usual. The Falcons won 13 games in 2010 with a better defense than the sieve they had in 2012 that gave up 6 yards per play. They also had a better running game in 2010 than 2012. Ryan’s passer rating in 2010 was 91 — nothing special. Ryan was playing at a good level before Koetter, and Koetter immediately brought him to an elite level.

              20. I was basing my comment off his totals from the previous two seasons, not specific points in time

                I thought I was clear when I said the best passing season of his career before the Thanksgiving game but I can see where there could be some confusion. 2012 wasn’t a full season. I was looking at the years he began the season as the starter.

              21. Put this in the wrong spot above:

                rant,

                This argument was over as soon as you tried to pass off the idea that a two time 4000 yard passer with 29-12 TD to Int ratio, who had also been the QB of back to back playoff teams, was developed by a guy who didn’t Coach him until he was 5 years in. Ryan was going to reach the heights he did no matter who the OC was at that point and had made most of his improvements under Mike Mularkey. Koetter got to step in and call plays for a QB who was already developed.

                You are either too stubborn to admit you made the statement before checking the legitimacy first, or you have no idea what develop means.

              22. Improving a quarterback from good to elite is development. Matt Stafford has passed for 5,000 yards and a 41-16 TD-INT ratio but he isn’t developed or elite. He could use Koetter’s coaching. Kaepernick was the QB for back-to-back playoff teams but he isn’t developed or elite. He could use Koetter’s coaching.

                It’s OK, I’m happy to explain these things to you.

              23. Wow you are really digging in this time.

                The numbers he put up under Mularkey were comparable in every facet except completion percentage. Improving the completion percentage 6% is not improving from good to elite. That type of improvement is expected with experience. He was already elite in the other categories, unless you believe the difference between good and elite in TD passes is 3. We haven’t even talked about the fact that was his highwater mark and the fact he dropped back the past two years.

                I’m done Grant. This has got to be one of the dumbest debates we’ve ever had.

              24. Completing 69 percent of one’s passes is not expected with experience. Very few quarterbacks ever complete 69 percent of their passes.

                Ryan’s passer ratings under Mularkey were 87, 80, 91 and 92. That’s average. Koetter immediately raised his passer rating to 99 which is elite. Even this past year with all the injuries around him, Ryan’s passer rating was 94, higher than it ever was when the offense was healthy under Mularkey.

                Really, I’m more than happy to explain all of this to you.

            3. So it was Seifert who changed and not the talent level of the team he was coaching. Where do you get all this inside information?

  70. Hey AES you out there? I know your a big Giant fan as I am, anyhow Stu Miller passed.

    1. undercenter,
      Yup, received that sad news earlier. One of the originals that came from New York to San Francisco.
      RIP

    2. … and Stu never was blown of any stinking mound. Is motion home was disturbed and a baulk was called.

  71. How many candidates are going to contact Jim Harbaugh to ask him what’s up with Baalke and the Prince?

    If they do, will Harbaugh spill the dirt?

    1. Seems to me they’re interviewing guys that aren’t going to say no if the job is offered. So even if they did call, which they aren’t likely to do it probably wouldn’t matter what he said to them.

    2. Most likely there is a confidentiality agreement in place which prevents both sides from saying much.

      1. Do you believe that? The FO “Jim did it” leak campaign hasn’t stopped, and see above for Jim.

    3. The talented ones who are confident in their talent will do their due diligence, and most of us know that Jim Harbaugh can convey exactly what he wants to without coming right out with any “dirt”.

    1. Thanks for posting that Cubus. Other candidates are most likely discouraged by the front office incompetency.

      Also, Maiocco is reporting that, in addition to Jed and Baalke, Paraag is involved in the search and interview process. Oh brother, what does that stooge know about football?

  72. Number 5 is not correct. He can make the screen pass to the running back. Go back, look at his college film. He has touch.

  73. The delima…. bring in new blood and innovation, while retaining Tomsula/Fangio/Donatell/Rathman/Solari.

    That might be impossible. That painful reality is taking much of the fun out the whole HC debate. There will be no gains, without corresponding losses.

    If the 2011-13 49er coaching staff was exactly the same (flaws and all), but with better 4th qtr game management skills, we could be looking at 3 more Lombardi trophies.

    Its a shame the whole thing has to be broken down, just to fix a single poorly functioning element.

    1. This isn’t to say the 49ers only had one problem on offense ( there were others, like poor red zone play) but to highlight how close we were to ultimate success, and now its being taken apart.

    2. Brodie,
      The Jim Harbaugh firing had little to do with winning. Jed, Trent, and Paraag didn’t get along with Jim. It seems that they could not differentiate between personal and professional conduct. The decision appears to be more emotionally driven.

    1. Jack..

      I haven’t heard anything “official”… but
      I guess this is a good indication that
      G-Ro is out the door .. huh ?

    1. Win with class Jed? You can’t even work with class, so who the heck are you kidding?

  74. A couple of interesting points from Barrows article, quoted below:

    http://www.sacbee.com/sports/nfl/san-francisco-49ers/article5469768.html

    1) “Because teams are discouraged from upstaging the playoff games on the weekend, the 49ers’ announcement on their next coach likely won’t occur until Monday at the earliest.

    2) “The team has yet to set up an interview with defensive-line coach Jim Tomsula, his agent said Monday.”

    3)”As for Shanahan, many league observers believe his hiring would include a package deal with his son Kyle, who served as his father’s offensive coordinator in Washington from 2010 to 2013 and has a good reputation for his work with quarterbacks.”

    4)”Fangio would have several options at offensive coordinator, including former Chicago coach Marc Trestman and current Dallas offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, whose contract expires at the end of the season. Another possibility is ex-Browns head coach Rob Chudzinski, an offensive assistant with Indianapolis who served as offensive coordinator with Cleveland and Carolina. Chudzinski shares an agent with Fangio. Chudzinski also was Frank Gore’s offensive coordinator at the University of Miami. The 49ers are trying to convince Gore to sign a contract extension.”

  75. HC- Dan Quinn
    DC – Vic Fangio
    OC – Scott Frost
    DL coach – Jim Tomsula
    DB Coach – Ed Donatell
    Special Assistant – Cris Ault

    1. That’s a pipe dream scenario razor.. That would be a great coaching staff but I don’t see it.

        1. God I hope your right! Scott frost would be amazing.. Perfect fit for kaep. That kid will be a head coach next year I guarentee it.

          1. Harbaugh was a dream come true but without the fairy tale ending. I agree Frost would be a perfect fit at OC for Kaepernick, but I think he’ll end up as the Nebraska head coach next year. I doubt York is that smart anyways….

            1. Razor I don’t believe that Frost will end up at Neb. because Riley will take that program to the next level. With Myer, Harbaugh, Franklin, Riley and Dantonio all coaching in the Big 10 the SEC will become a second thought on the national scene. Frost is a gimick coach and should stay in college. We all should learn from C. Kelly gimick college coaches won’t succeed in the NFL.

      1. Adding Quinn to Fangios’ defense sharpens the edge of the blade. I’m also interested to see how Quinn might incorporate some of Carrolls’ concepts with Tank, Bowman, Willis and Lynch, Boreland….

        1. Agree it would be interesting to have Quinn on board, but as a practical matter, I doubt Fangio would go for it. OTOH, I still haven’t seen any interest from other teams regarding hiring Fangio as a HC. If that remains, his only job might be with the 49ers.

          1. I can think of a few reasons why we haven’t seen interests from other teams: Fangio has let other teams know he won’t listen to offers unless he isn’t named the next HC, the fact that the team didn’t grant permission for Washington to interview him has caused other teams to be gun shy, or the other teams are just biding their time because they know he will eventually be released from his contract.

      2. I’d favor Quinn over Fangio simply because I favor the 4-3 press defense. And Quinn isn’t just succeeding in Seattle. His 4-3 defenses were excellent in Miami as well. Yes, you can say, “well he’s been coordinating for defensive head coaches.” And to that I say, “Good. He’s learned from a couple of the best defensive minds in NFL history.”

  76. Grant
    Funnu how u were one of the guys who was yelling from the mountain top to keep Alex on the bench when he got hurt because Kaep was more dynamic and u didnt want a check down QB. Now u act as if u were always the QB guru! I always defended Alex needed a good head coach, and now Keap needs a coach to use his skill set, while working with his not so great trates!

  77. Grant: don’t mean to complain, but this post is getting to large to manipulate easily in.

    I happen to catch Mike & Mike this morning and Harbaugh gave a 12 minute interview and he is really funny interview. I never realized he had such a sense of humor. It was around the 6:30 mark. I’ll post the podcast later. He answered questions at the 49ers and why he’s not there and what CK has to do to get to the next level. . Anyway, worth the listen.

  78. Something to ponder.
    Singletary’s 2010 defense yielded 22 points per game. In 2011 Fangio’s defense yielded 14 points per game.
    If Singletary had Fangio and his defense he would have won at the same clip Harbaugh did. We kept the right coach. Coach Jim Harbaugh never had a prolific offense even when he played. Bring in kid Shanahan and Pop Shanahan who like to run the ball and watch us score more points and be a stronger team.

  79. Media & fans are all fussing about the coach searches “dragging out.” Its OK, everybody’s curious, but I take more time buying a car than we’re allowing these teams to find new Head Coaches or GM. And I do keep my cards close to the vest during the process. Just saying.

    1. Brotha,

      It’s just the fear of the unknown. I am one of those fans who wants to know ASAP. But I do understand, just as your car analogy, this is a investment. Hopefully a long term investment with great returns. I want to know now, but me wanting to know isn’t more important than them going through all their options and making the best decision.

      1. KY:

        There’s a couple of practical issues as well. Rooney rule has to be satisfied. Also, as I understand it, although it is possible to schedule an interview with a candidate on a playoff team, an actual offer can’t be made until that playoff team is eliminated or wins it all. Second issue wouldn’t affect the Shanahans, Ryan, Fangio, or Tomsula, but would Quinn, Gase, McDaniels and Kubiak.

    2. Brotha

      The F.O. knew for over 6 months that they would be looking for a coach at this time. I wouldn’t be surprised that they have already picked a couple (Plan A and Plan B) going into the search process. It’s probably now all window-dressing and a nod to due diligence and placate all fan constituencies: “I love York and Baalke — they interviewed my candidate” :)

      1. I hope they have a plan, Mood. Maybe we’ll be able to guess when it shakes out.
        The way Jed launched his PR blitz (punching bag act) right out of the gate suggests he did think ahead a little bit.
        Hindsight is always convenient, but truly I did notice last summer and throughout this season that Jim looked different on the sideline. A little less intense and volcanic in body language and facial expression. A little less air in the balloon. Running at 94% instead of 101% of Pure Harbaugh Juice? Perhaps a bit less self-assured? Who knows if or how that effected the players?

        1. I notice the same thing BT. However, I figured his wife was largely responsible for the change, especially after the heart procedure. We’ll see what happens when he roams the Michigan sideline.

    3. The Rooney rule is a big part of why it’s taking a few more days as well as the fact there might be coordinators in the playoffs they still want to interview. There is no reason to rush the process just to appease impatient media and fans. They have to get this right and I’m glad it’s taking awhile before an announcement is made.

  80. Just read this on another blog. Something to ponder.
    Singletary’s 2010 defense yielded 22 points per game. In 2011 Fangio’s defense yielded 14 points per game.
    If Singletary had Fangio and his defense he would have won at the same clip Harbaugh did. We kept the right coach. Coach Jim Harbaugh never had a prolific offense even when he played. Bring in kid Shanahan and Pop Shanahan who like to run the ball and watch us score more points and be a stronger team.

    1. > If Singletary had Fangio and his defense he would have won at
      > the same clip Harbaugh did.

      So why didn’t he? Fangio was available at that time, I believe. Because one of the skills of great managers and CEOs is the ability to hire good people. That’s one of Jim Harbaugh’s greatest strengths. As soon as he got to Michigan, he set about trying to poach two of the most prized football people at Stanford (The strength and conditioning coach Shannon Turley and the DC Lance Anderson) — thankfully he failed!

      Fangio was out of a job when Harbaugh hired him to be the DC at Stanford. When he came to the Niners, detractors here and on other blogs pointed out that Fangio’s defenses “regressed” at his earlier stops from year to year. The actual numbers bear that out, but ignore the personnel losses.

      Fans now singing the praises of Fangio ignore the excellent job Baalke has done in stocking up defensively on personnel. To my thinking, the important thing is that Baalke and Fangio have worked well together in creating this resilient, versatile, and overachieving defense.

  81. I heard this little gem on Brock & Salk, ESPN:

    You mean there are only 5 guys (the same 5 guys) on everybody’s list who can coach their team to a superbowl?????

    This is what Paul Allen did: Tod Leiweke was the key deciding factor in the firing of former Seattle Seahawks coach Jim L. Mora in January 2010,[3] and also was the main benefactor in the hiring of USC coach Pete Carroll.

    Tod is the younger brother of Tim Leiweke,[4] president and CEO of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.

    HIRE A CONSULTANT

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tod_Leiweke

  82. Two things I’m surprised about regarding the HC search:

    1) Tomsula has still not had a formal interview.

    2) Fangio has not been interviewed by other teams for their HC position. I know we think he is great, but why is he garnering little to no interest? Quinn is getting much more interest, but I don’t think he has any HC experience.

    1. @Cubus

      You might refer to Bro Tuna’s car buying experience…cards close to the vest….As much as we’d like to believe differently, we’re not the only team doing that very thing….ALL of the other teams are holding their cards the same way….

  83. Gus malzhan on niners radar! Talk about a great get if its possible.. Perfect fit as well. Make it happen Jed!

    1. He was my first choice. I’m impressed and surprised the 49ers recognize his potential fit as their next head coach….

    1. There’s the weapon of vertical destruction Kaepernick needs. Yes! Wise decision son. Come on aboard and Captain Boldin will show you how to become a professional football player…..

    2. An embarrassment to Sooner football. Should have never wasted time on a practice squad player. They should have put in more time with their horrible qb. :-)

    1. Good for Scot, but I’m having a hard time understanding where the all the love for him is coming from. He was a decent talent evaluator, but extremely overrated in terms of what he put together during his time in SF. His last two drafts before being let go were terrible. Other than the first round picks like Davis, Willis and Staley, he really didn’t unearth much in the way of top talent. Gore and McDonald were great 3rd round picks but there isn’t much else there to get excited about.

  84. The real search is not for a coach, but for signs of intelligence in 49ers management. It is looking bleak, so far. Let’s hope that Cohan:Warriors != York:Niners.

  85. Agree with Kap’s faults, not necessarily if they can be fixed or not. Seems to me he’s played better in the past so some of the faults in his play are due to circumstance. So it would be a good year to draft someone to develop behind him and meanwhile get someone to really work on technique.

  86. Speaking about the Malzahn rumor. Can anyone name the last HC coach coming from a SEC school who was a success in the NFL

    1. MWD:

      I listened to that interview live and Mike & Mike asked JH what the 49ers needed to do to take CK to the next step/level and JH sidestepped the question. Maybe that’s why they left it out of the hard document/interview.

      1. I’d forgotten that classy bit of FO behavior. On the other hand, there isn’t anything special about NFL officials and owners being hypocrites.

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