Report: 49ers worst franchise in American sports

You probably have seen this already, but if you haven’t, here’s the deal. Every year, ESPN ranks all 122 American sports franchises, and this year ESPN ranked the San Francisco 49ers dead last. As in worse than every other franchise in the country. Even worse than the Oakland A’s.

ESPN bases it’s grading criteria on ownership, coaching, players, title track, fan relations, affordability, stadium experience and bang for buck. And the Niners rank lower than 104th in every single category except “title track,” because they won five Super Bowls in the ’80s and ’90s under different ownership.

Do you agree with these rankings? And do you think they will shame the Yorks into firing their son, Jed, or selling the team altogether? Why or why not?

This article has 141 Comments

    1. Very interesting that 49ers are dead last in one list and climbing up the other…. you would think these 2 would be correlated somehow…

      What’s your thoughts on that Grant?

      1. Leo,

        No correlation between the two because one is about franchise value only and the other takes everything else into consideration including on field product. The franchise value is very high due to the new stadium, but the organization is a disaster in every other area.

    1. Be sure you listen to the entire thing. Kirwan is always great and he’s got some good stuff this week.

    2. Thanks CfC, that was an interesting listen. Kirwan is always great to listen to. Loved his comments about the value of signing guys for intel.

  1. It is sort of interesting that everyone is jumping on the “remove Jed” bandwagon which I started last year. The Cohns, father and son, have fully embraced my position and written about it. Glad to have you guys on board.

    Jed needs to recuse himself from any football operations. I guess would be okay with him and Parathe lingering and promoting lady gaga and ice capades so long as their pet projects dont foul up the turf at Levis.

    Denise should immediately consult with her brother and carmen policy. They should immediately put together a Committee of contemporary executives , coaches and players who have an affiliation and love for the niners. This committee will be tasked with finding a new GM and President. Who in turn will be assigned the task of finding a coaching staff.

    Let’s not overlook some of the players and coaches who were swept away by Baalke. I would love to have Tomsula back as DL coach.
    How about Mike Smith as HC?

    We need major changes all over the place.

    1. Rollo, please. Many others have advocated for Jed’s removal, I bet you were not the first. I know that I advocated for Jed to hold himself accountable within the hour of him saying that. Others preceded me.

      I Think that the Yorks have enough money. They do not have something that money cannot but- Respect.

      Denise, being the daughter of Edward J Debartolo, should take a leadership role.

      She should hold Jed accountable. She should demote him to team president, and install her son Tony as CEO. Do not know Tony, or even if that is his right name, but the removal of Jed is the only thing that will start to fix the dysfunction.

      Tony should start by firing Baalke, elevating Gamble, and retaining Chip for continuity. He should fire both Coordinators and select coaches. They should get back to the Niner roots. They should reward loyalty by promoting Rathman to OC. Tony should beg Tomsula to return as the DC. He should get Steve Young to help as the QB coach. He should hire Bryant Young as a D line assistant. Jerry rice for WRs. Brent Jones for the TEs, and Ronnie Lott for the DBs. Then, maybe they can get back to playing Niner Football.

      Mike Smith is intriguing, but if Chip goes, Jim Schwartz may be another good candidate.

      1. Has Steve Young, Rice, Jones ever coached at any level? You some how think they can coach at the highest level of football simply because they played the game?
        How obtuse!

        1. They may not have put in the needed time to become coaches, but I bet they would relish the challenge. Maybe install them as assistants, I just want them to impart their wisdom and knowledge. They also know how to win, and act like champions. Invite Charles Haley too.

          1. Coaching and giving advice are 2 completely different entities. You obviously have never coached and understand the grind it requires.
            How old are you really Seb? You clearly have very limited experience?

            1. No, Prime, I listen to them, and they all admit that they want to enjoy life, and not be consumed by coaching. I do not want them to grind away if they do not want to, but they know how to win, and act like champions. I want them as consultants not only for their knowledge and wisdom, I want them for their leadership skills, something that is totally lacking at the present moment.

        1. I agree with you. In the mean time as long as Kasper nick wants to keep displaying his ” LOOK AT ME AFRO” fans should start wearing clown afros in red, blue, green and yellow so he won’t be the only “look at me” in the stadium.

          1. Maybe those clown afros should be green to represent all of the cash York has stuck in his pocket while fleecing the fans and he and Balke screwed up the team.

      2. I’m pretty sure I was the first. I don’t want any more Yorks involved with the Niners . Let’s bring in an outside group. I like Lott, RIce, Young , Montana, etc on the executive committee, but not necessarily coaches.

        A team can turn around pretty quick with 1-2 good drafts and a good coach ie: Eagles this year , Niners 2013.

    2. I think Tomsula’s making around $3m-$4m a year for the next three season’s just kicking back. Why would he want to coach D-line?

      If I recall correctly, there’s offset language in his contract. If he coaches anywhere his new salary is subtracted from what the 49ers are currently paying him.

    3. It is sort of interesting that everyone is jumping on the “remove Jed” bandwagon which I started last year.

      Lol. You didn’t start anything. There are people here who have been advocating Jed remove himself from his position for years. Between you and Seb – who believes the Pop Warner level suggestions he makes are somehow innovative and unknown to pro Coaches – we have so much hot air resonating from here that global warming is a distant second on the list of dangers to the planet.

      1. Yup, I advocated that they should do simple things like roll Kaep out. It does not take a rocket scientist to think up easy things to do to help them win.

        Oh look, Kaep rolled out, threw on the run and scored a TD last game. Of course, they never listen to me, so that was just an amazing coincidence that I advocated something that works.

        1. Seb this has got to stop. Seriously, you are embarrassing yourself to the point it’s hard to imagine you as a mentally stable person. For once stop and read and try to absorb what is being said and don’t play the victim after you’ve read it. Instead try to look past your self indulgence and figure out why people have mocked you on this and other message boards. The one common denominator is you. Everything else is different from the people you interact with to the blogs you do it on.

          You have no tangible football knowledge. That has been evident from day one. The TD you reference was not a designed roll out. It was a breakdown created by Kap leaving the pocket after feeling pressure. Suggesting Kap roll out is also nothing new, it has happened quite frequently over the years and for every time it actually works, there are many more times it doesn’t. That’s because of two reasons: First, defenses know how to defend it the more they see it, and two, it reduces the options at the QB’s disposal because you are cutting off half the field. It is a change up that can be effective if it is only used in certain situations. QB’s have to be able to play from the pocket to have sustained success in the NFL. It’s been proven time and time again and running QB’s don’t last if they can’t learn to do it. That’s something you don’t seem to understand. Just like looking one way and throwing the other is not some innovative idea you came up with. That is something that is taught in High School and even earlier in some higher end football programs.. What you also don’t seem able to grasp since you obviously have never played the game or Coached it, is that it is a hard skill to learn and execute while under the pressure of live action. Your comments reek of a guy sitting on his lazy boy and viewing the players as if they are in a video game.

          You suggest simple concepts that 10 year olds know Seb. Your expectations of the solutions being that easy is evidence of someone who truly has no idea what it’s like to play this game. That is why you are continually mocked on here. You truly believe you are suggesting things that people aren’t already aware of and that somehow they are read and incorporated by pro Coaches. You suffer from extreme delusion Seb.

          Your suggestions are infantile and serve no purpose to anyone on here. Guessing some players a team takes in the draft is not football knowledge. It is looking at a list of names and positions of players you have likely never heard of or seen, and getting lucky on some. Many times names are associated with teams for months and they come true. I and a number of others have hit on numerous players over the years due to those very reasons and I guarantee we watched a lot more College players than you. It’s got nothing to do with football knowledge, but I’m not surprised that you believe it is. You have an incredible lack of self awareness that borders on the sublime. Try posting less and learn more about the game so you can actually contribute meaningful insight instead of the Football for Dummies you are bringing to the table right now. I realize this will likely fall on deaf ears and you will receive it as some form of attack, but it needed to be said anyway imo.

            1. I read somewhere once that arguing with an idiot will make you look like one too.

              There’s been several times today that I almost responded to Sebnynah today but remembered this quote and just moved along.

              1. The saying goes ….. You don’t want to argue with a fool/ idiot….. ‘Cause from a distance…. You can’t tell who is who

          1. The whole concept of rolling out Kaep was to play to his strengths. Of course they designed plays where he was forced to stand in the pocket, but when he did roll out, it resulted in a TD. You cannot declare that just because they did not scheme a rollout, it was not a success.

            I agree, I have proposed simple, easy things because I do not want it to be too complicated. You may say that they are pee wee football plays, but since they do not do them, and are 1-6, maybe they need to try something different.

            I totally admit that I did not devise the plays, they have been around in the football lexicon since before the SB era. What I have done, is present certain schemes that may help them win games, and presented them in a concise simple way that could be implemented quickly.

            BTW, how many players did you hit in your mock? One? Three is a pretty good number, and not many on this site can claim more than 2.Mentioning a laundry list of players is just cheap hindsight. I proposed many mocks, and many players who are doing well were in those mocks, but I chose the last mock, because it was the most relevant, especially with all the pre draft trades.

            I also call for just common sense, like stop shooting themselves in the foot. I also advocated saving the time outs for the last 2 minutes. Instead of deriding me for having the audacity to propose something that they were not doing, and losing because of it, maybe you should agree with me. Push back against good ideas is obtuse, and counter productive.

            The strategy that calls for Kaep to face one way, while looking in another direction is my favorite, because if Kaep had done that in his next game, he would have seen 3 wide open receivers. They would have gone to the SB again.

            I will continue to post. I invite you, and everyone else to ignore them if they wish. With the team doing so poorly, they need a lot of help, so I will propose my strategies to try and help them improve.

            I sure am glad that they followed my advice to promote and start DuJuan Harris, even if they profess to never read these blogs. Next, I think that they should sit Bellore and play Skov. Hope that happens because Bellore not only ran out of the lane they ran through, he blocked other defenders from making a tackle.

            I will probably post less, because this team sucks, but I will not claim that I was viciously attacked. You were actually civil, and while I disagree with lots of your points, I hope you do not think that I have gone ballistic on you in return.

            1. Rockett, IICRC, you were one of those posters who were big on Goff. I was happy with Gabbert and Kaep, so I thought the D line was more important. I knew Chip was enamored with Buckner because he recruited him, and was proven correct.

            2. Seb you truly are lost. This blog is better with you gone. How many posters have called out your preposterous ideas and repetitive junk jargon?
              Do us and yourself all a favor. Go back to being Poe Niner or whatever your name was and go back to that other blog!

              1. Sorry, Prime, I like it here, especially when Grant Trolls you by mentioning that football is like a wargame.

              2. But you are verbal diarrhea and clueless, and not too many people welcome your crap! Be gone!

            3. Seb,

              Your problem is you think you know more than you really do and you try too hard to convince people of that. Everything you suggest on here is remedial football. You are talking about Pop Warner and HS level things with your observations. When the team runs a play that is similar to some basic open ended comment you happened to make, it’s not a case of a HC seeing it while mining message boards for ideas. Can you not see how ridiculous it is to suggest that? All you are doing is regurgitating things that have been done a million times and treating it as though you invented the wheel.

              Football at it’s very core is a pretty simple game. Winning the line of scrimmage is and always has been the key to winning the game. Leverage and Tackling are the first things you are taught when learning how to play and are the most fundamental keys to success. What you suggest most of the time are fundamental ideas about football. Everybody knows those things already. When you get to the pro level you aren’t just discussing fundamental elements of football anymore. There are guys in the NFL who have spent many years Coaching at all levels of the sport, and put in hours upon hours of time trying to find a handful of plays where they can exploit a weakness because that’s how close the competition is from week to week. When you suggest some of the things you do, it’s like you really don’t have any idea how hard it is to get 11 men playing in unison at the same time for about an 8 second sequence. That’s how I know you don’t really understand the game. It’s not that easy and so many make the mistake of not realizing that the final product they see each week whether successful or not, came about through hours of preparation and practice. That’s why I get annoyed with your comments. You need to get over this idea that you somehow know things others don’t and have the answers that men who have dedicated decades to this sport haven’t been able to grasp.

              Almost every kid who plays Pop Warner with any ability to throw the ball gets a shot at QB at some point. I did and wasn’t bad in practice, but you know what happens to most kids when they then have to do it for real and with others trying to hit them? They fail. I could throw the ball well and could run pretty fast, but when things went live, I couldn’t take my eyes off the people who were trying to hit me. You can’t play QB if you are unable to block out the chaos that is happening around you. You believe looking one way and throwing the other is some novel idea that isn’t being taught, but the reality is only a small number of people can do it. QB is the hardest position to play in sports imo and it only gets harder as you increase the level of competition. Kap is an amazing athlete, but he lacks 2 of the most essential elements to play the position at this level and that is vision and poise in the pocket. If you can’t master those two things you can’t have success as an NFL QB.

              This is not an attempt to attack you Seb. I’m honestly trying to help you understand why you receive the negative attention you do and get through to you on the fact you have a lot to learn about the game. Not everyone is or needs to be an expert to enjoy watching football, but it becomes pretty obvious who gets it and who doesn’t when ideas are thrown around or suggestions are made.

              I’m not going to get into the mock draft argument. There is zero knowledge involved in it other than trying to assess needs and value for your team at that point in time. A few of us around here are big time College football and draft nuts and probably spend way too much time trying to guess who’s going to be good and who isn’t. Even after all that, sometimes you hit on a couple of players and sometimes you don’t but you never truly know who is going to make it and who busts. It’s a total crap shoot..

              1. Rocket you are speaking to a thing who’s only on here to annoy us. He does not care about the 49ers. He’s a Kap fan trolling.
                But sure, putting him in his place will eventually drive him away!

              2. I apologize for this lengthy diatribe. I’ve been in a bad mood all day and should have left this in my head.

              3. Rocket, if you notice, I have not hurled invective and insulted you, because I respect your football knowledge. You have your opinion, and I accept it.

                However, I also reserve the right to counter your arguments. My defense of Kaep seems to be repetitive to you, but I am only countering the screeds against him that are pretty repetitive, too.

                I concede that Kaep could improve, but you and many others try to ignore the fact that he ran for 4000 yards while also passing for 10,000 yards in college. He has set records, played in a SB, and came within one pass of returning. He does have talents and skills. We all saw how he did when surrounded by elite talent, and we all saw how he does when the cupboard is bare.

                All I see is the Niners doing things that lead to failure, and have advocated that they do simple things that can help them win.
                I am not trying to reinvent the wheel, but postulating that by using common sense, they may improve. How can you deride the notion that they need to stop shooting themselves in the foot?

                We all are upset, and this 6 game losing streak brings out the worst in posters. Oh, how I long for the Glory Years, but until they learn from their mistakes, they will just continue to lose.

                You are right, I am advocating pretty fundamental stuff that they should have learned in pop warner. The problem is, they are not competent, do not think of innovative plays, and are incapable of making adjustments.

                Hope we can still have calm civil discussions, and I hope to see some of your solutions to help the Niners win a game.

              4. Seb no matter how eloquently you try to prove your point about Kap the result is always the same:
                1. You sound like an idiot
                2.Kap sucks. Plain and simple.

          2. Rocket wrote, “…it’s hard to imagine you as a mentally stable person.”

            Imagining him as such would be foolish at this point, given the plethora of evidence that he is neither mentally nor emotionally stable. Further, it is not his football comments alone that evince such pathology. His comments on political, social, cultural, etc. matters show the same overly simplistic reasoning combined with exaggerated self-importance and shocking lack of self-awareness.

            At this point, it is likely best to bear in mind that his comments are a product of his pathology and give those comments the weight of which they are deserving — none.

            1. JPN,

              You are right of course and I wish I had read this before writing the novel I did above. I just continue to be amazed at the combination of ignorance and self-righteousness Seb has somehow developed..

              1. Hey Rocket – Love means you never have to say I’m sorry. I had to read that dumb book when I was in college (“Love Story” which was made into a movie). It’s obvious you love the 49ers like so many of us do and you know what you’re talking about. No need to apologize. I find it’s sometimes helpful to remember that fan is an abbreviation of fanatic. (see Seb for example) Best to skip by a lot of posts here but I know that it’s easier said than done. [no insults intended]

            2. Thank you, sir. Succinct and to the point, as always. Carry on, continue the march.

              PS
              I think the emotional May delude the rest. There are interesting, although contextually and dogmatically erroneous blips.

          3. Et,tu JPN? Its OK, I am used to taking on a whole blog. The vehemence they display in trying to counter me just gives me power. I have a thick skin, and insults and screeds just bounce off me and rebounds on them.

            It is way more telling to see the ignorance and hate displayed, and it does not reflect well on them, you included.

            1. Seb you stink, Kap stinks, your football IQ. Take your stinky troll attitude and beat it!

              1. Prime, more verbal diarrhea. Trying to drive me away just makes me want to engage you even more.

                Remember, you said a storm is coming….

              2. I remember what I said and it was true. Have you ever said anything worthwhile on this blog? Nope. Still no storm because old wind up can’t deliver. Remember you didn’t want to bet? Why? Cause he’s junk,like you. Take a hike back to Niner Nation Poe!

              3. Prime
                He ain’t going nowhere, but you made me laugh with your 50s era “you stink” hahaha. Brooklynesque.

                Btw, did you see LC’s today column? He made a reference to 1959 Brooklyn and DIDN’T mention that all anybody EVER talked about in 1959 in Brooklyn was the Dodgers having left.
                PPPFFFFFT!!!! Pox Lowell! You lie! LOL! Get real. We were there you and I. You know it!

              4. Someday a real storm will come and wipe this scum off our street, er team. /taxi driver

                OK, scum is a little harsh. I’ll settle for a clean wash of ownership and front office.

            2. There you go again with the “thick skin” business again, Seb………….

              And I say again, thick–like wet tissue paper.

              1. Saw, did I respond in kind? I could be eloquent with my insults and screeds, but this team does not deserve so much passion.
                I could say I won again, but really, I understand the angst, and misdirected hate, so I am cutting all the expletive hurlers some slack.

          4. Here we are once again. Imagine how much easier it would have been for some of you if you had just started ignoring him like I suggested 6 months ago. I haven’t responded or replied to him once and I’ve had no problems. You guys are the ones that insist on responding to him and then beating on him when you get tired of him once again.

            At this point the ones complaining the loudest are the most to blame for him still being here.

              1. Seb-

                When are you going to get it thru your head, when someone disagrees with you, it isn’t necessarily hate??????????

                Do you realize how that sounds? Like a 7 year old child who says “u hate me!!!!” when you tell her, no, u need to go to bed at 8:00…………..? You bring it all on yourself. I believe you do it on purpose-for laughs…………..

              2. Saw, I guess you think they are mature adults when they spew expletives and invective. Just about as mature as your posts.

                You, however, seem easily amused, but that says a lot more about you than it does about me.

          5. Agreed! And Seb, if you have feelings for Kaepernick, you don’t have to disguise them as a genuine belief in his abilities as a QB. This is 2016, the age of the Modern Family, and your team has SF on its helmet.

            1. Yet they play in Santa Clara…..

              No, I just see a QB with all the physical tools, but who is hampered by an indifferent GM who is content to lose and incompetent coaching who do not have a clue how to utilize his talents.

              The hate many, but not all display is just latent racism, especially when they consider him uppity to have the audacity to protest for social justice.

        2. Seb, seb, seb——

          Kap sucks and their can be no denying it–ridiculous posturing aside.

          It is now time for you to change your name to “Seb-skov”, and move to Russia.
          He is/was the proverbial flash in the pan-would have been a better pitcher, i’ll bet.

        1. Rollo,

          I never wanted Jed to be in charge in the first place because he would run the team as his father did. I’m willing to bet money that people on this blog said the same thing. You said you started this last year. You are the one that is late to the party.

          1. I have been reading this blog for awhile . Others may have imagined it. But, I am the one who came out and said it. Saying is better than imagining.

            1. It seems to be very important to you to have been the first to say it, so let’s just go with that because I really don’t think anyone else cares who was first.

              1. It does in the context that we need to make major changes. we can no longer tolerate a bandage on this bullet hole. Every year there are slight modifications and false hope. Every year we heard about WR x looking explosive in OTA and DE X is totally ripped. It is hogwash and rubbish. It isn’t working. We need people at the top who can identify NFL caliber talent. We need to rework this team top to bottom.

              2. Being first matters to people who are insecure about their football acumen. I was the first person to say this. Where is my gold star? :-)

              3. Scooter,

                For some of the poor folks being “the first to say it” is the highlight of their day. Next time I suggest taking the nicer route and giving them a ?.

            2. I only recently joined this site, but I had read this site and there were others on other sites who were way before you.

              On NN, Germ was a seminal Jed hater.

              Mid had a signature that wished Jed violent diarrhea.

              1. The violent bowel movement for Jed….? i can think of nothing more appropriate for 9er ownership…….such that NO bottle of Kaopectate can remedy……..and no proctologist can repair.

                A fitting and proper bit of justice for Yoralke…………………

            3. Question for the veterans of this blog. Did anyone call for Jeds removal before last year? I find it hard to believe that nobody suggested it after Harbaugh was fired or parted ways.

              1. I do not think that anyone was calling for Jed to be removed when they went to 3 straight NFCCGs.

                Everyone was happy that Dr York had given the reins to Jed.

                It was after the 7-4 record that Jed started to get criticism, especially after he tweeted out an apology to the fans after the Seahawk game.

                Missing the playoffs and it became a full throated roar. I was ripping Roman the most during that time.

              2. How would you know Sebnnoying? You blasted on the scene with your idiocy just this year!

              3. Prime, I had read this blog, for years, but did not choose to post here. I have perused many blog sites, it is not uncommon to do that.

              4. Hahah! That’s what Jack Hammer used to say. Nice try. With your big mouth, your telling me you stayed silent? Get serious clown!

              5. I was just on the NN site, and found out they have exceeded the Banner fee. I do peruse various sites, but am content to post here. Get used to it.

              6. Sigh, Prime, I predict that other posters will beg you to stop, because I relish challenges.

              7. Pfft. I remember the “lucky sperm” commentary here from back in the Singletary, or was it Nolan days. For someone to suggest they were “first” last year is just silly.

    4. LMAO-Everyone jumping on the band wagon, which you started?. That pathetic comment, makes me just as sick as York! An bring back Tomsula? The only way he had a job when Harbaugh was there, was because of the Yorks! Why don’t you start you new bandwagon by finding out if the Yorks low-ball all their crappy scouts.Then ask York why the Niners are 48 mill under the cap? I know he says it’s for players raises. Then ask him who the Hell deserves a raise on the team. Jumping on your band wagon? Pathetic!!!

  2. “49ers worst franchise in American sports”

    This headline is way too kind. They left out several adjectives

    The Yorks manage the Niner to be an average team that makes a profit, not to win Super Bowls… and they cant even do that right!

  3. Make it a point to do nothing that puts a dime in Jed’s account. It’s the only thing that will get the attention to the customer. Watch on TV, fine do that as that ship sailed. But PSL…stop paying and let the City then press Jed. Do not go to a game, even if “free”….hey everyone we gotta get serious. I’m a 50 yr fan, its personal in a sense.

    1. Exactly and I’m 40 years watching them. Didn’t get into Football until I was in High School. Giant’s since I was 8 yrs old. 50 yrs.

  4. Of course they’re the worst… Please tell me what the Yorks have done in ~16 years of Niners ownership other than quickly running off the only two winning coaches they’ve employed in Mariucci and Harbaugh… And before anyone points to Levi’s stadium, that stadium was built on Harbaugh’s success.

    When lining your pockets with benjamins is priority and winning simply a bonus, these are the types of “teams” they will continue to field year after year.

  5. The 49ers are 1-6, buried in the NFC West cellar and have dim prospects, thanks to a thin roster, dearth of playmakers and injuries. Yet one player is living up to high expectations: defensive end DeForest Buckner.

    The 49ers’ top pick in this spring’s draft is starting and playing very well almost halfway through his rookie season. In Sunday’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Buckner played the most snaps of any defensive lineman. He was on the field for 73, or 97 percent of all snaps, and was in on six tackles.

    In six games this season, Buckner has been in on 36 tackles, has two sacks and a fumble recovery. Against the Bucs, he committed an unnecessary roughness penalty that helped keep a touchdown drive alive just before halftime. Afterward, he admitted he needs to better control himself. He pushed Bucs center Joe Hawley, after Jameis Winston already had completed a pass, drawing a flag. He indicated that he was baited into the action by Hawley’s play. “I just lost my composure for a quick second,” Buckner told Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group. “It cost us the drive. Next time I have to keep my composure. You can watch the film and see what happened.”

    Yet despite the penalty, Buckner had a solid game. The analytics website Pro Football Focus noted he pressured the quarterback twice, hit him once and had five run stops. The performance comes a week after his best game, against the Bills, in which he was in on nine tackles, had two sacks and recovered a fumble.

    The 49ers defense this season is horrible. There are holes everywhere. But at least Buckner and his former Oregon teammate Arik Armstead – at the other defensive end spot – are giving San Francisco some solid play and hope for the future.

    Source: Buckner is one of 49ers’ Few Bright Spots | NBC Bay Area http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Buckner-is-one-of-49ers-Few-Bright-Spots-398361951.html#ixzz4O7nkl8cF

      1. Yeah they really are.

        There is no context on the grades and valuations and time and importance of the game.

        Just numbers for the sake of numbers really.

      2. No kidding. These guys are terrible at keeping guys off the LB’s.

        Love the advanced stats that PFF provides, but their grading is severely flawed.

      3. Yeah I have to agree. As much as I like the concept of PFF, they really do miss the nuances of the game in their grading sometimes. Buckner hasn’t been awful, but he’s been really poor against the run and some of the pressures they are attributing to him probably come from QB’s holding the ball as Winston did numerous times on Sunday. He has not been remotely impressive enough to warrant positive overall grades, and especially not for where he was drafted. Armstead has been even worse.

        1. Not sure that his height will allow him to ever be a really good run defender. Looks to these tired old eyes that he plays tall and cannot get proper leverage.

        2. Remember when PFF was Grant’s unassailable encyclopedia of stats?
          The above comment made me smile even as I agreed.

      4. The issue with the grades is they don’t know what the player was being asked to do on any given play and imo don’t ding players enough when they make errors (small or large), especially if the error doesn’t effect the outcome of a play.

        Anyone watching Buckner can see he has far too many plays where he is getting moved easily out of the way, or just blocked out of the play. Usually it happens when the OL puts 2 guys on him.

        What I will say in his defense is, if he is attracting 2 OL, the LBs really should be doing a much better job of filling the gap even though Buckner isn’t holding the point. These should be more like 4-5 yard gains (still not good), not 10+ yard gains. As bad as Buckner and Armstead have been against the run, the LBs are worse.

    1. Defense gave up 1000 yards in 2 games, Seemed like they ran right at Buckner and continually gashed them between the tackles.

  6. The NFL through its overwhelming capitalist success has somehow fallen into the weakness of the socialist/communist systems; that is, since the money pours in regardless of success, the teams are not incentivized to win. Sure, they could make more with a winning program, but not that much more, and then they’d have to count it all, sigh.
    There was a running joke in the old soviet empire: “They pretend to pay us, we pretend to work.”
    My point?
    -Yorks won’t sell
    -Jed won’t be fired
    -revenue stream continues
    -losing becomes chronic and endemic (more so)
    -Levis’s attendance withers, so team weasels out on payments to Santa Clara, hurting municipal treasury & local,taxpayers (making more room in bank vaults for the Yorks’ pile of doubloons.
    – Levi Strauss does not renew naming rights, so Yorks try to name it Filmore West
    (since it will be known primarily as a music venue) and are shocked when they face a copyright suit. (Nobody ever told them ‘no’ before.
    OK, I’m just having a little fun here, shouldn’t be mistaken for TomD.

    1. The Yorks have run the 49ers has a business from day one. It started with Dr. York streamlining expenses including cutting down on the amount of bottled water that was purchased, to now looking to jettison players who are making too much money like Torry Smith.

      Sure they are looking for draft picks, but when you are already 50 million under the cap and have little to no high end talent, what is a 4th round pick (the best they would get in return for Smith imo) going to give you that one of the fastest players in the NFL won’t? Why would you trade your best WR when you have nobody else on the roster who can fill in for him? Why not actually try using the guy once in awhile? Crazy suggestions I know.

      The Yorks are not going to sell the team. With the new stadium they are making money by the bushel and don’t have to do anything further to keep it rolling in. The only realistic thing to hope for is that Jed actually cares about the on field product enough to make the moves necessary to get the franchise out of the gutter. Embarrassment and pride are things the Yorks seem to respond too, so hopefully this season reaches a high enough level of disaster to force a change from the status quo. If the team finishes with 1-3 wins as it appears they will and Jed keeps Baalke on as GM, then it’s likely time to forget about hope and accept that the 9ers are now the Browns.

      1. Your’re probably right about the Yorks never selling but IMHO it would be a smart move. Football franchises are not typically cash cows like people think. The fact is that Edward Sr. paid only $11 mil for the team and it is now worth $3 BIL. (There were reports that when the 49ers were winning SBs in the 80s, Eddie was actually out of pocket paying for the NFL mandated expenses required of SB teams. So winning the big prize meant actually losing money). To maintain my sanity, I dream of the Yorks some day saying they just want to cash in for the $3 BILL and maybe it’s Jed who gets to run the bait shop with Trent as his partner. Not likely, but not impossible either.

        1. Things have changed dramatically in the last 20 years WC. NFL owners make so much money off of the TV contracts, game tickets, concessions, parking, licensing, ad deals both their own and through the league. It truly is a cash cow now.

      2. Yeah, Rocket. The stadium deal bought them 20 years of fxkxg the SC taxpayers where the sun don’t shine.

        1. Yes, they are paid for. My post was about the culture change of the team/NFL. Loyal fans literally and figuratively marginalized.

      1. Noted, and per a bro-in-law who is a retired Silicon Valley tech big shot, non-performance is not tolerated in ‘the valley’ and the Yorks’ team is now scorned amongst the Big Money Technorotti. Can’t give dat shyt away.

  7. Wow I am shocked Grant finally changed the poll question. Way to stay on top of it Grant!!

    Worst franchise, hard for an old goat like me to agree with that but at this moment in time its probably a true statement.

    1. under,

      Thanks for letting me know about the new poll question. The last question was do you agree with Kelly hire. 66% said yes. Now 57% say he should be fired. My take, We knew Chip was a bad coach and a bad fit with Baalke, but optimism reigns until the losing starts.

  8. The York family does not care about the franchise or anything associated with the 49ers; they never have. The only thing they do care about is money and their shiny new stadium which allows them to host as many money generating events as they want; it also helps their greed with the fact that there are suits out there who will pay to see the 49ers even if they are the new Cleveland Browns. The York will not change their ways even if the entire 49ers fan base boycotted every aspect of the team because they will generate plenty of revenue elsewhere.

    1. Yep. This is what happens when an owner of a football team is more focused on money than the quality of the product or service they provide.

  9. What a shame build a new stadium and team turns to a flop. What an environmental nightmare. Who benefited? I looked in the stands at the last game and they were empty. Win or lose Candle stick was filled. Sorry 49er fans. Bad move economically and environmentally.

    1. Hmm, I see the- Fire Baalke is a very popular choice.

      Hope you daddy is scouting bait shops….

      1. Did you man up and donate to the banner? Probably not. You just like to beak off about Baalke and York. Probably never bought a ticket in your life!

        1. I was going to donate to the Fire Trent Baalke banner, but they are no longer accepting donations.

  10. Jed contributing to Kaep’s cause is like Trump “donating” to veterans….did it ever really happen….another strong reason to vote them 122nd

  11. Yaaaaawn. Let’s sum it up. The Yorks are billionaires. The franchise is very profitable. Baalke is a lousy GM. Kelly is a lousy NFL coach. Kaepernick is a lousy NFL quarterback. Both coordinators are lousy. The teams current roster is lousy. The immediate future looks lousy. The stadium is beautiful. Seb is an idiot. Writing nine paragraph posts means you need to get a life, get laid, or something in between. The World Series is on. Go Cleveland.

  12. I think the thing that makes this all worse for fans is that we all know there’s an earthquake to come: Baalke and/or Kelly must go, so the true rebuilding lies well ahead of us. History says that at best it takes 3 drafts to turn a franchise around.

    This would be a reasonable wait for a franchise where the ownership – say, the Steelers or the NY Giants – have shown the ability to make smart management decisions, which is all you need from owners, who are otherwise just check-writers. But we’ve seen ownership mostly fail in hiring and then managing the few people who they can reasonably impact in terms of play on the field. For the one smart hire in Harbaugh, we have the mishandling of the Harbaugh-Baalke power struggle, the idiotic elevation of a D-line coach to Head Coach, the failure to evaluate Baalke correctly, etc. So sadly, ESPN’s rank is about right. Heck, even notorious lifelong losers like the Cubs, Indians, and Clippers are on the ascent.

  13. The whole team sucks, from top to bottom. I had hope that they could do well, but they lack talent, and the coaching has been horrendous. Now they are intentionally tanking for a high draft position, and seemingly do not care. It is no longer fun, and being a fan of this team is very trying, and pointless.

    The posters on this site have become surly, defensive and attack others with faux fury, but it just underscores the hate and vitriol that losing brings forth. This team sucks so bad, they want to be distracted by turning on each other. It truly is sad.

    I seem to have caused flashbacks from PTSD, and now some posters are reliving their war. It was not my intention, but the underlying causes of their hate and threats of physical violence just means that this site has devolved into a war zone. If you are not a super patriot, you are the enemy. Counter arguments? You must be a traitor. Try to talk about war games? You are denigrating fallen comrades. Talk about offense, defense, blitzes, long bombs, field generals, strategies, tactics, winning in the trenches and shaping an opponent? That is verboten because it has nothing to do with war. He has the audacity to present ideas that may help them win? He cannot do that, because others are smarter than he is, and a 1-6 record is just fine.

    This is not my first rodeo, and I have had worse things hurled at me, so the hate and ad hominem attacks are nothing new, and just kinda expected. The hypersensitivity and resultant screeds just means that I have touched a nerve, and their response is just a knee jerk reaction. They are taking out their frustrations about the team on me.

    Fighting for your country and being a patriot is admirable, but I submit to you that when I helped build a school, I may have done more lasting good and am just as much a patriot. The war is over, and I did not abandon them in a jungle. I would have preferred to let the people vote and decide peacefully their future, and maybe 3 million people would not have had to die.

    They can try to shout me down, but I will still post, so maybe it would be best to try a little civility all around. If you notice, I have let them have their say without getting down to their level. I just want to post in peace about a team I love. Maybe they need tough love.

    This is my last post on this subject, and will try to confine my posts to the team and football. Sorry I have offended anyone, and hope to go forward with calm civil and polite dialogue.

    1. Ha!!!!!!!!!!

      And the “press wont have Richard Nixon to kick around anymore”.
      Your not fooling me, Seb-skov! (But I still feel I owe you a cover charge).

  14. “The posters on this site have become surly, defensive and attack others with faux fury, but it just underscores the hate and vitriol that losing brings forth.”

    LOL. This guy obviously wasn’t around here during the early Harbaugh years and the fighting between the Smithers & the anti-Smith troupe.

    This place is far more calm now.

    1. I remember the brouhaha that Joe and Steve created, it divided families. That is one reason why I did not post on this site. Too much insulting and disparaging.

      1. “Too much insulting and disparaging.”

        What you’ve been subject to so far is nothing compared to what it was like back in 2011 and 2012.

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