What we won’t miss about Jim Harbaugh

This is my Friday column.

Yesterday we covered what we’ll miss about Jim Harbaugh. Today we’ll cover what we won’t miss, or at least what I won’t miss.

Harbaugh’s offense

It was stone-age.

Let me amend that — the passing game was stone-age. Harbaugh’s running game was pretty good. That’s where he expressed his creativity. But his passing game boiled down to, “Drop straight back, throw downfield and hope for the best.” Stuff that would have made Bill Walsh snicker.

And the passing game was only the third-worst thing about Harbaugh’s offense.

The second-worst thing was how conservative it was. Harbaugh would send out his field-goal kicking unit over and over and let the opponent hang around when they should have lost already.

But the worst was Harbaugh’s play-calling system. Just calling the play took him and his coaches forever. It seemed they burned timeouts to avoid delay penalties almost every game. Call it slapstick football.

Harbaugh’s offensive coordinator

Greg Roman deserves his own section. Harbaugh hired him, so Harbaugh’s responsible for him.

Roman called the offensive plays. His first 15 — the plays he scripted — often were clever and effective. But when he went off-script, he got lost.

He frequently forgot to repeat plays that were successful earlier in the game. Week 9 last season against the Rams, for example – the Niners’ offense averaged almost 9 yards per carry on counter runs, but Roman only called three of them. The Niners lost 13-10.

Roman did other weird things when he went off-script. One series he would use three wide receivers, then the next series he’d use four, and then the next series he’d use two tight ends. He seemed to want to impress the crowd with his vast array of plays and personnel groupings instead of just calling the stuff his players did best. This made my brain hurt.

But what really made my brain hurt was the way Roman answered questions. Like after Week 1 last season. The Niners had cut running back LaMichael James, so a reporter asked Roman if James wasn’t a good fit in the offense.

“I think LaMichael’s a really good football player,” Roman said.

Really? Then how come you never found an effective way to use him, Greg?

Harbaugh should have fired Roman years ago. But Harbaugh was loyal, so they went down together.

Harbaugh’s behavior during games

Harbaugh argued with the officials almost every play.

He’d scream, he’d spit, he’d stomp, he’d throw down his hat or his play sheet or his headset or all three, like a kid throwing a tantrum — all while the play clock was ticking down to zero.

Harbaugh obviously didn’t care what people thought of his behavior, which was his business. But he was the one who radioed Greg Roman’s play selections to the quarterback. How could Harbaugh do that and go berserk at the same time?

A coach is supposed to move on to the next play, not fume over the previous one. Maybe the Niners would have gotten their plays in quicker if Harbaugh could have emotionally detached himself from the game.

Harbaugh’s secretiveness

You would have thought Harbaugh was planning the invasion of Normandy.

Almost everything was a secret, almost every line of questioning off limits. You couldn’t ask him about scheme or injuries, you couldn’t ask him to compare or contrast things and you couldn’t interview his assistant coaches.

In four years, I never met his quarterbacks coach, Geep Chryst. Not one time. I requested to interview him and got turned down. Sometimes I wondered if he really existed.

One of the first things new head coach Jim Tomsula did this offseason was introduce his entire coaching staff to the media. Finally, I met Chryst. He was charming and interesting, and he spoke for about 30 minutes without giving away any state secrets.

What was Harbaugh so worried about?

Harbaugh’s catchphrases

Local beat writers had an unspoken rule about Harbaugh interviews: If you asked a question which elicited one of Harbaugh’s cliché catchphrases, you failed.

His catchphrases included, but were not limited to the following: Mighty men, humble hearts, iron sharpens iron, low-hanging fruit, blue-collar team, that’s scheme, God willing and the creek don’t rise, trusted agent, the olive jar, peeling back the onion, working through something, plowing ground, he’s a football player, Freddy P. Soft, arrows up, A-plus-plus.

As I would drive to Santa Clara every morning, I would test my questions to see if Harbaugh could answer them with “mighty men,” “humble hearts” or any of his meaningless responses. I called this the Harbaugh Game.

I don’t have to play that game anymore, and we don’t have to hear Harbaugh’s slogans ever again.

Who’s got it better than us now?

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 484 Comments

  1. Better execution from the QB would have made the passing game appear more evolved.

    1. Keeping your QB in the pocket instead of designing plays that play to kaepernicks strengths would of helped to. You can’t keep your QB in the pocket when your O line is god awful in pass protection. There is a lot of blame to go around no question. Better execution comes with putting your players in the best possible positions to succeed. Haurbagh and his offensive staff were awful at that last year.

        1. Well obviously they performed better in the other years but last year it really showed his stuberness and lack of an ability to adjust.

          1. Nothing better demonstrates Harbaugh’s stubborn nature like the last plays when they lost to the Seahawks. With the left side of the field open, he had Kaepernick go back to Crabtree in the endzone, again. Losing a SB is bad enough, but when your “backup” QB is yelling to your to call a time out and call a pressure beater, you listen. He ignored Smith and the rest was history.

        2. They averaged the 28th rated passing offense during Harbaugh’s four years and averaged the 4.75th rushing offense. It was not a passing offense and it was not a creative offense, regardless of the QB. This team would have been terrible without the defense that it had, regardless of the QB or the coordinator.

          1. They averaged the 28th rated passing offense during Harbaugh’s four years and averaged the 4.75th rushing offense. It was not a passing offense and it was not a creative offense, regardless of the QB.
            —————-
            When the season starts and the passing offense isn’t any different or productive will you be able to accept that the QB is mediocre or will you try and blame the new coaches as well?

            1. Very creative response. It was full of facts and useful information. I don’t have an agenda with the QB situation. You obviously do, as you are forecasting failure for Kaepernick. Smith was a mediocre QB that was replaced by Kaepernick because Kaepernick could do the same things, is cheaper and has a higher upside. All of those things still ring true today. I’m sorry that facts get in the way of your narrative. I’m not surprised at your response, though. I’m guessing you act this way towards everybody in your life, which is why you resort to living on a blog instead of endearing yourself to family and friends. Go Niners, regardless of the QB.

              1. Mediocre Smith had a playoff game against the Colts that Kaepernick couldn’t replicate. Smith would have called off the play and gone to another receiver instead of listening to Big Jim and throwing the ball to the wrong receiver. Enjoy flashy, it’s likely to be as good as it’s going to get.

                BTW, did you notice how the Seahawks figured out Kaepernick’s game? How’d that work for the Niners?

              2. John,
                Didn’t the Chiefs lose that game? Smith is 1-3 in the playoffs, Kaepernick is 4-2. Smith’s only playoff victory came with the 49ers, against the Saints. It was a great finish and a great game. The Saints committed five turnovers during that game and it still took a last second TD to win.
                I actually like Smith. I like Kaepernick as well and understand why the team went with him. He isn’t flashy, he was unrefined and leaned on his natural ability. You just used a playoff loss as validation of Smith’s greatness. Meaningless stats in a loss. That is flashy. Go watch Kaepernick’s game against the Packers, it was amazing. It was also a victory. Common sense and facts are for closers®.

            2. CFC,

              The new Coaches will essentially be running the same offense, so it doesn’t figure to be much of a departure from what we’ve seen in the previous 4 years. I find it incredulous you refer to Kap as mediocre due to one season full of mitigating factors, while ignoring his previous two years as a top ten QB.

              1. He’s a mediocre NFL QB Rocket. It’ll only be a matter of time now before the rest of the world accepts it but he is. He really is.

      1. To All those who disrespected Jeff Garcia and his 4,000+ passing Season.
        He is now with a coach who coached on the 49ers dynasty teams ( Jeff Fisher) and with Givens, #1pick Gurley, Quick, Britt, Mason, has the dynasty playbook that gets the ball to Playmakers taught by a QB directly educated in the system by Bill Walsh.
        All of you haters, go ahead talk crap, I’m sure he’s being fed stuff from this website.
        Also they now have Superbowl D-coordinator, Greg Williams, with that Ram Defensive Line of #1 picks to plug in Just like Jeff Garcia…Keep talking about how much better Kap is than Garcia, and wait ’til Garcia gets the ball out of the backfield to Tre Mason with the old-school 49er playbook/with Green Bay Packer updates. We had an opportunity to sign Jeff, but went with QB coach, Steve Logan….

    2. Kaep was sacked 52 times. It is really hard to execute while flat on your back. Or maybe you are implying that Kaep was executed.

      1. You bring such quality input to the board, it’s great having you here.

      2. Some of those sacks were on Kaep though. There was a number of times that Kaep either failed to sense the oncoming pressure or tried to take off despite the line holding for him and ran right into a sack.

        1. Mid,

          According to PFF, Kap was responsible for 7 of the 52 sacks. That means 45 sacks are left to be accounted for. In comparison, the most they had ever given up in the Harbaugh era was 44 in 2011, of which I’m sure a number were attributed to Smith not getting rid of the ball. In 2013 they gave up 39, which means the sacks allowed jumped by 13 in one season. As I have been saying since the end of the season and even before the end of the season, people are jumping on the QB and completely overlooking all the factors involved.

          1. I’m not putting the blame squarely on Kaep if that’s what you believe I’m implying Rocket, but he did have problems with sensing oncoming pressure and running into sacks. I think that PFF stat is being generous towards him, but what do I know. But as I have indicated before, I think the main reason for the high number of sacks in 2014 was due to the OL bring in an almost constant flux with the holdouts from Boone and Davis being the next reason.

            1. I know you’re not mid, it was a general response to the statement that Kap was responsible for some of the sacks. I’m not trying to imply that Kap should be absolved of blame for the way the offense performed last season. I’m just putting the info out there to even the playing field that seems heavily tilted to the Kap sucks end at the moment.

          2. And to Kaep’s credit he went off season to work with Curt Warner and his crew to get better. He didn’t just dismiss his shortcomings, he owned it and went to work on it. If the line can do it’s job I have no doubt you will see a markedly improved Offense..

            1. Not arguing with that Don. I’m anticipating Kaep to have a breakout season.

    3. I want to leave this alone and move on from the whole Harbaugh discussion, but I can’t when people continue to distort the truth.

      You can’t look at total yards as the measure to ranking the passing offense. That’s the first thing. If you are an offense that doesn’t attempt as many passes as others you will not rank at the top of total passing yards. That should be a given and yet I still see that being used as a measuring stick for how this offense performed under Harbaugh. What you look at is the Yards per attempt and ultimately QB Rating/QBR to try and come up with an idea of how efficient the passing offense was within the parameters of the number of attempts. When you do this you see the following:

      2011 – 16th in YPA and 8th in rating
      2012 – 2nd in YPA and 4th in rating
      2013 – 7th in YPA and 9th in rating
      2014 – 23rd in YPA and 18th in rating

      So what this tells us is that the Niners had a top ten passing offense for two of the 4 years Harbaugh/Roman were here. Hardly a bottom of the barrel passing game. The key to the Niner passing offense was the running game and then play action built off of the success of it. When the running game was not successful consistently, the passing offense fell off in kind. The two are dependent on each other and for the most part it worked very well with a defense that was opportunistic and did not give up a lot of points.

      The biggest mistake last years offense made was getting away from the play action game more than they should have. Their attempts dropped in that category for whatever reason and it hurt the passing game as a whole. Add in the fact that Vernon Davis was MIA for most of the year either due to injury or other factors and you have a key reason for why the passing offense effectiveness dropped last season.

      One down season essentially for the passing offense is then sensationalized into what we see on the board right now: in Harbaughs time the passing offense was archaic, ineffective, ranked in the bottom of the league etc., and nothing could be further from the truth. There is no doubt the Niner passing game was fairly simplistic in nature and didn’t utilize the RB’s nearly as much as it should have, but it is categorically incorrect to say this passing offense was ineffective. That simply is not true in statistical form or the W/L column.

      If we dig deeper we find out the key reason the teams season went south last year, and that is the amount of points given up by the defense. For the first 3 years Fangio’s defenses averaged about 270 points against; last year they gave up 340. If there is a smoking gun to be found, that’s it. You can’t blame Fangio however because the amount of injuries was obscene and the fact they played as well as they did was impressive under the circumstances.

      So please, Harbaugh critics, if you are going to criticize at least research your criticism before spewing it on the board. There were issues with the offense no doubt about it, but when you put all the numbers together, including the most important which is wins, you see that this Coaching staff did a fantastic job of running a system that was extremely effective and got them to a level of play they hadn’t seen in over a decade.

      1. Rocket,

        The 49ers should’ve gotten more out of their passing game, since they were passing against eight man boxes and with higher than average percentage of runs to passes.

        Those things should set up a team to have good success when they pass.

        Again, you gloss over JH’s faults. Sure they could’ve passed to their backs more… Talk about burying the lead. That’s a huge, huge shortcoming in an offense. Couple that with how seldom they threw deep last year and their passing game became much easier to defend.

        Play clock? Another huge, huge issue you didn’t even address. Perhaps because there’s no explanation?

        JH did a lot of good things on offense, but it could’ve been a whole lot better, too.

        I’ll stop now, you already know all of my arguments.

        1. ex,

          No they were usually running against 8 man boxes. One of the problems with being a run first team is it tends to put you in a number of 3rd and long situations which are hard to convert. That is why they were so successful with playaction; those passing plays came against defenses playing to stop the run.

          I’m also not glossing over Harbaughs faults. I’ve clearly stated in earlier posts that the playcalling system and inability to get plays in on time was extremely annoying and needed to be fixed. I’ve also stated they made a mistake last year in reducing the amount of playaction, and getting away from the formula that had worked in previous years (although due to injuries at the TE position this really couldn’t be helped at times). RB’s not being involved in the passing game has been something I’ve complained about since Harbaugh took over.

          However, through all those faults, this team had one of the best, if not the best winning percentages in the league during Harbaughs tenure. That is the bottom line for me ex. I’ll put up with with some things that irritate me if the team is winning games and Harbaugh did that. Last year was the first time the man had a non winning season, and as I pointed out that can be attributed to the fact the defense gave up 70 more points than they had in any previous season under Harbaugh and Fangio. It’s the most glaring difference between the first 3 years and last year. When you look at all the injuries that occurred on defense, there is a good explanation for why that happened.

          I put together the previous entry because as often happens, things get slanted in one direction as more and more people jump on a belief instead of a truth. It becomes easy to criticize somebody who is no longer with the team and in turn artificially pump up the new guy. I’ve been saying this all off season and it continues to happen. It’s fine to criticize elements of Harbaughs Coaching you (metaphorically speaking, not you personally) didn’t like, his personality, his behavior on the sidelines etc., but don’t say this guy deserved to be fired or he didn’t do enough, because that is simply not true. He is no longer here because the owner didn’t want him around anymore. That’s the bottom line.

          1. Rocket,

            The closest thing I’ve ever said to saying that JH deserved to be fired, is that I could understand why he was fired.

            Perhaps seeing possible improvements in the offense as a result of the coaching change gave you the impression I think JH deserved to be fired.

            1. C’mon ex, I specifically mentioned I wasn’t singling you out personally. I’m talking about people that have convinced themselves Harbaugh had to go due to his Coaching style, the time clock issues, not winning the SB, etc.. The only reason he is gone is because he and Jed clashed, and Jed believes anybody can Coach the talent on this team and be successful. We will find out soon.

              1. Rocket,

                I reread your post and I don’t see where you said that, but either way, I’m not upset, so no worries in my part.

                There’s no question that The friction btwn JY/TB and JH was the primary reason for his being gone, but the on field issues played some part, IMO.

                One thing I “glossed over” was your comment that the 49ers didn’t pass against eight man boxes, but instead, ran against eight man boxes. Are you sure that’s what you meant to write?

                It seems to me that if defenses are mostly in eight man boxes, then your offense is going to both run and pass against eight man boxes.

                BTW, I thought it was understood that the 49ers wouldn’t have been running or passing against eight man boxes in third and long, and second and very long situations.

              2. ex,

                It’s fine to criticize elements of Harbaughs Coaching you (metaphorically speaking, not you personally) didn’t like, his personality, his behavior on the sidelines etc., but don’t say this guy deserved to be fired or he didn’t do enough, because that is simply not true.

                My point about the 8 man boxes, is that the Niners ran into them regularly and when they did pass against them, were usually successful with play action. Where they struggled was when they had to convert on 3rd and long situations as most teams do. It’s not like they saw 8 in the box and went to a pass call. Usually they’d run it anyway, or as I said take advantage of it with a play action play.

              3. Rocket,

                Oh, you meant the your paragraph that’s immediately above my post. How in the world was I supposed to find that?

      2. Rocket,
        That’s a great post. In 2014, they also went away from the pistol and creative run formations that we saw in 2011-2013 seasons.

    4. Better play calling emphasizing the QBs talents would have made that possible. Harbaugh is an offensive joke.

    5. Grant’s Ram’s comparison only makes me compare:

      Which Offensive Roster would you rather h

      49ers: Bodin, Simpson, Smith, Bush, Hyde, Vernon Davis , Kaepernick

      Rams: Tavon Austin, Kenny Britt, Chris Givens, Brian Quick, Jared Cook, RB Tre Mason, RB Todd Gurley, QB Nick Foles, QB Sean Mannion (More accurate tha;n any on this list any might start)….Super Bowl Winning D-Coordinator, Greg Williams or 49ers Mangenius (No Super Bowl wins)

      1. type is slow on this computer: I meant which offensive roster would you rather have?

  2. Step One – Reveal very little to fans and the media
    Step Two – Chastise fans and the media for not knowing whats going on “inside the building.”

    Repeat

  3. How about dumb challenge flag after dumb challenge flag. And terminal timeouts to stop delay of game penalties. Finally his bizarre Monday press conferences where his answers sounded more like a guy in need of thorazine than a chalkboard..

  4. I know I’m in the minority among 49er fans, but personally I am not sad to see Harbaugh gone. Mostly because I didn’t think his attitude and approach is designed for long term success – he’s antagonistic in almost everything he does, creates a lot of friction, and in my opinion creates an atmosphere in the team that is unsustainable. I understand a lot of people disagree this can’t work long term, but I’ve watched a lot of sport, follow a lot sporting codes, and I rarely see this type of behaviour from the coach go well for a team long term.

    Aside from that, I really didn’t like Harbaugh’s antics on the sideline, or his ability to p*** off opposition coaches and teams. No need for it, and no need to give an opponent any extra ammunition to get hyped up for the game.

    In saying that, he was exactly the coach the 49ers needed in 2011, and I’ll always be appreciative of the time he spent here.

    1. Although not necessarily for the same reasons I also am Ok with Harbaugh’s departure. As I mentioned recently I think Harbaugh is a coach who’s style and message is better suited for and will find longer sustaining success at the Collegiate level. With that said I didn’t care for how the team turned him into a lame duck coach for 2014 and felt overall the situation was handled very poorly by the front office and ultimately affected the product we saw on the field.

      I’ll take the advocate approach to the idea that Harbaugh was exactly what the team needed in 2011. It sounds crazy given the # of wins and the Superbowl appearance to suggest that the team would have been better off hiring someone else but I’d throw out that almost anyone who wasn’t Mike Singletary or Mike Nolan was poised to have success with this team. Nolan lost the locker room when he called out Alex after his shoulder injury along with a dozen other reasons. I’m not trying to say anybody and everybody could have achieved the same level of success as Harbaugh but I believe it’s possible more people then most think could have. Given the mistakes that were made in the final two games of his first three years it’s not hard to argue that since a good number of coaches might have been able to get the 49ers to that point that if we’d had a more competent game manager coach and one that didn’t waste time and time outs that things would have been completely different. Not only in those particular games but the continued success we’d be enjoying along with not dealing with the upheaval that the team went through this off season.

      Now go easy boys, like I said I’m just playing the advocate here. NOTE: The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the author and do not entirely represent or reflect the views of CFC.

      1. Mike Nolan was the perfect example of an empty suit. When he was lobbying to wear suits like Landry, all I could think of was- Dont you have more important things to be thinking about, like WINNING GAMES?
        Mike Singletary had that Deer-in-the-headlights look during the game, and seemed to freeze up. After the game, he looked bludgeoned.

    2. You are NOT along Scooter_McGI`m super glad He`s gone He ruined our PERFECT SB record, and the 9ers were 5 yds from winning,there is no excuse for loosing that GAME, Harbaugh you are the weakest link…Goodbye.

    3. I am happy to see him go as well and believe that anyone would have been an improvement over Singletary- starting Teoy Smith @ StL in week 16 his final season cost us a likely playoff spot

    4. Scooter, you might he in a minority of fans who post on this board, but those that I know who either do not, or rarely post (like me) almost universally agree with you. Harbaugh won after all of us faithful suffered through the destruction of one of the best franchises ever. That’s it for me. Everything else about him was painful for me to watch and hear. To him I say good luck and don’t let the door hit you in the… My list of his good things I will miss besides winning is: [BLANK]

  5. I’ll give him a pass on the secretiveness, he just didn’t sugar coat it. Neither does BB. Neither did Parcels or Landry. Affable Pete Carroll will smile and give you an “Aw shucks” jive but not reveal anything. Mooch too. Walsh was highly manipulative and only gave out what he wanted to who he wanted.
    Now, the play call sequencing, poor game clock and play clock management, and ludicrous challenges…..that stuff I won’t miss. And yes, his sideline antics were in the end counter productive.

  6. But what really made my brain hurt was the way Roman answered questions. Like after Week 1 last season. The Niners had cut running back LaMichael James, so a reporter asked Roman if James wasn’t a good fit in the offense.

    “I think LaMichael’s a really good football player,” Roman said.

    Really? Then how come you never found an effective way to use him, Greg?

    This is what you’d call searching for something to back up a ridiculous complaint, especially considering the fact that no other OC has figured out to effectively use James.

  7. 6 – Harbaugh’s presence really helped Alex Smith. It may not always seem like it, but Kaepernick made some progress under Harbaugh. (just look at CK’s throwing motion in college)

    But Harbaugh didn’t develop quarterbacks to the extent his reputation as a quarterback whisperer implied.

    I expected better progress with Colin, and some up and coming backup QBs that (due to Harbaugh’s magic touch) could be used as trade bait for draft picks that way Holmgren and Reid’s backup QBs were.

    7 – The worse late gamemanagement by a pro coach I have ever seen. On many occasions I have seen Harbaugh’s offense do the following:
    Over two scores down, mid 4th quarter, they run a deliberate slow down offense… snapping the ball with only a few seconds remaining on the play clock… while the game clock was also running.

    He did this in the 2014 Thanksgiving Game and twice more later in the season.

    There were other late game catastrophes. In 2011 he gave a game to Dallas by refusing 15 yards and a new set of downs employing the relic “never take points off the board.” The 2013 NFCCG call time and tell CK not to “throw it away if he’s not wide open.” If Montana needed that advice in the 1981 NFCCG, one wold think CK could use the same help.

    8 – Uptight Super Bowl Prep. It really showed during the photo op with his brother. John Harbaugh smiled, enjoying the moment, looking relaxed. Jim looked like he had spiders in his pants. The team played tight in the first half.

    Next time, try the bell boy outfit.

    1. #7- Sing was even worse in late game clock management.
      I remember grinning but shaking my head when Harbs was hired. From his time and antics at Stanford I knew his hiring was a ‘Fasten Your Seatbelts’ moment, but he got everybody out of their comfort zone, refocused and got them closer to their potential. Unfortunately, I agree with Scooter that his approach is usually not sustainable in sports; or in business in my experience. You can bring in some Hitler boss who’ll achieve a burst of extra productivity; but stay tuned.
      Anyway, in hindsight Jim Harbaugh reminds me of Mike Ditka as a HC. I like Ditka, I’d love to sip a brew and watch a game with him, but I probably wouldn’t hire him.

      1. Yup. Singletary’s game management was awful. He had major problems getting calls into the QB on time, especially vs Seattle.

        I remember Singletary also running a clock chewing offense in the 4th quarter while behind. Nolan too. Drove me nuts. I chalked it up the HC trying to cobble together some offensive rhythm to safe face and make the stats not look so bad.

        But Harbaugh did it several times last year when then game was still within reach.

      2. Also agree with the coaching style not being sustainable. Buddy Ryan is another example.

        Get a young team to run through brick walls for a year or two, then a burn out happens. Those rookies are now adult men with families. They heard all the motivational cliches.

        They are ready to transition from an athlete that succeeds on talent and intensity, to one that succeeds on experience, intelligence and guile. But the rah-rah coach won’t let them.

        A brainy dude once said “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results”

        I think the definition of fanaticism is if doing the same thing over and over again doesn’t work, continue doing the same thing… only with increased intensity.

      3. Jim Harbaugh is the guy who is:
        -great as your friend/boss
        -insufferable as your colleague
        -downright unmanageable as your subordinate
        Surely, we have run into individuals like these in our professional lives.

  8. Thanks I feel so much better now. He lead us to some great post season games and I thank him for that but I for one am moving on. Don’t want to read about him. Hears hoping that Tomsula can make us forget him entirely.

  9. 9. Never, ever, ever, ever, ever making a half-time offensive adjustment that was not in the game plan. If the 9ers were down and the offense was struggling you were still guaranteed that the power run plays that got them there would also get them the lose. I could substantiate that with multiple examples from 2014-2015 season but you can see the trend back to the NFCCG against the Giants. I was obvious that we had no WR’s due to injuries but my man Jim refused to call a screen play, a curl route by Vernon, or a RB flare out of the backfield and there went the most glorious worst to first run in 9er history.

    1. “and there went the most glorious worst to first run in 9er history.”

      Kids these days….

      1. Jack Hammer, many humble apologies to you and the ’80-’81 team. I restate that as the greatest modern day worst to first finish. I too fell off of my bed when Dwight made’ “The Catch.” I guess the ensuing drought post ’94 was even more bitter after being spoiled by Joe, Jerry, Steve W. and Steve Y. Lott, Wright, and on and on that it hurt even more than the Dallas and Green Bay losses in the play-offs. This was a phenomenal team that could’ve made a history making run but instead shot itself in the foot and is now mentioned in the same breath with the 90’s Bills. Da Horra! I guess my point is Harbaugh ran his course, did his job to rebuild and topped out. I was time to move on for the franchise and here’s to hoping Tomsula can find some couching mojo and magic.

        1. Friend, it took two great defensive plays after the “Catch” for the “Catch” to mean anything.

          1. I remember the strip-sack. Which other one? That big crossing route catch gave me heartburn.

            1. The two plays on defense after The Catch:
              1. Horse collar tackle after the big crossing route catch
              2. Strip sack

          2. Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good. If people were honest with themselves they would see that it was a throw away that Clark was in a fortunate position to catch. There were also three interceptions thrown that game.

            1. Sorry, but I must respond. Joe just lucky? He threw that ball where no DB could defend it, after rolling out and buying time while drawing 3 defenders towards him. Sounds like a HOF throw to me.

              1. sebnynah- No Joe wasn’t Lucky he was good. But on that play it was luck. In fact it was because he was good that it is more likely it was a throw away. If you really look at that play Joe is too good of a QB to have thrown that ball that high when it wasn’t even necessary. He could have put it in Clarks gut and no DB would have had a shot at it. It was more likely considering the down and circumstance that he was throwing it away.

                htwaits- According to Clarks tongue in cheek chuckling response when he was asked if that was a scripted play.

          3. And it took some horrible officiating favoring Dallas to make “The Catch” necessary. That PI against Lott was criminal, and not the only bad call.

            The 49ers had the best record in football, beat the Bengals and Cowboys in both the regular season and post season… yet the hanky storm made that made “the catch” essential, also made it easy for eastern press to call the 49ers a “Cinderella” team.

            1. Regardless of the good plays on D you can’t takw away the story of the franchise turning around and being rebuilt in dramactic form. Harbaugh did deliver a similar story but fell shoet due to his shortcomings whereas Bill and the team were able to overcome those things to go on a glorious run. I wish he could have gotten outside of himself to meet the same glory for the team but he let his rigid ways win out over adapting to the circumstances he faced. Loyalty to Roman was good but refusing to move away from him and address his offenses’ weaknesses and inability to adjust ultimately cost him a shot at having one of those historic runs that would have cemented him a legecy as one of the great ones in the NFL.

              1. The problem with that team was you never knew who was responsible for what. And that issue went all the way to the top. Do we really know if Roman was totally responsible for the problems with the offense. He also had to work within the Harbaugh system. I still remember when the delay of game penalties were being blamed on the QB’s both Alex and Kaep. It took years before the staff finally took responsibility. Well we actually might get some kind of clue now that Roman is in a different system if it was him, Harbaugh or both.

  10. For me it all boiled down to last year and the penalties. It seemed like every time we made a big play it would be called back because of a penalty. Is that on the coach or the players? I’m laying it on the coach due to the fact that it happened all year long and it doesn’t appear that he did anything to address it.

  11. I have mixed feelings with Harbaughs departure. Loved his fire and his desire to win. I also loved the fact that Harbaugh made the Niners not only winners but once again feared. Loved the fact he was his own man and didn’t take s–t from nobody. I loved the slap on the back at Detroit. He won football games and fans b-t-hed. I think the way it ended was a terrible injustice to what he provided. I will miss his interviews.

    What I didn’t like about Harbaugh. First thing was the benching of Alex Smith, actually it wasn’t the benching but how/when it was done I didn’t think that was professional. I wont miss delay of game problems, red flag problems, time out problems. I also wont miss the passing attack to include Roman.

    All in all Harbaugh was just fine, but he isn’t here anymore and its time to move on. I still love the hire of Tomsula and most of the staff. The team on paper seems to be reasonable talented to make a run for the playoffs. This is the year we find out if CK makes this team better, if he does we are playoff bound.

    1. “I also loved the fact that Harbaugh made the Niners not only winners but once again feared”

      Yes.
      One of my close friends is a die hard Packers fan. For about 15 years, he constantly reminded me of the Niners playoff exits at the hands of the Packers (1995, ’96, ’97, 2001). Except for the T.O.’s catch in 1998, it seemed like ground hog day.
      That is, until the 2012 season. Now, he never brings it up.
      One more handling of the Yackers, preferably in Green Bay, in ice cold weather,and I will never hear from him on that matter again.
      I did call him yesterday to remind him that McCarthy is going up against the NFCW this season.

  12. In the end, Harbaugh did precisely what he’s done almost everywhere he’s been, he wore out his welcome. San Diego and Stanford, yes, they may not have fired him, but they did not like or enjoy him. They tolerated him. Jed simply chose not to and let him go. I suspect its a 50/50 split on number of owners who would have lived with his antics for a long period of time. Jerry couldn’t live with Jimmy. Very similar situation.

    I would also say that Harbaugh’s biggest failing was Roman. Roman just wasn’t very good, especially in critical parts of the game. Our passing attack never improved. That’s awful considering the amount of talent we had (and still have).

    I still maintain that this team is going to surprise a lot of pundits. Most sportscasters don’t follow the team like we do, they don’t know the amount of really good talent the team has kept mostly hidden for the last few years. Baalke may suck at first round picks (sometimes), but he is money in the later rounds…mostly D.

    Cannot wait to stop the noise. I bet the players are just eating all this negativity up.

  13. Harbaugh lacks the Affiliative leadership gene. He is unable to cultivate and sustain positive relationships. This leads to unlikeability and mistrust, creating a climate of animosity….

  14. I think Greg Roman is bad, but I’m not sure.
    Rex Ryan thinks Roman is wonderful, as did Harbaugh.
    I guess everyone will be keeping one eye on Buffalo this season.
    If Buffalo’s offense is more creative and does well, maybe Roman isn’t bad—but was just running the 49ers offense as Harbaugh directed.

    1. Roman has a monumental task ahead of him. Instead of Kaep. he has Cassel or Manuel, just a slight drop off in talent.

    1. Thanks MW. Happy Independence Day to everyone on here. Enjoy celebrating our nation’s birthday and stay safe.

  15. Thanks, Happy 4th to everyone, and God Bless America! The greatest country on the planet!

    1. Thanks MW, Razor and Rocket. I’ll be grooving on the fireworks in Healdsburg (big show, little town) while scarfing bad-for-you food and chomping on a stogie.

      Tip: If you are going to the H-Burg show, park near the square and walk the rest of the way. Then walk past the traffic jam on the way back.

      1. I live in Sebastopol, and it sounded like a war zone last night. Hope everyone has a safe 4th of July.

        1. But Sebastopol is a Nuclear Free Zone. You mean conventional explosives are OK? Who’d’ve thought…….?

  16. 49-22-1
    3 straight NFCCG’s
    1 SB appearance

    No matter what you may or may not like, he won. The team stunk for a decade before he arrived. End of story

    1. When JH was 48-18 -1, I was defending him and saying that he should be the Niner coach for the next 10 years, but after that 4 game losing streak and the manner in which they lost, I realized that I could not over look his deficiencies. I would have fired him after the Niners fell behind in the second half and JH refused to run the hurry up offense..

      1. Okay, that is absolutely ridiculous. The OL was in terrible shape with Kaep also in a bad stretch, and you would’ve fired Harbaugh for not running a hurry up offense?

    2. Rocket,

      No, that is not the end of the story. There were unaddressed problems with the offense. Just declaring “end of story” just isn’t correct.

      I’m sorry, but just because they won more, even a lot more, than they did before JH, doesn’t mean he couldn’t have done a better job with the offense.

      1. ex,

        The info I put up is undeniable. That is what I mean by end of story. As I said in the post directed to you above, Harbaugh wasn’t perfect, but he was the winningest – or close to it, I haven’t looked up every teams record over that span – HC in the league over his 4 years and that says more than anything else.

        1. Rocket,

          Who’s disputing JH’s record?

          All I’m saying is there were serious problems with the offense that went unaddressed, the current coaching staff seems to be willing to address them and I’m hopeful that this will lead to an improvement.

          Combined with potential improvements due to better O line continuity, CK making progress and a net gain of player talent, I’m projecting the 49ers to have a better season this year than last.

          It may not play out that way, but I’d be quite surprised if it didn’t.

          1. I get what you’re saying ex, and all I’m saying is, before last season the offense was effective, warts and all. Last season was the first time the offense didn’t average well in YPA, and the narrative becomes the offense is broken and needs to be fixed. All I’m pointing out is that prior to last year the run-playaction system they used won them a lot of games combined with the style of defense they played. Yes there were issues with the offense, but the positives outweighed the negatives.

            I hope the offense is better this year, but it will come down to how well the Oline plays, if a RB can step up and replace Gore’s steady production, and if Kap takes the next step in his development. There is also the fact the OC has no record of success in his current role, and didn’t help Kap develop much at all, so a lot of ifs have to be answered positively for your prediction to come true.

            1. Rocket,

              You’re absolutely right, several “if/then” scenarios have to come right for the 49ers to be better this coming season.

              CK Playing better is number one. I think there’s a very good chance this will happen. I think we more or less agree on this one.

              The coaching staff will be effective.

              1. Rocket,

                Continuation of the post above:

                The coaching staff will have to be effective. I believe they will be, and I don’t think this should come as a big surprise. There are many in the know that hold the 49er coaching staff in high regard. I know we disagree here.

                The offensive line will have more continuity and will do a better job pass protecting, along with doing at least a good enough job run blocking. Again, I believe this is not a high bar to clear, given all of the struggles of last year. I’m pretty sure you don’t share my point of view on this one, either.

                The defense needs Bowman to be 90%, or more, of what he was pre-injury and Aldon Smith needs to return to being a dominant pass rusher. What level Bowman will play at this coming season isn’t known, but so far, things look good. As for Aldon Smith, all arrows are definitely up.

                Throughout the roster, I feel there will be a net gain of talent. IMO, this is crystal clear. I know for sure you don’t agree with this. Only time will tell.

                Finally, the running back situation will be at least as good this year as last. Hyde looked very good last year and it sounds like he’s in better condition this year, Hunter is back and Bush should be an asset, particularly catching passes. Anything they get from Davis will be a bonus. The ace up the 49ers’ sleeve in the RB department: Bruce Miller is healthy. This loss got very little attention as far its effect on the offense went. This addition shouldn’t be overlooked. Again, I know you disagree (not about Miller, but the RB situation, overall).

                Team intangibles will be better this year. I’m sure you’ve read MM’s accounts of how miserable the players were last year and how relaxed and happy the players have been so far this year. I’m guessing you might say that the loss of leadership will more than offset the gain provided by the improvement of the mood of the team. IMO, the 49ers have enough quality guys to provide the requisite leadership. You must remember, it’s hard for a player to truly lead when their play is deteriorating, no matter how great they once were. Sports, and the NFL in particular, can be cruel and this is one of those cruel truths.

                Anyway, as you said, a number of the above must come the 49ers’ way for them to have a better season. Of course, there are no guarantees, but it just seems obvious to me that a better season is the most likely result.

              2. Rocket,

                Dang, that was going to be a short response saying that you were right and that’s it. I don’t know what happened… Sigh…

              3. Ha that’s ok ex, I tend to be long winded myself.

                In regards to what you said:

                I like a number of the position Coaches actually. My concern is in regards to the top 3 (Tomsula, Chryst and Mangini) as they are the ones who will be the focal point on game day. We have a woefully inexperienced HC, and that can’t be denied. Then the coordinators are two guys with poor track records in the same roles with other teams. Now this doesn’t mean they are destined to fail, but if we are looking at this objectively, the evidence doesn’t paint a positive picture. That’s all I’ve been saying in response to those who are overly positive in the face of contradictory information.

                The Oline comes in with little continuity right out of the gate. If they all stay healthy, then maybe we’ll see them gel, but as of now, we are looking at Staley and whoever winds up at C, as the only players who played those positions last year. That is the antithesis of continuity. Any improvement Kap makes is dependent on the Oline improving the pass protection from a year ago.

                I agree with you on Aldon Smith and so far it appears Bowman is on track to be out there on opening day. If we see the Aldon of old and like you mentioned, a close proximity of Bowman, that will help dramatically.

                The net talent gain is a leap of faith on your part, but I hope you’re right. I am optimistic about the Dline, OLB and WR spots. My biggest concerns are the Oline and CB position.

                I’m not sure why you think I disagree on the RB position as I like the depth they have. My point has been that losing Gore hurts due to his dependability and leadership. Whether he’s slowed down or not, he still is able to find the gaps and pick up positive yards and that is valuable. I do like the group we have at RB though.

                The intangibles figure to be better simply because there shouldn’t be rumors of unrest coming out every other week. That is what took the biggest toll on the players and Coaches last year imo which is why I blame Jed the most for the position this team is in.

                Leadership is important in the locker room and yes there are others who can take over, but I don’t think there were two more respected players on this team than Smith and Willis. Losing both is going to hurt. Willis even at less than 100% was superior to anybody not named Bowman on this team.

                I also don’t disagree that the Niners can have a better season. It’s the extent of the better season I think we differ on. As I’ve said previously, I can see them winning 9 games, which would be an improvement from last season, but nowhere near what our expectations were a year ago at this time. That is what really bothers me the most. This was a SB contender and in one offseason, they became a middle of the pack team.

                I’ll tell you what hasn’t changed though. I’m as anxious as ever to see what they look like on the field and I can’t wait until TC starts,

              4. Rocket,

                Chryst had dog meat talent in San Diego, plus he has had years to develop since. Additionally, he was selected by JH to be QB coach and was believed to be the most likely to replace Roman if he had gotten a HC job. In Jim you trust, right?

                I disagree that Mangini was a failure as a DC. In NE he had stretches of great defense and didn’t have a lot to work with in Cleveland.

                I find your criticism of Chryst for not doing a better job of developing CK confusing. You think JH did a great job, JH is known as the QB whisperer, JH was the leader of the offense, yet Chryst takes the hit for a lack of development of CK. Huh?

                What I see is an OC that is making changes that are long overdue. It’s possible that Chryst was following JH’s direction and might’ve done things differently had he been making the calls. I’m not saying it’s so, just that it’s possible.

                I realize that it’s far from guaranteed that Chryst will be a very good or better OC this year. In any case, he’ll have lots of coaching horsepower to lean on, Steve Logan chief among them. It sounds to me that Logan is going to be heavily involved in the development of the playbook and game planning. Something that I find very exciting (have you listened to any of his coaching podcasts? I liked what I heard).

                The O line could be a problem this year, there’s no doubt, but I like the talent they have (they’ve been pretty successful at finding O lineman) and feel like they’ll be better off this year, almost no matter what (not a very high bar to clear, of course). The real question is, how good can they be. Foerster is one of the best in the business and has Sporano as back up. I like their chances.

                You don’t think that there’s any chance that JH had worn on the team? I didn’t believe it during last season, but with the reports that the players were uptight and humorless last year, it’s possible that part of the bad atmosphere was due to JH wearing on the players. To be clear: I’m not saying I’m certain of this, just that it’s possible.

                As for Tomsula, I have no idea why you don’t have full confidence in him. As sebnynah noted above, he’s undefeated as an NFL HC. No problem there.

                Sersiously though, Tomsula has a very experienced staff and will not be the lone ranger out there and has a very good chance of being successful, and, for whatever it’s worth, he did get a struggling team up for a big win in the last game of a lost season.

                I say 8-11 wins, you say 6-9 wins. We’re not that far apart, really. One thing is for sure, TC won’t be boring.

              5. ex,

                As I’ve said all along, I hope you’re right and I am wrong. My points about Chryst and Mangini are based on what I’ve seen from them and nothing more. There is always a chance that they are much better in those roles this year and I hope that’s the case. I’m just one of those people who can’t take things on faith. I’m a realist to the core and sometimes that makes it hard to be optimistic.

                It’s been weird arguing with you because traditionally we’ve been pretty close in our views of the team. However, as you pointed out, we really aren’t that far apart in our outlook as far as the record goes, so we probably aren’t that far apart on our overall view of the team going forward either.

              6. Rocket,

                It has been strange debating the 49ers’ prospects this year with you.

                I like to think of myself as a realist, as well. It just goes to show that reality isn’t entirely objective.

  17. This ones for Mr. Optimist(AKA ExGolfer)http://isportsweb.com/2015/07/03/san-francisco-49ers-reasons-to-be-optimistic/

  18. Probably the best series of responses I have ever read here. A good and safe holiday to all the posters on this site. You too Grant. I really enjoy your articles on BR.

  19. Every successful leader could have a 3 volume book written about what a pain in the a** they were to work with. All Harbaugh did was give a hopeless team an incredible 3 year run and then have 1 down year, mostly due to injuries. All he did was make us perennial superbowl candidates. Now we have someone straight out of Welcome Back Kotter leading the team, someone that doesn’t strike fear in the hearts of the janitors of other teams, much less the coaches or players. I don’t care if he’s popular and friendly and engaging. If people want that, they should stick with Oprah reruns.

    1. I am glad you and many others are taking Tomsula lightly. He will fly under the radar, then bludgeon the opposition. Personally, I do not care about looks, but how the man acts. When you see a team that is focused, prepared, unpredictable, energized and with a massive chip on their shoulder, you will look like Paul Newman and say-Who ARE these guys?

  20. The only thing Harbaugh deserves to be lauded for is his decision to hire Vic Fangio–a man whose coattails Jim rode for four years. Harbugh’s success was entirely the product of inheriting fantastic defensive talent and turning it over to a great DC.

    1. I have my many criticisms of the Harbaugh/Roman offense. And yes the defense was stellar and carried the team for many games. But remember that in 2011 and half of 2012 the offense was a power running grind it out and chew up some clock and gain field position machine. The passing game was efficient enough to compliment the run game. And in the 2nd half of the 2012 season it was the offense that carried the team as the defense appeared worn down.

  21. jim harbaugh biggest failing was trusting his GM to draft offences needs which he isnt good at..bad pick after bad pick ..he took a punter in the 5th rd of this past draft.. lol

    1. Trent Baalke did a masterful job assembling a superbly talented team through trades, Free Agency and the draft that seriously competed for the Lombardi until last year. What the coaches did with that team is another story.
      Bill Walsh said that it did not matter what round a player was drafted in as long as he improves the team. Pinion will have some jaw dropping punts that will pin the opponents deep in their territory.

      1. Honestly, I think all Baalke cares about is getting style points by racking up extra picks and gambling them on injured players. What has that gotten us so far? Someone tell me?

        1. I think while both Harbaugh and Baalke have good points and talents, they were both overrated due to the success of the 2011/12 seasons. They seemed to be to be somewhat similar. Both control freaks who would not compromise with each other. The only reason I sort of favored Harbough was that I see the GM’s role as supplying the coach with the tools he needs to do the job. That was something I felt Baalke failed at either by design or his own inherent flaws. Although I felt Harbaugh did enough himself to shoot himself in the foot, he had a lot of help from Trent and the front office. All in all it was better in the long run that they got split up. Together they were a dysfunctional disaster waiting to happen.

          1. Are you saying that Harbaugh didn’t have the team to win it all? That the reason they didn’t win a Super Bowl between 2011 and 2013 was all because Baalke didn’t gather enough talent on the roster?

  22. The coaching staff got blamed for not given young player chances..but in all reality ..Patton sucks,Mcdonald sucks.. Lattimore,James,Jenkins,Jed fired the wrong guy

  23. Masterful job?..on the defence side of the ball..but lets be honest, he didnt provide Harbaugh with the rite weapons to succeed on offence..the drafting was horrible and the trades were mediocore at best..

    1. really, Carolina ?

      Off the top of my head, I can think of one
      that wasn’t mediocre ..

      Boldin !

      1. MWNiner- Boldin was a no-brainer that fell into the 49ers laps. There was a lot of luck and circumstance involved in that deal.

    2. Well, Baalke did draft Kaep, and jumped ahead of the Raiders to get him. I will give him a pass on every miss because that pick was a slam dunk beyond the arc grand slam.

      1. Well, Baalke did draft Kaep, and jumped ahead of the Raiders to get him.

        But it was Harbaugh that wanted him.

          1. He obviously saw some talent there, but its also worth noting he liked him so much he passed on him and took Aldon Smith instead.

    3. BTW Lattimore and LMJ were definite JH picks. Baalke always asked for input from the coaches, so dont blame them on Baalke.

      1. You must have wonderful sources inside the 49ers, of maybe just between your ears.

        1. I cogitate, but also listen and watch. JH went out of his way to praise LMJ, and many pundits said that JH got LMJ because he coached against him several times and respected his skills. When Lattimore stepped back, JH was there to hold his hand, and wish him Godspeed.

          1. You’re reaching here. If you’re basing your ‘facts’ on Harbaugh praising a player/draft pick, then you’re pretty well screwed because he praised each and every one of them, whether they were a veteran, draft pick, UDFA, or simply camp fodder.

            1. Which also means that JH had a ton of input on every pick, even Kaep. After all, he was the HC of a team that went to the NFCCG 3 times in a row and even got them to put the Niner sideline in the sun at Levi Stadium.
              Baalke did not pick in a vaccum. Tomsula described how the draft process worked. The coaches did not meekly accept whoever Baalke picked, but that it was a collaborative effort.
              Call me uninformed and wildly speculative for saying JH helped pick LMJ, but i just used common sense and saw how JH went out of his way to defend LMJ when he was struggling.
              BTW why would I be screwed for idle speculation? Do you elevate my words and thoughts so highly that you must try to disprove them? Chill. Have another Bud, and enjoy the 4th.

              1. “BTW Lattimore and LMJ were definite JH picks.”

                Did you mean to say that Harbaugh recommeded these players or that he “definitely” picked them.

                Harbaugh “… even got them to put the Niner sideline in the sun at Levi Stadium.”

                Actually the suits put them in the sun, and Harbaugh got them to change the 49er’s side line to the shade.

              2. Idle speculation is one thing, but as hwaits and I both have pointed out, you threw out some baseless assumptions. Next you’re going to say that Harbaugh was responsible for how shoddy the field was and for Bowman being out the entire 2014 season.

            2. I do think that the HC has a say in the draft picks.Maybe you can insist that JH was not in the draft room that day and was out fishing, but I really think he was there.
              My proof? Tomsula became HC and the Niners ignored 90% of the fan base and did not pick a WR in the first 3 rounds. Tomsula was the former D line coach and they chose a D lineman first pick. In fact, the first 3 picks were on the defensive side while everyone and their cousin was demanding the Niners pick a WR. Dismiss that as an amazing unrelated coincidence, but it just cements my belief that the HC does have some say.
              I have not been to levi stadium, but i saw the Niners were in the sunlight, so I assumed JH designated which side to choose. My bad.

              1. MWD- Great, now you are putting words in my mouth. There are so many things I could say about JH, I do not need to diss him on things beyond his control. Since you want to know more reasons why I did not like JH, here they are.
                His side line tantrums. His lack of guts by kicking FGs instead of going for it on 4th and 1. His bellicose insistence to run the Bo Shem offense by plowing FG into the teeth of the defense. His last second shifts that fooled nobody. His putrid game management. Wasting time outs like a drunken sailor. 3 DOG penalties against a 1-11 team? That was Pee Wee football. His lack of adjustments that resulted in ZERO second half passing TDs by Kaep.His humiliation of the owner. JH fired himself. I would have fired him when he refused to run the hurry up offense while behind in the 4th quarter. JH was thoroughly out coached in many games.His offensive offense. Need i continue?
                Deriding me and calling the idea as fallacious a simple fact that I believed that JH wanted to draft LMJ, is obtuse. Defending JH and saying he had absolutely no role in drafting LMJ is pathetic.
                BTW, maybe it would be better to just let me have my say and do not try to attack me. I tend to be verbose.

              2. MWD- Great, now you are putting words in my mouth.

                No, you’re doing a pretty job of that by yourself. It’s also clear that you missed my tone of sarcasm in the last part of my post.

                Unlike you, I’m not making a baseless assumption about what one person was responsible for the picks of James and Lattimore because
                a) Lattimore fit the type of profile of low-risk high-reward that both Baalke and Harbaugh loved to utilize with a comp pick, and
                b) even if Harbaugh was enamored with James, the decision on whether to draft him or not was Baalke’s. Harbaugh most likely did have some input as Scooter has mentioned, but the one who pulled the trigger was Baalke…which means both men were responsible for drafting James and then Lattimore.

      2. I think it is fair to say that Harbaugh had a fair bit of input to a number of 49ers picks, but in the end it was Baalke pulling the trigger. If Baalke wasn’t comfortable with LMJ or Lattimore as players you wouldn’t expect him to make the pick regardless of input from others. Same goes with Kaep, for those saying he was Harbaugh’s pick.

        At the same time, I’m sure if Harbaugh and other members of the scouting team were vouching for a player that Baalke was on the border about, the say of others would sway him towards that player – unless he truly is the megalomaniac some have portrayed him as being in the past.

        1. So many people have declared that JH wanted Kaep. Baalke moved up in the draft to select him. It is not a fantasmagorical delusion to assume that JH wanted LMJ since he coached against him and recognized his talents.

          1. No it isn’t, but that’s not what you insinuated earlier. Your words were that James and Lattimore were Harbaugh picks when they were actually Harbaugh AND Ballke picks.

            1. So why diss only Baalke for that pick if it was a collaborative effort? I responded to a poster who said that JH was not the problem, Baalke was.

              1. Sorry, but reverse psychology doesn’t work that well on me.
                Go back and look through what I said. I never once dissed Ballke in this thread. All I did was call you out for putting the picks of James and Lattimore solely on Harbaugh when the reality is that Harbaugh and Baalke both had a hand in on both picks.

              2. I decided to review your comments. I found out that you accuse me of making baseless assumptions, then subsequently reinforce my arguments by admitting JH did have input. Sounds like you are arguing against yourself.

              3. Poor attempt at reverse psychology yet again. Here are your own words:
                BTW Lattimore and LMJ were definite JH picks. Baalke always asked for input from the coaches, so dont blame them on Baalke.

                You’re throwing it solely on Harbaugh by proclaiming that the blame shouldn’t be on Baalke and that the James/Lattimore picks were Harbaugh picks when the reality is that both were involved with the draft process. Stop digging yourself a hole already.

              4. sebnynah- If you read between the lines of Tomsula’s statements in regards to this last draft he made it obvious that he questioned picking players in positions that the Niners were already strong in. One major problem between Harbaugh and Baalke was that Harbaugh wanted more imput where as Trent wanted to control everything. The very fact that Trent didn’t pick any WR either this or last year ( an area that he is weak in) pretty much validates that he will not rely on other peoples imput but relies mostly on his own resources. The fact that Jim Harbaugh wouldn’t use LMJ is the greatest testament to the fact that he probably didn’t want him. He doesn’t fit the model of his type of player. They took LMJ to justify passing on taking Jenkins instead of taking Martin who would have been the smarter pick. If LMJ does well then it makes the Jenkins pick look more justified. That’s how Baalke makes his picks. It’s as much to make himself look good as it is the teams actual needs.

          1. Baalke apparently did too otherwise he wouldn’t have traded up for him.

            1. Chicken or the egg. JH wanted LMJ. Baalke drafts him. If JH did not want LMJ, Baalke would not draft him.
              Maybe I need to be more succinct, but inferring that I said that JH demanded Baalke draft LMJ even though Baalke MAY have been lukewarm to him is putting words in my mouth. Maybe Baalke did like LMJ with no input from JH, but it is counter intuitive to think that Baalke pulled the trigger on LMJ with no input from JH.

              1. And Baalke apparently didn’t have the ability to tell Harbaugh that there was a better option. That’s what you’re more or less getting at.
                Your baseless assumptions are getting beyond ridiculous now. You keep throwing it back into Harbaugh’s lap satisfy them, but the reality is that Baalke had the authority to go along or reject who Harbaugh wanted. If Baalke didn’t think James would have been the right choice, then he wouldn’t have drafted him. It’s as simple as that. Whether you accept the truth or not (or in this case alter it with a baseless assumption) doesn’t change it from being so.

            2. It is not a baseless assumption to think that JH wanted LMJ. It is not wild speculation to think that Baalke accommodated JH by selecting players JH wanted. I think it was a team effort, and Baalke should not get all the blame if the player did not pan out. You seem to start out with the premise that I have baseless assumptions that cannot have a scintilla of reality.
              Then you wildly state that I think Baalke does not have the ability to say no to JH. Twist my words all you want, but you are losing this argument. I think that Baalke solicited the input of the scouts and coaches, then made a decision based on the consensus. He did not shove unwanted players down the throat of JH. Baalke is too smart to do that.
              Of course, Baalke had the final say, and if he did not like LMJ, he would not have selected him. But if I say that JH liked LMJ and lobbied for his selection, why is that a baseless assumption?
              You keep putting words in my mouth, but fail to coherently establish any cohesive logic. You make arguments then argue the other way. You say if Baalke did not like LMJ, he would not have drafted him, then say that I cannot accept that as the truth. I never said otherwise. I did say that maybe Baalke liked LMJ.
              It seems like your conjecture is that Baalke decided on LMJ with no input from JH even though JH coached against him several times. I think THAT is a baseless assumption.

              1. It is not a baseless assumption to think that JH wanted LMJ.

                No, but it becomes baseless when you place it solely on Harbaugh for the pick.

                It is not wild speculation to think that Baalke accommodated JH by selecting players JH wanted.

                Why exactly would Baalke have needed to accommodate Harbaugh? That’s a joke in itself and a very good way to screw up a draft.

                I think it was a team effort, and Baalke should not get all the blame if the player did not pan out.

                Then explain why you only blamed Harbaugh. And please don’t deny it or I’ll just copy and paste your words again then let you argue over them.

                You seem to start out with the premise that I have baseless assumptions that cannot have a scintilla of reality.

                Blaming Harbaugh for the James and Lattimore picks while telling us not to blame Baalke for them and that Harbaugh put the 49ers sideline in the sun at Levi Stadium are baseless assumptions without a scintilla of reality to them.

                Then you wildly state that I think Baalke does not have the ability to say no to JH.

                You’re pretty well stating that without actually coming out and saying it by saying that if Harbaugh liked a player then Baalke would draft him, but if didn’t then Baalke wouldn’t draft him. No ‘draft master’ would be that stupid. They would take the player they wanted along with a majority consensus and whom they believe to be the best fit going forward.

                Twist my words all you want, but you are losing this argument.

                How so? I’m not the one digging a hole by making a terrible attempt at reverse psychology just to sate some baseless assumptions. That’s on you and you alone.

                I think that Baalke solicited the input of the scouts and coaches, then made a decision based on the consensus. He did not shove unwanted players down the throat of JH. Baalke is too smart to do that

                Neither you nor I have proof that he did or didn’t, but you are making my point in that James and Lattimore weren’t just Harbaugh picks.

                Of course, Baalke had the final say, and if he did not like LMJ, he would not have selected him. But if I say that JH liked LMJ and lobbied for his selection, why is that a baseless assumption?

                You never said that. Had you done so at the very beginning, then this thread would have been a whole lot smaller than it currently is.

                You keep putting words in my mouth, but fail to coherently establish any cohesive logic

                Says the one who believes that Harbaugh put the 49ers sideline in the sun at Levi Stadium. Oh the irony.

                You make arguments then argue the other way.

                Reverse psychology yet again? Sorry, but I been stating from the get-go that it was a team effort with the draft. You on the other hand have not.

                You say if Baalke did not like LMJ, he would not have drafted him, then say that I cannot accept that as the truth. I never said otherwise. I did say that maybe Baalke liked LMJ.

                Blaming Harbaugh and exonerating Baalke for some draft picks near the beginning of this thread as you did lends some credence to what I said.

                It seems like your conjecture is that Baalke decided on LMJ with no input from JH even though JH coached against him several times. I think THAT is a baseless assumption.

                Just stop with the reverse psychology already. I have already pointed out that I saw it as a team effort but with Baalke having the final say. You however said this:
                BTW Lattimore and LMJ were definite JH picks. Baalke always asked for input from the coaches, so dont blame them on Baalke.
                So exactly who is claiming that someone didn’t get input from the other party?

              2. Yes I do believe LMJ was a JH pick. AJ Jenkins was a head scratcher and eventual bust, but I do not think JH lobbied for him like he lobbied for LMJ, and I think Baalke would have gone in another direction.if JH did not want him. Baalke had every reason to make JH happy since he was winning back then, so I will assign most of the blame for LMJ on JH because my gut feeling is that JH wanted LMJ, and Baalke acceded to his wishes.
                Since Baalke did make the selection, he will get some of the blame. but in my book, JH definitely lobbied for LMJ, and should shoulder most of the blame for that pick.
                Deride my opinion,and call it a baseless assumption, but stop dwelling on minutiae because I did not qualify my statement and say JH was solely responsible for that pick. What I did say was that LMJ was a definite JH pick. However, JH did not draft him, Baalke drafted him, so it was a collaborative effort and Baalke bears some responsibility.
                I also did say that I was responding to a different poster who blamed Baalke and not JH, so maybe you should have looked at my statement within that context.

              3. Maybe you should Google reverse psychology, because you are unclear on that concept. If I were to say to you that you are so smart and that I cannot possibly counter your arguments, and I want to hear you repeat them over and over, then have you say that you will be quiet because I wanted you to keep talking about the same old things, that would be reverse psychology. It seems like we are talking past each other, and will never agree on anything, so to keep repeating our points seem tautologous..

              4. sebnyneh- A major reason that Harbaugh is gone is because he was in a power struggle with Trent. The biggest area of that power struggle was the roster. If Trent listened to Jims wishes there would not have been a power struggle. The were not on the same page as to who would be on the roster. I said as much as early as preseason in 2013. It was obvious to me then and became obvious to many other people after the fact. One reason they hired Tomsula is that he will never challenge Baalke’s control. To imply that Baalke was ever on board with Jims wishes goes against everything that transpired after the fact. LMJ was picked because the Niners needed to draft a RB and he was the highest profile player available. They had to pick up a RB because they passed on Martin to take Jenkins instead. Trent listened to Harbaugh about Kaep because most of the high profile QB’s were already gone and Jim was high on him. He himself did not have anyone else in mind. besides they were still on their first year honeymoon during the 2011 draft and the struggle for control had not set in yet as it probably began to in 2012. He and Harbaugh had not yet had the time to develop the discord that would develop and grow the longer they were together.

              5. I’m going to stop yourself from burying yourself further. You make baseless assumptions then bend over backwards fruitlessly defending them and even attempting to change what you said. It’s pretty clear that all you offer is @$!# that you pull out of your @$$ then throw up against the wall hoping that it will stick. That makes the chance of you spouting something else moronic with no basis very high.

                If I were to say to you that you are so smart and that I cannot possibly counter your arguments, and I want to hear you repeat them over and over, then have you say that you will be quiet because I wanted you to keep talking about the same old things, that would be reverse psychology.

                Sorry, but I absolutely have no idea on how to make a post involving banging two rocks together whilst grunting real loudly in order for you to understand, and I’m not even going to try to.

            3. I win. You just had to resort to expletives to try to get your point across. I must really have gotten to you that you. I will keep posting what I believe, and you can take every thing I write and repeat them and parse them over and over to try to diminish my arguments, but in the end, you look foolish and boorish. I told you to stop trying to out think me, but you kept continuing, but in the end, you finally admitted you had enough and will not attack me, so I congratulate you on having a scintilla of common sense.Others have tried, but get a clue, they avoid me like a plague because I am verbose.

              1. Willtalk, JH did not leave because he was in a power struggle with Baalke, JH fired himself by humiliating the owner and being an stubborn arrogant berk who would not and could not change.
                Actually, JH never said he wanted control over personnel and become the GM, he was content to coach the team.
                Tomsula is no puppet or lap dog. He is the HC of the 49ers, and possesses the leader skills and acumen to coach that team to success without being disagreeable and distasteful. Tomsula possesses traits that JH has never shown and probably never will, either. He is humble and respectful. He will get along with Baalke and Jed, do his job, and never step on their toes or squeeze their hand.
                After the stench of JH, Tomsula will be like a breath of fresh air.

              2. Baseless assumptions win against intelligent thinking? Okay.
                I called it how it is and could honestly care whether you accept it or not. You offer nothing to this blog when you throw out stupid things like that. And as much as I relish watching you dig your own hole with your posts, I have better things to do with my time rather than argue with a fool that spews crap with not even a shred of evidence to back it up.

              3. “I told you to stop trying to out think me, but you kept continuing, but in the end, you finally admitted you had enough and will not attack me, so I congratulate you on having a scintilla of common sense.Others have tried, but get a clue, they avoid me like a plague because I am verbose.”

                That’s one of the funniest comments I’ve ever read. Also some great advice. Ignore what you say or you will say a lot more.

              4. You have to admit he nailed verbose….

                Speaking without any clear idea of where it is you’re going. Using multitudinous, varied, and divers adjectives. Overly explaining oneself and finally, embracing digressions and asides.

              5. Like a detective adding up the facts, all of you have forgotten Grant and Tim Kawakami articles of the past:

                http://blogs.mercurynews.com/kawakami/2008/10/22/49ers-bits-unhappiness-with-marathe-do-the-yorks-think-they-bought-the-team-in-2005

                In summation, Grant, a few weeks ago saw Baalke coaching up a player a-la-Jim Harbaugh during minicamps…(who needs a Fangio), and Kawakami mentions Paarage in the coaching booth employed as the flag challenger position…It’s obvious this leadership begins and will end with the suits at ship’s helm, steering the team into the rocks.

  24. I’d include all of the reasons listed here as part of what I’ll miss about Harbaugh.

    1. Whoa, hold on there bobalooey. You’re going to miss the over-used time outs and the delay of game flags? Not me. It’s been a chronic debilitating problem for the offense that seemed to have not been addressed until JimH and GRo left the premises; where upon it was an obvious focus in OTAs and Minies.
      We can debate and speculate about the relative advantages and disadvantages of scheme and play calling in our hindsight wisdom, but in this matter Harbs was like Igor in Young Frankenstein; “What hump?”

  25. I don’t think Roman called the passing game. I think Harbaugh called the passing game. I think Roman called the running game.

    1. Roman didn’t draw up the passing gameplan, but he called all the plays for the most part on game day.

    2. Roman was the Offensive Coordinator. He admitted that as OC, he is responsible for the offense. He got the glory, and he accepted the blame. Part of the job description.
      The disconnect was after he sent down the play, but it also seemed like an eternity waiting for his call.

    1. Thanks Prime. Magnimonious mood today?
      : -)
      But fair warning: Donald Trump will get around to insulting you and your countrymen within a week or two; he’ll think of something.

      1. That’s cool. It’s a good rivalry/partnership. Without you guys it would not be as fun or as safe!

  26. None of the Gm trades or picks on offence made since..boldin is a good player bt..he had the same skillset as Crabtree..so did Johnson,those were bad trades when u needed speed on the outside to compliment Crabtree..as stated bfore..his drafting on the offence side of the ball wasnt impactful.Its hard to when games with poor management…Harbaugh wasnt perfect..bt he wasnt the problem..Trent Baalke is.

    1. Guess what? JH is gone and Baalke is still GM. You can keep crying in your wheaties, but JH is not coming back and Jed trusts Baalke.

  27. Harbaugh’s running game was pretty good. That’s where he expressed his creativity. But his passing game boiled down to, “Drop straight back, throw downfield and hope for the best.” Stuff that would have made Bill Walsh snicker.

    this tells me that you don’t understand what you’re looking at or how passing concepts work. believe it or not, there was a lot of West Coast Offense in the passing game. the passing concepts were there. they were just sometimes cut up (split half field reads) or blown up because defenses were already clamping down on the run so the short passing game was well defended too. so what we saw were lots of 3rd and long passing plays and deep play action “shot plays”. but bottom line to run a WCO eventually the QB has to be able to read the entire field and not just parts of it (which as I said earlier the playbook was designed for partial field reads often times).

    The stone age part of Harbaugh’s offense was the lack of flexibility that it had at the line of scrimmage and post snap. It was highly dependent on the right call(s) being made to make the scheme work…much of this in theory was to make things easier for the QB. There was a lack of presnap and post snap adjustments made by the QB and receivers that most modern NFL offenses feature to varying degrees. The Niners started out with none under Harbaugh to some…but relatively few compared to other NFL offenses. Also, because of the lack of flexibility given to the QB pre and post snap; any adjustments made during the game were highly dependent on the coaching staff…and I think this led to disconnects at times between what wasn’t working…even if something should work in theory based on what the defense was showing.

    1. Other teams admitted that they knew what play was called just by looking at the formation. With the last second snap of the ball, the defense could time the snap and jump routes. Remember the Raiders game? Of course it helped that Carlos Rodgers and Terrel Brown basically gave them an outline of the Niner playbook.

  28. This is the best, most sensible and truthful article Grant has EVER written !!! So that proves yhat even a broken clock is correct twice a day.

  29. As I watch my neighbors all gearing up for evening BBQs I can’t help but wonder if the Air Quality Board can measure the increased air pollution on holidays like this (7/4, Memorial Day, Labor Day, etc). They probably could, but they aren’t, because they got the day off. Kind of like the tree falling in the woods…..

    1. You’re thinking about that and I’m thinking about the sound ordinance that’s shot to hell this time of year.

      1. Yeah Mid, the noise is something that freaks out a lot of house pets on 7/4.
        I saw some Veteran on TV saying he hates the fireworks because they spook him.
        I remember in an NCO club in Okinawa coming home from my first tour another table ordered a bottle of champagne to celebrate. When the cork popped everybody else in the room hit the floor!
        Slow grilled pork ribs & “scratch” slaw with Noceto Sangiovese at my place tonight. Enjoy yours!

  30. Well that’s great you don’t have to deal with him anymore Grant. I must say in Jim’s defense, I listened to a lot of those press conferences and you guys ask a lot of dumb questions that don’t matter. I’m glad Jim’s gone because it was time for him to move on. It was a nice little run and Jim’s a heck of coach but it was time for a change. I personally didn’t care about what he had to say in press conferences or interviews. I loved Harbaugh because he got wins and helped turn our franchise around. I really didn’t care if he gave a reporter a hard time. Watching last year though the turnovers and penalties along with the four or five wins they should have had that’s usually a sign of bad coaching. I’m glad they didn’t wait one more year. I have no idea how the new coaching staff will do but I have a lot of confidence in Jim Tomsula. I know they may not have gotten their first choices for the coordinator positions but I still like who they ended up with. They have a lot of experience and Mangini is going to thrive as DC. I think they ended up with good position coaches who also have had a lot of experience and success. They ended up with some mighty men.

        1. Nothing that a few gallons of paint .. and
          the Property Brothers couldn’t fix

          1. No you guys. The pale scheme allows potential buyers to imagine their own palates. A particular color scheme may be a negative to a potential buyer, so bland/neutral has it’s advantages by not offending.

            1. I can see your point, Bro T ..but
              that house would inspire me to make a
              bee-line to my neighborhood
              Sherman-Williams store !

  31. Grant’s two posts about Harbaugh got us to ‘plow that field thoroughly’, and may serve as catharsis for some. It should help Faithful move on after Harbs, who was unquestionably a force in the league and in 49er history. He left his mark and won a lot of games.
    For a frivolous speculative exercise, imagine where the team would be if Jed and Jim had checked their egos, taken a deep breath, and decided to act like adults. They didn’t have to like each other but got the contract done last summer and each moved forward in their own realm. If that’s the case, Jim and Vic and staff stay.
    BUT, Cowboy and Willis and Borland and AD do retire, Cully and Iupati skate away in FA, and the Niners sign T.Smith and Wright and Bush.
    OK, so what would SF’s prospects be for 2015 in that scenario? How much different than they are now with Jim T.? Would we have spent January until now arguing about Greg Roman? (Probably). Would JH retain GRo in 2015? (Probably). Would the national press still expect SF to finish 4th in the west due to player attrition? (Probably; though not for sure).
    Anyway, when I think about what might have been it puts what we’ve got in an interesting light. Get your popcorn ready.

  32. “… How much different than they are now with Jim T….”

    It may be a tad early to ask that question, Bro T .. but ..
    what are the odds that if your answer turns out to be
    not so positive …
    … Grant will revisit that very same question ..
    in a blog post ?

    1. It just seems we’d be fussing about many of the same things. We’d be a tad more confident in the D because of our appreciation of Vic, but that would be based on reputation, as he’d have to fill all the same holes as Mangini does. We’d be fussing about the offense too; GRo, Harbs, CK, the OL. But there’d likely not be too much change in the offense under Harbaugh. As it stands now we know there will be change and we’re waiting to see how it will work out, but there’s a chance for improvement. Without change SF would likely be repeating the same thing and expecting a different result; isn’t that the definition of insanity?
      Tomsula and his coaches may need two months or a whole season to get the team to gel, but I don’t see any reason the roster can’t develop.

    1. “…As for what comes next, Borland said he has some “decent options” for post-football life but his taking his time with the decision….”

      Is that a euphemism for …

      ” … I’m still unemployed ! …”

    2. Since you think all I write is crap, I would like you to parse and rip apart something I wrote on 12-31-13.
      10 ways JH can improve (7-5-15 And Jim Tomsula may benefit from studying.)
      1. Read Rudyard Kiplings’ poem IF. Stop being so demonstrative on the side line. it seems to tick off the refs and is counter productive. Use biting humor to get your point across. Channel Bill Walsh. Study the game winning drive before The Catch.
      2. Consider time outs to be precious and saved for (legit) challenges and the last 2 minutes of each half. Good job last game.
      3. Stop wasting 10 to 15 seconds every play, tell Kaep he can get at least 2 more sets of downs if he stops wasting time.
      4. Run the no huddle with quick snaps. This will eliminate DOG penalties and stop the defense from substituting.
      5. Expressly forbid Kaep to call an audible with less than 5 seconds on the play clock.
      6. Use players so they can maximize their talents. Stop forcing Kaep to be only a pocket passer. Use designed roll outs to fluster the defense.
      7. Establish the running game, the use play action for long strikes down field.
      8. Do not run into the teeth of the defense. Hit them where they aint.
      9. Be unpredictable. Use deception. Keep them guessing. Put them on their heels.
      10. Niners will win if Kaep gets the ball in Frank Gores’ ( RBs) hands. Think screens, draws, counters, swing passes, shovel passes and even the Statue of Liberty.
      Go ahead, make my day.

      1. This and your two baseless assumptions are like two opposite ways of thinking. Your 2013 post has suggestions based on the evidence you saw (which I have no qualms about); however your blaming of Harbaugh whilst exonerating Baalke for the James and Lattimore picks plus the claim that Harbaugh put his team’s sideline right in the sun have no shred of valid evidence.

        1. MidWestDynasty you’ve made a noble effort, and if you’re ever tempted to try again (not recommended) please use quotes.

          1. I meant to say please use quote marks when you quote silly unfounded comments.

        2. FYI this is a blog site, and posters can post anything. Giving me grief over speculation that JH wanted LMJ is an effort in futility. You have not given me a shred of evidence that JH DID NOT want them, and that they were totally a Baalke selection.
          I however used my recollection to read what the pundits were saying, and many were pointing to this pick was pure JH. With Frank Gore, this was not an immediate need, since he played for 3 more years. I remember how people were scratching their heads over these choices and the permutations used to get to that pick. With Lattimore, JH had to lobby for that pick because it was a huge risk, and no HC would want a player with his massive injuries without the HC being on board 100%. I made educated and cited opinions, you just want to try and diss me because All I seem to you is some crank who makes baseless assumptions. Guess again. I will continue to make statements and give my opinion. I just hope you have better arguments because I relish a challenge.
          Here is another post I wrote on 1-17-14, days before the 2013 NFCCG.- Kaep should look off the safeties by facing one way while looking in the other direction.-
          I hope you are enough of a Niner fan to wish that Kaep had done just that, because he would have seen 2 players wide open.

          1. Giving me grief over speculation that JH wanted LMJ is an effort in futility. You have not given me a shred of evidence that JH DID NOT want them, and that they were totally a Baalke selection.

            Just stop digging your hole already ya fool! I never once said that a pick was solely on Baalke. I have said (and keep saying because you’re obviously too dense to understand without the banging of two rocks together and loud grunts) that both were involved in making a pick. You on the other hand have stated otherwise with little tidbit:

            BTW Lattimore and LMJ were definite JH picks. Baalke always asked for input from the coaches, so dont blame them on Baalke.

            After posting this, you have proceeded to backtrack and accuse me of saying that Harbaugh did not want him or Lattimore WHICH I NEVER ONCE SAID! (Do the capitalized words help you understand or do I need to find a gif that will fit your page stating this?) Your post, then the backtracking followed by your pathetic accusations with zero merit is a fantastic example of the nonsensical @#$% I said that you spew. All you have managed to do is prove me right by doing this.
            This is a blog and you’re entitled to your opinion, but it also gives me and anyone else the right to call you on the carpet for comments with zero merit to them. Get off your high horse and admit you something idiotic. No one will hold it against you. If you still choose to believe your baseless assumptions, then do me and everyone a favor and just not respond to this post because frankly I can only deal with so much stupid.

            1. I win again. Hurling pejoratives just rebound, and perfectly describe you.

              1. You lose because you choose to believe your own baseless assumptions and refuse to admit you were wrong. Only fools do that. Now move on.

      1. Well, referring back to Grant’s, “What I liked about Harbaught article was a statement made about the self confidence Harbaugh carried (exuded) in the building because he was not afraid to hire the best NFL coaches…Now to quote Steve Young when the York’s moved out people connected with the 49ers past: Greatness has left the building…W/O those quality defensive coaches that allowed Kap to rely on the running game and not put the ball in the air because he knew the 49ers would get the ball right back is past history… Now the 49ers will have to rely on Kap’s vetran leadership more this season…Good luck with that fans.

  33. I bet you’d be stomping and spitting to, if some internet regulator (aka referee) came by and made you take your entire article down, because someone else had a similar article, and had “bought” the exclusive rights to discuss a topic. That would kind of destroy the integrity of journalism wouldn’t it? Well, when refs do not play by the written rules of the game, it destroys the integrity of the game. On the contrary to being embarrassed, I was truly in admiration of Harbaughs willingness to stand up for his team, when “underground betting” was taking the priority in play calling over the fairness of the game. It’s a sport, and I’m so sick and tired of seeing people who want it done right being throwing under the G.D. bus (Harbaugh). I’m gonna be ticked if I see Tomsula lukewarm on the sideline this season, if the niners are being beat by the system again instead of the opposing team. I’ve been watching football for 20 years now, and I know the difference like night and day.

  34. Rotoworld re Jason Pierre-Paul fireworks accident:
    Andy Slater of WINZ in Florida reports Giants unsigned franchise player Jason Pierre-Paul suffered a “severe” hand injury during a fireworks accident on the fourth of July.
    JPP is from Florida and played college ball at USF. He has not signed his franchise tender and therefore is currently not under contract. If the hand injury is severe enough, the Giants could rescind Pierre-Paul’s tender and be off the hook for his $14.813 million salary, sending JPP into unrestricted free agency. We’ll wait for the rumors to be confirmed to pass along anything definitive, but there are whispers that JPP may have lost fingers and/or parts of his hand.

    1. Depends on the injury. If there’s nerve damage or if it needs reconstructive surgery he could still be weak and sore at year’s end. I did see one guy get a finger shot off and was back flying helos in combat in 5 weeks.

    2. What the heck is going on? The Packer’s Quarless in trouble for firing a gun, JPP severely injures his hand in a fireworks accident… I’ve become so accustomed to hearing about the stupid stuff 49ers players have gotten up to during the off season it feels mighty strange to be see the shoe on another foot so far this year…

    3. It would appear that Jason Pierre-Paul came close to being selected for the 2015 Darwin Awards, hopefully he is OK. More importantly, no innocent bystanders were injured and the neighborhood survived the alleged truckload of fireworks.
      He could have stuck to more tamer pursuits such as making a fool of himself on social media, and/or getting suspended for PED usage…. Some NFL players need to be protected from themselves.

      1. Oops, saw some one mentioning batting and thought it was the SF Giants. My bad.

    1. No kidding, MidWest ..
      not only that.. but, the author sure could use
      a proof-reader …

      The type of errors in that story make it appear
      to have been written by a high school intern

  35. The 49ers don’t deserve Kap. Way to ruin his career Jed!!
    Harbaugh would have built him into the best quarterback in modern day NFL history.

  36. There’s nothing more refreshing than snipping from the “never was” and the “never will be” gallery.

  37. Harbaugh “stone age passing attack.” Yep, perhaps.
    Harbaugh “Greg Roman.” Absolutely agree with your comment, but no revelation here.
    Harbaugh’ “Behavior during games.” Again, I agree with your take here – it hurt the team more than it helped.
    Harbaugh “Secretive.” So what? A headcoach does not need to disclose everything does he?
    Harbaugh “Catchphrases” Again, so what? If Harbaugh’ catchphrases rubbed you the wrong way that is based more on personal taste.

    When will you admit that Harbaugh brought this team back to prominence by never having a losing season in his 4 years as headcoach?
    Can you push yourself to credit Harbaugh for getting this team to the SB and deep playoff runs during his tenure?
    Oh, and all this happened to a regime that you quantify as “stone age.”
    Go figure.
    And just like Harbaugh was responsible for Roman, try to at least use a little balance in your article by giving Harbaugh some credit for bringing in V.Fangio.
    But hey, just Harbaugh, looks like nobody is perfect.

    1. First year- Almost going to the SB.
      Second year- Almost winning the SB.
      Third year- One pass away from going back to the SB.
      Fourth year- Out of the play offs.
      Personally, I did not like the downward trend.

      1. That’s not exactly a downward that needed to be worried about. Another season with a similar or worse record and then I would have been worried. But 2014 had the perfect storm: injuries, little continuity at the OL, holdouts from two key players on the offense, rampant distracting talk about Harbaugh’s future, and substandard quality depth. I can’t really call that a downward trend while knowing that. It was more that our lucky streak of not having to deal with any type of problematic issues had finally run out.

        1. Well, losing JH and Roman, and fixing the offensive malaise is a big step in the right direction. I think Tomsula is addressing those problems. I hope they stopped the downward trend and rise to new heights.

        1. A member of the light horse brigade then!

          (hmmm, that joke may be lost on Americans, the light horse brigade was the name of the Australian cavalry units in WW1).

          1. … and their charge was into heavy gun emplacements which led to their Slaughter. It’s also possible that they were under British command.

            1. If you are referring to the light horse charge at the Battle of Bersheeba, that only involved two of the light horse regiments, and was actually quite successful…

              1. Sorry, wrong war and it was an all English party.

                “The Charge of the Light Brigade was a charge of British light cavalry led by Lord Cardigan against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854 in the Crimean War. Lord Raglan, overall commander of the British forces, had intended to send the Light Brigade to pursue and harry a retreating Russian artillery battery, a task well-suited to light cavalry. Due to miscommunication in the chain of command, the Light Brigade was instead sent on a frontal assault against a different artillery battery, one well-prepared with excellent fields of defensive fire.

                Although the Light Brigade reached the battery under withering direct fire and scattered some of the gunners, the badly mauled brigade was forced to retreat immediately. Thus, the assault ended with very high British casualties and no decisive gains.”

              2. Ah yes, the famous Charge of the Light Brigade.

                The Australian version was called the Light Horse Brigades. Same concept though.

            2. Ours was not to reason why.
              Ours was but to do and die.
              Into the valley of death rode the 600.
              Hmm, sounds like last year.

    1. I can’t stomach Gabbert, but I would absolutely cringe if we enter the season with Thompson as the backup QB.

      1. MWD, what if he outplays Gabbert in the preseason games? Youtube has quite a lot on Thompson, and I’ve liked what I’ve seen. Take a look yourself if you haven’t.

        1. That wouldn’t be a problem George. We would just spring Baalke’s secret QB on the NFL — Blake Bell, TE, Oklahoma.

        2. I understand what you’re saying George, but having an undrafted tookie as the backup QB going into a season in which the team plans to let Kaep scramble/run more just makes me feel uneasy.

    2. I’m really hoping Millard sticks on some manner… either making the team or practice squad.

      I’m guessing 53 vs PS is a tight rope decision with Busta Anderson and Millard. He has to gauge which player is more likely to get nabbed during 24 hr waivers… possibly putting the better player on the PS while putting the second best on the 53.

    3. I previously conjectured about a 5 for 1 trade with Bruce Miller, Brooks, White, Celek or Carrier, Wright or Cook for a conditional 2nd round pick. People were saying that it would be a bad trade because no team would give up a second round pick for those 5 if all they have to do is wait til cut down day. However, I am now thinking that Bruce Miller is worth a second round pick alone, so it would not be far fetched to think about multiple picks for multiple players. I would want it structured to be fair to both sides in a win-win situation.That trade would create room so those dark horse players could make the 53 man squad. Baalke may choose different players, and maybe even designate a pool of players that the other team can choose from. It would also leave space so the Niners could poach a player from Seattle.
      Why Bruce Miller? Because of Millard. I think he has more similar skillsets to Roger Craig than Miller, and the Niners will want their FB to run and catch the ball more. Miller was never asked to do that, so I would trade him and get maximum value for the 3rd best FB in the league.

      1. Man, still running with this, huh?

        I’ll limit myself to just a couple of questions for now:

        – Why is Miller worth a 2nd on his own, and who would pay that sort of compensation for him?
        – Where are you coming up with the idea the 49ers want their FB to be more of a Roger Craig type player?

        1. Wild speculation? No. Niners are going to need the FB to catch more passes and Millard is like Delanie Walker, a swiss army knife.
          Miller is the third best FB in the league, so 29 teams could consider him an upgrade. Still, my original post had 5 players going to one of the 3 bottom dwellers, so those players, even on the bubble, could vastly improve those teams.

          1. Why do the 49ers need the FB to catch more passes? They have signed a RB in Bush that will vastly upgrade the receiving skills from the backfield. And did you somehow miss Tomsula’s opening presser? It was made abundantly clear this is going to be a running team still. And a running team is best with a FB that is an excellent lead blocker. Kind of like that Miller fella you think is no longer suited to the new offense.

            As for which team would give up a 2nd round pick for Miller, the answer is none. Not a one. All you need to do to know this is look around the NFL at the FB position and see what round their FB was taken. The vast majority are UDFAs or 7th rounders. There are the occasional 5th rounders. You don’t need to invest much in terms of draft capital to find a good FB these days, because the position has mostly been phased out of importance.

            And as for your 29 teams being able to upgrade the FB position by trading for him, how many of those teams actually need a traditional blocking FB like Miller? There isn’t that many. And as mentioned above, one of those teams is most likely still the 49ers.

            You aren’t just spouting wild speculation, you are plain and simply making stuff up.

            1. Scooter,

              But it would be better for the 49ers if they got a second round pick. How can you not see that? Sheesh.

              1. So true. Maybe they should make it a conditional pick, rising to a first rounder if the team trading for Miller makes the playoffs.

              2. Agree. Maybe Miller for a 2nd is not feasible, but Miller with 4 others is totally acceptable.I also originally said that i wanted this trade to have conditional picks. A 1st if they go from 3 wins to not having a losing record. A 1st and 2nd if they make the play offs, and 2 firsts if they win it all. Some posters said that 2 firsts was way too much, but I think that every single team in the NFL would exchange 2 firsts for a SB win.

              3. Yikes, I was being sarcastic.

                I’m not about to get into why the multiple players for one draft pick is extremely unlikely again. I’ve no idea why you are so hell bent on believing this fantasy, but good luck to you.

            2. So, you think Tomsula and these new Niners in this new system will just continue using the FB to only lead block? Now you are making things up. From what I have seen and heard, they are throwing out the JH playbook, burning it and burying it.

              1. Did I say they would purely use him as a lead blocker? I imagine the FB will occasionally be used as a receiver too. Pretty much the same as he was used in Harbaugh’s offense (averaging over 2 receptions a game the past 2 seasons, I wouldn’t imagine that will change much). But it won’t be the staple of what the FB is asked to do.

                If you don’t think a run first team would be best served with a FB that is an excellent lead blocker then you’re even more delusional than I thought.

              2. So in the history of the game there has been no off season trades? Sorry to inform you that it happens all the time. Maybe I was also counting on the other team to be sick of being a doormat, and would want to improve their team. Maybe I want to trade Miller while he has good trade value. I also think Millard will out compete him so the Niners will have to cut him and get nothing while another team scoops him up for free, or the Niners will accept a 7th round pick for him because the Niners waited too long.
                I am glad some posters are not hysterically screaming that this is the worst idea in the world, but have accepted that some die hard Niner poster can make any suggestion without being attacked ad hominem.

              3. “So in the history of the game there has been no off season trades?”

                Where the heck did I even suggest that?

                “Maybe I was also counting on the other team to be sick of being a doormat, and would want to improve their team.”

                Sure, I am not arguing against that. I just strongly disagree with your valuation of the players.

                “I also think Millard will out compete him so the Niners will have to cut him and get nothing while another team scoops him up for free, or the Niners will accept a 7th round pick for him because the Niners waited too long.”

                Could well happen. But sure seems a big risk without ever seeing Millard play or even practice in pads as an NFL player. What if it turns out his knee is no good, or he’s not as good as you believe him to be? Surely it is better to wait and let Millard compete with Miller for the job, may the best man win. And even if they traded him now, I still think you are seriously over valuing him.

                You are welcome to state your opinion, just as everyone else is welcome to reply to your opinion with their own when they disagree. Welcome to the jungle.

            3. Lord give me strength! Even for The Doldrums this is pure poppycock. What was the last blockbuster mega deal involving a bunch of players and choices? Let’s see, oh yeah, the Herschel Walker Deal?
              When was the last Blockbuster Mega deal involving choices? Yeah, RG3.
              This is the kind of silly FF nerd fairytale proposal that makes the professionals scoff at most fans’ opinions. A major waste of time.

              1. In the NBA, they just has a 3 person trade. Thats 20% of the team. I am advocating a trade for 6.7% of the team. It is not a fantasmagorical fairy tale to want to improve your team. You may disagree, but scoffing at it without presenting any insight or new ideas is also a huge waste.

              2. It doesn’t happen because the end of roster players or players who teams know will be cut, aren’t going to command much in trade. It doesn’t matter how many players you throw in, it’s about value and whether teams see enough talent in a player to want to give up a draft.pick. Teams do not give up high draft picks for another teams castoffs. It doesn’t happen because they know they will have the ability to sign the same players as FA’s or find a similar talent after the final cuts. In regards to Miller, he plays a position that most teams in the league don’t even use anymore so it stands to reason that he is not going to be sought after. Same with Brooks, who is on the wrong side of 30, has a bad contract and is declining as a player.

                The only way you get a high draft pick out of a team is by giving them a young building block in trade or by trading picks themselves. Your idea never happens and continuing to pursue this is a waste of time.

              3. Chill. Stop reacting like a crybaby. I posted it, you can accept it or ignore it.
                Since you are such a great judge of content, what was your prediction for the last SB? Or were you too afraid to even postulate a prediction?

              4. Some who is dear to all of us has posted 62 times in this thread alone pushing fantasy and some of the silliest rumors of this off season.

                Why hasn’t anyone figured out what the previous user names might have been? Right, it’s not worth the effort.

              5. Scooter, Rocket, and BT,

                Does anyone detect a hint of DS49 in sebnynah’ spots?

                Could it be?

              6. ex,

                Could be, but we’ve seen a number of interesting characters roll through here, so it would be hard to pin it down to one. I love the fact this guy/girl is talking smack while coming up with these nutty ideas though. It just makes it that much more entertaining.

        2. Doesn’t Miller only have a year left on his contract?
          What team would give up a second rounder for a one year rental?

          1. A second for Miller and 4 players. The other teams had 3 or less wins. Those Niners would all be upgrades on a bottom dweller.

            1. What four others? There’s a good number of reasons this idea wouldn’t work, but the main one is that we don’t have the right combo of players to even consider making a deal like this.

              1. Hmm, There are 8 TEs, 12 WRs, 9 CBs and 8 LBs. I have also said that Baalke could make a pool of players and let the other team select 4 out of the pool. Of course, It would have to include starters like Miller and Brooks and strong bubble candidates for this to work, because it needs to be fair to both sides.

              2. Correct, it would need to be fair to both sides. I think the main issue with the scenario is that most people don’t believe the valuation you are placing on such a trade as fair value to the team trading for the players. Great value for the 49ers. And realistically how many teams would need/ want a 3-4 OLB on a hefty contract, a blocking FB and a few bubble players?

                The 49ers best option value wise (and realistically) would likely be to try and trade excess players away singly. If a team needs an OLB that can start, they can trade for Brooks. If a team needs a good blocking FB, they can trade for Miller. If a team needs a CB they can trade for… well, they’d probably go to another team than the 49ers for such a trade. But I wouldn’t be expecting a hefty compensation in terms of draft picks for these players, even if they traded them right now.

      2. Repetition is useless but once again, if the 49ers had someone of Roger Craig’s caliber he would be playing running back not full back.

          1. Even Walsh made mistakes, and we don’t have plenty of running backs like Roger Craig. Actually we don’t have any that could match his best years.

            1. The only reason Craig was ever called a FB in the NFL, is because that’s what he played at Nebraska. He and Wendell Tyler were both RB’s, with Craig possibly carrying a little more blocking responsibility, but he was never a true FB.

              Also, Bruce Miller has shown he’s quite a good pass catcher.

              1. Roger Craig was listed as a FB in the program. I read that many times while at the games.

        1. I will not say that the Niners have a player with the same caliber of Roger Craig, because he was a SB champion and has had serious consideration for the HOF. Baalke did sign Bush, who compares with Craig very well, but I was concentrating on the FB position, and Millard has more similar skillsets to Craig than Miller.

    4. I don’t see any of them making the 53 man roster unless injuries become an issue again.

  38. I agree wont miss that stone age pass offense at all. Same with the lousy poker playing clock management.

  39. In his discussion about Busta, Grant said, “Baalke might worry that if he cuts Anderson and tries to sneak him on to the Niners’ practice squad, the Cardinals will claim him off waivers and give him a spot on their 53-man roster.”

    This got me thinking: who actually decides the final 53-man roster? It doesn’t seem like it should be Baalke. Shouldn’t it be the coaches?

    1. Baalke has final say on all roster decisions, and that is the way it should be. But it should not be done in a vacuum – Baalke should (and likely does) get input from the coaching staff. But the man making the final decisions needs to be somewhat removed from the daily pressures of winning it all this year, and thinking this year as well as a few years ahead. That’s the GM’s job, not the head coach’s.

      1. Have to say Scooter that it’s not obvious to me. I’m not sure what the daily pressures you speak of have to do with selecting the final 53. I would have thought that it is more strategy and scheme related, as well, of course, how well an actual individual performs. The coaches have ideas on strategies they will use this upcoming season. One player may fit the planned schemes better than another. Further, it seems to me that the coaches are more qualified to decide if we should, for example, keep Acker instead of Cook or vice-versa. I guess we have to assume that the GM is in sync with the coaches and relies on them heavily for their input.

        Just out of curiosity, who makes the personnel decisions at the college level? Isn’t it the head coach and his staff?

        1. “I guess we have to assume that the GM is in sync with the coaches and relies on them heavily for their input.”

          I think that is the key right there. If the GM is just doing his own thing in a vacuum then there are problems. The coaches should indeed be providing advice on who they prefer and which guys fit best with there strategy and scheme.

          But the thing to keep in mind is that a coach will generally be most interested in keeping the best 53 players as of right now on the roster, the guys that will best help him win today, win the next game. But in this business you also have to be looking to the next few years.

          Your example of Cook vs Acker – it may be that Cook is slightly better than Acker today, and may be of more use right now. But is it worth keeping Cook over Acker if he will just be the 6th best CB on the roster and barely see the field anyway, if they think Acker has the potential to be the better player next year? That is where you need someone that is looking down the track.

          1. I suspect there are variations across the league of the GM-coach relationship with regards to the final 53 selection. On some teams, the coaches may indeed make most if not all of the decisions, with the GM more of a figurehead with regards to this one task. There are probably a few teams that have a complete polar opposite relationship. Most teams are probably somewhere in between.

            What about my college question? Am I right when I say that the HC and his staff make the decisions?

          2. To continue on – I’m not sure if there are any coaches in the NFL that are also the GM for the team, but I’m fairly certain that I’ve heard that some coaches have control over which players make the 53.

            1. You are correct cubus. There are a range of structures in place, and I too have read that for some teams that have separate HC and GM the final say on the 53 rests with the HC (I believe the Eagles for one).

              Personally I am believer in the GM having final say, but they have to be reasonable about it and respect the advice, desires and needs of the coaching staff. If the GM is keeping guys over the players the HC needs or really wants to keep, then there is serious trouble brewing.

            2. There is another one you may have heard about.”

              “In terms of Patriots’ decision-making, Belichick has the first and final say. He acts as the checks and balances for the the New England Patriots as the head coach and general manager. He’s had scouts that went on to be general managers in former Chiefs’ GM Scott Pioli and current Falcons’ GM Thomas Dimitroff.”

              As of 2013 there were six coaches with total roster control.

              http://football.realgm.com/wiretap/31386/Six-Nfl-Head-Coaches-Have-Total-Roster-Control

              Lombardi and Walsh are just two of many in the past.

              JimT is on the other extreme which is more typical. What Scooter says about needing a longer view is in most situations the reason for a GM having roster control. JimT was hired to run Baalke’s offense with Baalke’s roster. (See JimT’s first presser again.)

              1. Belichick is a HC/ GM. He does both roles, so obviously he has final say. Similar to what Mike Holmgren was at the Seahawks.

                But for teams that have a separate HC and GM it is usually the GM with final say, though as mentioned there are exceptions such as the Eagles.

    2. Baalke makes all roster choices, going and coming. In fact he interrupted Jed at JimT’s first press conference to make that point absolutely clear. I’ve always assumed that he does get input from his coaches and his staff, but no one else ever makes the final decisions. Baalke made it very clear with his envelope story that he selected Jenkins, and then less than two years later he traded him for someone else’s regrettable choice.

      It’s nothing unusual unless you held that tittle for Al Davis.

      1. Umm, Jed interrupted Trent to say that he is the top dog in the hierarchy. Baalke interrupted JT to say the Niners were going to run the ball.

        1. “Jed interrupted Trent to say that he is the top dog in the hierarchy”

          Then Baalke made it very clear that he had final say concerning the roster.

          “Baalke interrupted JT to say the Niners were going to run the ball.”

          Exactly. Which left JimT staring off into space.

    3. I’ve always though that Harbugh’s big problem was with Jed, but I’ve always been sure that Harbaugh and Baalke butted heads a lot over the 53 man roster.

      1. When you tell the owner that a meeting is for men only, I can honestly say that JH fired himself.

            1. Like you? As it has been pointed out, several media outlets have ripped the rug from right under this conspiracy theory.

        1. It’s already been pointed out that story was most likely false because of how late after the firing that it came and also the fact of no NFL owner would keep a coach through the rest of the season after that.

          1. Hmmm. Lets see. Cited sources versus the peanut gallery. Sorry I am going Cited sources. You can keep dwelling in that delusional fantasy land.

            1. Correction, anonymous sources. Besides, what in the hell would York be doing in a players meeting?

              1. Yup, he is only the owner. Why would he be interested in the Niners?
                Anonymous, yet cited. The source has a track record of being right, but you can believe the peanut gallery if you want.

              2. Nope, cited is a quote or refers to an author or law. None of which are associated with anonymity….

                Jed York is the CEO and you didn’t provide any insight as to why he would be inclined to sit in on a players meeting given he has absolutely nothing to contribute….

              3. Sebnynah,

                You can look at the most recent reports and see that it is pretty much universally known that the “this meeting is for men only” comment directed at York never happened.

                This isn’t opinion “from the peanut gallery”, but rather reports from several credible news outlets.

              4. Notice that no players have disputed that report? They were there and heard it all.
                Just because you believe it did not happen does not mean it is a delusional fantasy.
                Why would the owner of the team sit in a meeting? Maybe he is interested in his billion dollar investment, and the same people who disbelieve the truth are dissing Jed again. Just like JH.

              5. Notice, also, that no player has substantiated the report, either.

                I never said believing it happened, even in the face of evidence to the contrary, is a delusional fantasy.

                I was merely trying to help by pointing out that recent reports indicated that the incident didn’t happen.

                You are free do what you want with information.

              6. In the dark days before social media, a professional journalist wouldn’t publish a report unless it could be verified by at least two reliable and independent sources.

                Now it seems that the “absence of any corroboration” is all that’s needed to verify an anonymous rumor no matter how silly that rumor happens to be.

            2. You can keep dwelling in that delusional fantasy land.

              Hell no! You’re already there so I want no part of it.

              1. Try harder. I am getting bored with your attempts to engage me. In a battle of wits, I find it too easy to fight against an unarmed foe.

              2. Engage what exactly? Your baseless assumptions? Or how about your idea of trading Miller plus some low level depth players? Forgive me, but you’re too damn stupid to realize you’re stupid. I prefer to talk with people that at least make an effort to know what they are talking about and not someone that throws nonsensical @#$% to the wall hoping that it sticks. And yes I already know that you will proclaim yourself a winner like an idiot since I used a couple of curse words and called you what you are. I’m expecting you to do so troll. But if you actually have a brain (pea-sized or not), you won’t and will put an end to this thread.
                Peace out troll!

              3. Hmm You seem to be posting all the time and especially after my posts. If you think I am a troll, what are you?
                BTW, I do not fit the classic definition of a troll, because I have only been posting on this site for a few days, and did not post for long stretches these past few years.
                Still, I consider your disparagement to be a pejorative, so I win again.

              4. Only because you’re an moron so full of himself that it’s not even funny. Now goodbye troll.

    1. Good column, Grant ..good sleeper picks, too .. but..
      why don’t you save the really good stuff for
      this blog ?

      j/k

    2. No disrespect to Hayne or Okoye, but what does it mean to be a world-class athlete? Seems to me that it means that a person has reached the pinnacle of HIS or HER sport, not other sports. The question is can they transfer those skills to another sport? It most certainly is not a given. I’m pulling for Okoye and agree that he has a good chance. I only see Hayne making the team if he can excel at special teams. As a RB it is not a simple task to find the holes on the run. Further, for Hayne running low needs to accomplished at a subconscious not conscious level. The conscious mind needs to be focused on finding the hole, assessing the situation, following the blockers, being decisive on making cuts, etc.

      1. If a World Class athlete can transfer his or her skills to another sport they shouldn’t be phased by the big stage. Walsh drafted Renaldo C. Nehemiah who was World Class in track. He just couldn’t protect himself. Every time he went on the field it felt like his life was on the line. After three years he wisely went back to track. There are other track stars who are in the NFL hall of fame.

      2. “Seems to me that it means that a person has reached the pinnacle of HIS or HER sport”.

        That’s exactly what I take it to mean. And both Okoye and Hayne have done that. They are now trying to emulate that at another sport, and they may or may (most likely) not succeed. But that doesn’t diminish what they have achieved, and there is no denying they were among the very best at their previous sports. So yes, I think it is very fair to classify them as world class athletes. Just not world class NFL players.

        1. Agree and it was never my intent to diminish their achievements in their respective sports. Hayne is the bigger concern. If he doesn’t quickly internalize keeping his pads low, he’s likely to get injured and that could end his NFL and possibly future rugby career.

          1. I think Hayne will make the team and blow away the naysayers. Hayne played rugby for years so he does know how to take a hit. My feeling on rugby players is that they do not wave hankies at each other. I have watched video on Hayne, and have seen him deliver smack downs, too.

          2. That was exactly the situation Renaldo Nehemiah faced. He couldn’t protect himself in a game that allowed safeties to “blow up” receivers using their helmets.

      3. Another reason for my so called delusional post on trading Miller, is that Tomsula will look at Okoye, and think of a myriad of ways to utilize that magnificent human specimen. He might even put Okoye in at FB, have him lead a sweep, and allow him to block the DB by crushing him like a soda can. I really would like to have Okoye deliver a ‘kiss’ to Dick Sherman in that manner.

        1. I don’t think anyone is saying your idea of trading Miller is delusional in and of itself. It is your assertions that the team could get a 2nd round pick for him, and that he no longer is suited to the offense that people think is way off the mark.

          If Millard looks great in TC and pre-season I could definitely see the team try and trade Miller. But I wouldn’t expect more than a late round pick in exchange.

          1. I have not been getting static for even proposing a trade?
            Have you read the responses?

            1. I have no words. That is not what I said, but if you are unable to comprehend the meaning of my comment I think there is little hope for us coming to an understanding on this matter.

              1. This site has a weird way of posting comments, and several times you have been responding to posts I have meant for other posters. Still the vehemence of the attacks just mean that your and other posters are trying too hard. I may have some non conventional ideas, but at least I say something, unlike the drivel spewed by the peanut gallery.
                I will not take back a word and invite scorn, because I do not think a bunch of mental lightweights pose too much of a threat to me.

              2. Yep, that’s the problem, we’re all trying too hard but we just aren’t intellectual giants like yourself. Good catch.

              3. Sebnynah, are you familiar with the novel, “She’s come undone”, by Wally Lamb?

        2. It is also your idea of adding a bunch of roster bubble players to the trade to lift the “value” of the trade to a high pick that is seen as fantasy/ delusional. As far as make-weights go, roster bubble players have about as much value as a rice bubble.

          1. I included 2 starters. The others may be strong bubbles like Celek and Wright. White had a fantastic OTA.
            It is delusional to think of those players as chump change.They all could win a starting job on a 3-13 team.

            1. Ok, sure thing. I must have missed when Celek became a starting calibre TE. Or why the 49ers are deciding to trade Wright a few months after signing him to a pretty decent sized contract. Or when anybody, ever, cared about what a rookie UDFA did in OTAs and decided to trade for them.

              1. Well, Jax has Julius Thomas, a 31 year old journeyman and 3 rookies. Celek could easily be the #2 TE.

              2. You are defending Wright? Sounds like he has been getting ripped right and left by posters who cite his poor grades. I did not include Reaser because Tomsula likes him. Wright is expendable IMO.

              3. Wright may get ripped by some of the fans on this site, but you don’t give a guy a $3M contract only to trade him before TC. Baalke obviously sees something in him, even if many fans are dubious.

                Regarding the Jaguars TEs, they also have Marcedes Lewis and Clay Harbor, two TEs with significantly better resumes than Celek, plus the 3 young guys you mention. So no, I don’t think 27 year old Celek with all of 8 career receptions to his name would easily be their #2. I think he’d likely just be a roster cut. What makes you think Celek is better than the guys the Jags already have? What has he done to deserve such lofty praise?

              4. Why would another team trade for a TE that might not even make it to the final preseason game or a CB on a one-year deal?

              5. Marcedes Lewis is 31, and I find his body of work pedestrian. I think Celek is a much better blocker. Try harder to defend a player on a 2 win team. I will be more impressed with your scintillating intellect.

              6. Right, so 8 career catches Celek is worth the Jaguars trading for and would be their #2 TE because he’s a better blocker than the ‘pedestrian’ 315 career catches Lewis, who is one of the better blocking TEs in the NFL? Do you even know anything about the players you are dismissing?

                Seriously mate, give it a rest.

              7. What am I saying? Its obvious you don’t know anything about the players you are dismissing. You called Lewis a 31 year old “journeyman” earlier. His “journey” has been so circuitous it has seen him play his entire career at the Jaguars since being drafted in 2006. That’s quite the journey. “Journeyman”. SMH.

                And this is after you said the Raiders would be very interested in Brooks despite them having a pretty darn good LB unit already with Mack, Moore and the newly signed Smith. Not to mention the Raiders being a 4-3 team! And they would be hot for Miller too, despite already having a pretty darn good FB in Reese.

                All you are doing is naming teams with poor records and assuming every player on the 49ers is better than a player on that team. Sorry, doesn’t work that way. Especially when you consider the two teams you name most regularly (Jags and Raiders) had rookie QBs last year. That is a big reason for their poor records. They’ll naturally be improved this year just from having a more experienced and ergo better QB.

    3. I don’t consider Ellington or Reaser as sleepers because I expect Ellington to win the #3 WR position and Reaser to win the starting CB opposite of Brock. I would replace those two with WR DeAndrew White and DE Tony Jerod-Eddie.
      White is a sleeper because most are expecting him to be on the practice squad and he has also failed to stay injury free during his time as a football player. But if he is able to stay and continue to wow everyone during TC and preseason, then he stands a good chance of being one of the choices for the 53 roster. But that isn’t the only reason he could make it. WR Simpson has yet to receive punishment from Goodell for the infractions that were discovered during his three game suspension of which led to his release by the Vikings. If Goodell does suspend Simpson, then White could very easily take his spot temporarily if not permanently depending on the kind of impact he makes.
      Jerod-Eddie is another sleeper because he is expected to be roster cut. However, Jerod-Eddie has spent time under Tomsula and is a decent backup option on the DL. There’s also the fact that a good number of the DL players competing for a spot are coming back from some form of an injury. If any of those guys are still not 100% by the time the season rolls around and Jerod-Eddie proves his versatility and effectiveness, then there is a strong possibility he could sneak onto the roster.

    1. Baalke respects Jim Tomsula too much to denigrate him by usurping his authority.
      Tomsula has 2 qualities that JH will never have. He is humble and respectful.

      1. “What he’s trying to say is that we’re going to run the ball.” … Baalke

        1. According to Maiocco, Baalke is not involved in coaching and Marathe has not been involved in challenges since the Nolan/Simpletary years….

          1. Shhh razor, it was quite clear from Grant’s comment about Baalke giving “pointers” in minicamp that he’d completely taken over coaching the team. True story.

          2. All true but it’s his version of “Parcells Football” that dictates who he drafts and who he selects to be head coach.

            1. I know that Baalke is a disciple of Parcells, but when you consider Geep’s no-huddle background, the speed they added outside, the zone blocking introduction, adding Bush presumably for his catching abilities out of the backfield,the early indications are that this will be an offense built around Kap’s strengths, ie rollng out and using his legs………. I think it is fair to say that this will be a modern/diverse offense, and not a power running/clock controlling one that Baalke and Parcells would adhere to. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see……

        2. htwaits: Well played…Just shows that being disrespectful is okay if you’re Baalke and want to interrupt Tomsula’s press conference…Maybe Harbaugh’s seen that disrespect before…

          1. No. There were 3 microphones at the PC and all 3 talked. Baalke did not interrupt JT. He let him finish his statement, then added something.

        3. Sounds like Baalke was helping him by clarifying his response. Baalke and Tomsula are joined at the hip compared to Baalke and JH.

          1. Far from it. That was noted as one of the most uncomfortable press conferences in recent football history…To argue or parse meanings won’t help you when it’s viral…Better recheck the videos, it was very uncomfortable looking when Baalke told Tomsula he’s going to run the ball! Tomsula looked like the bag checker at KMART when the CEO comes to town to visit his store.

            1. And Tomsula continued looking like that bag checker and Baalke the CEO throughout that press conference, that is exactly why Tim Kawakami and other national news mentioned that Tomsula had marbles in his mouth while he tried to forulate something resembling a word.

              1. And Seb, one more thing: A coach having problems formulating words at a press conference is not the kind of coach I want on third and 10 coaching my team, when there’s even more pressure…That’s the kind of coach who goes Mike Nolan on you and starts freaking out by getting involved in offensive play calling, and dumbing down your offense

              2. Well…. I believe Tomsula was hired to be the Head Coach of the San Francisco 49ers. His job description does not include elocution specialist.
                I saw a person who had not slept in 36 hours, so I am going to cut him some slack.
                In his subsequent interviews, he has been sharp, focused, and answered the questions directly and succinctly. He does not look like some prisoner enduring torture like JH did. Tomsula was forthcoming, truthful and pleasant, unlike some other HC.

            2. Replay that last game of the 2010 season. Looked like Tomsula could think quickly on his feet.

      2. Very good character traits no doubt. We’ll know by seasons end if those virtues translate to wins.
        Not saying Harbaugh’ behavior was endearing, but let’s wait for at least the halfway point of the season before making comparisons.
        Harbaugh has history as a 49ers head coach, Tomsula (whether agreed or not) does not.

        1. Jim Tomsula does have a track record as the Niner HC. He coached the last game of the 2010 season when MS was fired. He took that dispirited team with nothing to play for, and fired them up to bludgeon the Cards 35-7.
          Ignore that fact if you want, I will just say that JT is undefeated as the Niner HC.

          1. You seriously did not just pull out the one meaningless game that Tomsula coached during a losing season, did you?
            …stupid question. Of course you did.

            1. Maybe you should watch that game again. I did not see wasted time outs. There were no DOG penalties. I think the defense scored a TD, so they were fired up, energized, focused and well prepared.
              Unlike last season.

            2. Stupid? I expected no less from you. LOL this is like shooting fish in a barrel.

              1. I’m moving on dude because I cannot match your mastery of stupid. I won’t respond to it, but cue the moronic comment from you in 3…2…1…

          2. Sebnynah,
            Can’t argue that Tomsula had one win as a HC. But comparing that to Harbaugh’ overall record is a monumental stretch – no matter what the score was against the Cards with Tomsula at the helm.

            There is a reason why York/Baalke went with Harbaugh 4 years ago over many candidates which could have included Tomsula.
            With all due respect to Jim Tomsula, as a 49er diehard I hope that he has great success. But for now we will just have to wait and see if he can write his own 49er history as headcoach.
            Sorry, one win as interim HC does not make head-coaching history for me.

            1. JH was a 500 coach and the Niners missed the playoffs last year. His stubbornness and lack of adjustments doomed his season. His system allowed Kaep to be sacked 52 times, and the other team admitted after the game that they knew what was going to be run just by looking at the formation.
              Personally I think Tomsula will be more flexible, less predictable, and he will clean up the game management.
              Tomsula has a 100% winning percentage. It is a fact, not some delusion. You may discount it as not existing, but I cannot change your reality.

              1. Sebny,
                Actually Jim Harbaugh’ record as a 49ers head coach was 690% and that included deep playoff runs and a SB appearance as well.
                That my friend is the clear and simple reality.

                Your reality is stuck on tunnel vision that does not look beyond the 2014 season. That you conveniently disregard Harbaugh’ overall 49er record and enthusiastically give props to Tomsula’ one win does little to give you strong footing in the land of reality.

                But hey, who am I fooling, anyone that thinks its a good idea to trade B.Miller so that Tomsula can explore all the possibilities of using Okoye in his place is a master stroke (lol).

    1. Urgh, trust Cam Newton to try out Aussie Rules rather than a real sport like rugby league or rugby union. Don’t be fooled, Aussie Rules isn’t a tough man’s game. We call it Aerial Ping Pong over here. They just kick the ball to each all day.

      1. I remember watching Aussie rules once in awhile in the early days of ESPN. Crazy game that I never could wrap my head around, but always enjoyed the guys in the hats signaling points scored with the double pointer move.

        1. Haha, yeah, I’ve never quite understood how someone thought that was the best way to signal a goal, but it is pretty funny. You the man!

      2. Urgh, trust Cam Newton to try out Aussie Rules rather than a real sport like rugby league or rugby union.

        Isn’t that a smart move by Newton though Scooter? I mean I think the Panthers organization would be fairly ticked off if he tried out rugby and was injured in the process.

        1. Doubt it has anything to do with Newton being smart, but yeah, I’m sure the Panthers wouldn’t be thrilled if he got injured playing rugby (or Aussie Rules for that matter).

          I think the thing that annoyed me was Newton raved about how tough the Aussie Rules players are because they don’t play in pads – but then they don’t really tackle each other either. Just lots of pushing and shoving, kicking, and jumping to catch the ball. Nobody talks about soccer players being tough because they don’t play in pads…

          1. Doubt it has anything to do with Newton being smart

            Yeah, I knew that the combo of Newton and smart in the same sentence was an oxymoron the moment I posted it.

  40. In his chat today, Maiocco was asked how many WRs does he think the 49ers will keep. His answer:

    “I think they’ll keep a total of eight, including practice squad. So that could mean 6/2 or 7/1. If they keep seven, it has to be a second one of those undrafted guys that they believe has a chance to be a very good player and they fear will get claimed off waivers or plucked from the practice squad.”

    1. Seven WRs on the active roster? That’s a lot to keep. I would be very surprised if that happened. Six I could see, though I think five is more likely.

      1. Yea, he’s been consistent with that answer for a few weeks. One of the few times I disagree with Maiocco and am inclined to believe like you Scooter, that five is likely the WR magic number….

      2. I posted his answer because it seemed like the consensus opinion on the blog was five receivers on the 53 with six being less likely.

  41. Then there was this prediction and summation of other beat writers view.

    “MM: From what I gather, most people think the 49ers are going to be a disaster. Personally, I think there will be a lot less drama and dysfunction than a year ago. I don’t think the 49ers are Super Bowl contenders, but I don’t think they’ll be a four-win team, either.”

    My view is that either four wins or eleven wins would be a long shot. I must agree with Matt.

    1. The league’s wrote the Niners off when they made the schedule. 3rd hardest by opponents 2014 Win/Loss. First hardest by opponents projected win/loss.

      And travel to Pittsburgh for a 10am game on six days… while the Steelers get ten days rest?

      I think the 49ers will win 10+ games or lose 10+ games. I don’t see a middling season like so many. Just a hunch. Apologies for not providing a detailed analysis as to why. If pressed, I’m basing this on the large number of high variable guys like Vernon, Aldon, Bowman (injury variable) and CK.

      The 49ers lose more than ten games if…
      – Colin plays like last year
      – Aldon and Vernon play like last year
      – Injury at ILB
      – Unsettled O-line and/or injuries
      – CB athleticism fails to translate into production
      – Ian Williams and Dorsey both get hurt

      The 49ers win more than ten games if…
      – Colin has the same/better YPA + TD/INT as 2012
      – Aldon and Vernon play up to their capabilities
      – No injuries at ILB
      – O-line jells, displaying new found athleticism with Thomas and Martin
      – Williams or Dorsey stay healthy
      – CBs are fast learners. Brock and/or Reaser stun the league with 1-on-1 capabilities, raising Mangini’s IQ several points.

      Before Anthony Davis’ retirement I was thinking 50/50 shot at 11-5 or 6-10.
      Now I’m guessing 40% shot at 10-6, 60% shot at 6-10.

      Another reason I’m so optimistic is the key players don’t need to have a super season. They just need to play close to a level they’ve already played before.

  42. Another view of the future from MM’s blog today.

    ***

    @GreggisKhan Do the doctors and staff anticipate Daniel Kilgore ready for action day one of training camp?

    MM: On the final day of the 49ers’ offseason program, Jim Tomsula was asked if Kilgore would be ready for the start of training camp. His answer, “Kilgore is in a process. We think so. But, yeah again with Kilgore we’re just talking about healing. That’s what we’re talking about.”

    ***

    Clear? I think we will be dealing with JimT’s own set of eccentric replies this year.

    1. Nice write up. A question though – wasn’t Dial playing RDE and Dorsey LDE during minicamp?

        1. Well, I still would have preferred they went another direction with that pick, but he’s on the team now, he’s a 49er, and who really cares where he was drafted once the pads go on? So long as he’s a contributor I’m happy with him.

          1. Scooter,

            Agreed. At least, as long as Marcus Peters doesn’t get his act together and isn’t a very good to great corner.

      1. Yes. Unless the OTAs/Minnie’s work was experimental, I expect Dial and Caradine to be at DRE.
        Wilhoite got an extension and is better against the run than Moody, but Moody covers better.
        Lynch’s injury status this summer will effect Brooks’ and Lemonaid’s futures. Like Aldon in his rookie year, Harold’s lack of experience in dropping into coverages may limit his minutes.
        Dahl got an extension, but I think McCray still has a chance.
        Ward’s dinged so we may not see too much of him in the summer. The CB competition will be fierce in TC, then the survivors will get tested early.
        It seems a bit premature to rate players as ‘falling’ before TC has started; perhaps “promising” & “feeling pressure” would be better pre camp terms.

    2. Nice write-up Grant. A few thoughts:

      -There isn’t evidence to suggest that Armstead is rising or falling at this point. Let him practice first and then an assessment can be made.
      -Lynch should be listed at LOLB and ROLB since he can play both positions.
      -You mention Wheeler in your analysis but don’t include him in the depth chart.
      -Ward should be listed in the safety chart since he was a backup in that area last season.
      -McCray and Dahl are both on shaky ground. I think there is a good chance the team goes into the season with only Reid, Bethea, and Tarrt since Ward can slide over if need be.

        1. I know he is, but McCray going to have to show more in order to do so.

          1. If he can garner the trust at safety that Dahl enjoyed from the previous regime, then he’s golden….

    3. A lot of speculation that probably would have been better saved as part of training camp observations. However, you have a job to do, so it’s understandable. The only real issue I have is your anointing of Armstead. No one has seen Armstead do anything with the 49ers so it’s really too early. Also, the only issue I see with Reid is if he has another concussion. Other than that, he’s the starting safety for sure (although I agree that his sophomore campaign was not as good as his rookie year).

      Although I’m somewhat critical of this article, I feel that you’ve stepped up your game, Grant. I’m looking forward to your training camp observations and writeups.

  43. Ex-
    I think a few of us are starting to think that. Certainly the obsessive defense of a never-happen scenario is reminiscent of a few years ago trade scenario of PWilly for Fitz that was defended ad nauseum. This “new guy” appears from nowhere and is suddenly sucking up all the oxygen on the site with scurrilous trade proposals and a bunch of conspiracy theories. So, yeah, some markers are there.
    In my last response I almost added “This isn’t the NBA” in regards to multi player trades. So what’s the response? “There are 3 way deals in the NBA……..” Smh
    I note with interest one oddity about some of the most wordy Trolls who infest this site; at least two ‘personalities’ have been androgynous. Remember how DS went back and forth about it’s gender? And how many doubted that ‘Mary’ was really a woman? Creepy with weird sauce, but ultimately better if we just ignore going forward.
    Razor- has Darren been trolling on MM’s site?

    1. Since you are referring to me and consider off season idle speculation as Scurrilous and Conspiratorial, I will just ask a question.-Why do you feel so threatened by me?
      I am a die hard Niner fan, and just want the Niners to win multiple Lombardis.
      Attack me all you want, I really do not care, but trying to shut me up for making idle conjecture says more about yourself than it does about me.
      I really must have gotten to you to generate so much static, but now I realize that posters recognize my name and attack me because I have engaged them previously.
      I still have contempt for those posters, so remember what I said previously- I do not suffer fools gladly.
      You should do what many others do. Do not even try to engage me. Avoid me like a plague, and both of us will be happy. Let me post in peace. I usually am respectful and have agreed with many posters, but trying to out think me is futile. I relish a good fight, but so far have been disappointed.
      Since the peanut gallery is such a bunch of know it alls, I wonder if they have the guts to make a prediction. Predicting a season that could win between 4 and 11 games is not a profile in courage. I predict the Niners will have a 10-6 season. I also predicted NE would beat Seattle 24-23, so I missed the exact score by 5 points.

            1. You’re not a know it all? I’ve got news for you, when you express an opinion, you often times sound like a know-it-all.

              Also, the next time an aging OLB who had problems with conditioning and discipline last year, a FB and the other fringe players get traded for a first round pick (or more), will be the first time.

              On the other hand, if Baalke ever pulled off such a trade, I’ll be happy to eat a big plate of crow, with humble pie for desert.

              But first I’d have to stop laughing at the stupidity of the team that agreed to the trade first.

              1. Guess what? I have been wrong lots of times. I admit my mistakes when wrong, but when I am right, I will defend it to the death. It is not delusional fantasy land to think that JH wanted LMJ, and the discussion of many pundits and posters at that time back me up.
                I guess surmising about a trade during the idle off season is a criminal act. You may disagree with me, but hurling invective’s is just going over the top.

              2. My premise is to believe that the other team would want to improve and stop being a doormat. 5 Niners could strengthen their squad and it would be like they conducted another draft. They also might like to get some Niner Mojo, too.
                A second round pick for 5 players sounds reasonable to me, but obviously, you disagree.

    2. Haven’t seen Darren over there lately Brotha, but there seems to be many “Darren’s” on his blog….

    3. BT,

      It’s going to be interesting how this goes. Intellectually, I realize that your advice to not engage is sound, but at the same time, it’s like an itch that you just have to scratch.

  44. “ultimately better if we just ignore going forward” … Brotha Tuna

    Words to blog by. ;-}

  45. Agree, Razor …

    Since the new guy thinks no one, here, comes
    close to being his equal …(in the smarts department) ..
    and dares one of us to make predictions ..
    I’ll take up his challenge with a couple of my own …

    1. He sleeps on his mommie’s futon
    (in her basement) and looks something like this

    2. His mommie will soon figure out where her laptop is
    (and take it away from him)

    Howz that ?? … Am I close ?

    1. Great. insult me all you want. Just allow me to fire back without crying to the mods.
      BTW, I was there for those lean years during the 70s. I witnessed The Catch. Use your cognitive skills to figure out how far off you are.

  46. Oh wow we have a new troll, and he/she’s good, passes all the tests,
    1) Inflated sense of intelligence – check
    2) Insulting regulars – check
    3) “die hard fan” – check
    4) Challenges regulars “bravery” – check
    5) Believes regulars are “threatened” by his/her intelligence – check
    6) Repeated use of the word “Delusional” – check.

    Can we keep it? please! I promise to feed it every day, change its litter tray, even take it for a walk every morning? Oh please can we keep it? pleeeeease??

    BT, sorry. i’m weak.

      1. 8) Declares that he has won even when he had dug himself a hole with his own words

        1. Just a little game I play. If some poster devolves into name calling and pejoratives, i consider that a win. I still do not think your narrative of me digging myself a hole is applicable. Speaking of holes…maybe you never heard this one- Forcing Kaep to be only a pocket passer was like putting an Abrams tank in a pit.

              1. True. I do have better things to do.
                On another note, if I have acted this idiotic when responding to you Rocket or any of the other members of the 49ers blog family, then I sincerely apologize and promise to make a strong effort to avoid doung so in the future.

              2. That’s what I’m doing hwaits, but I also thought that I should apologize if I had sounded like an idiot when talking with Rocket, Scooter, Jack, Razor, and any of the other members of the 49ers blog family. They don’t have to respond, but I figured they should know that.

              3. MWD-We have no conflicts, no debts and I accept your tribute while offering one of my own. If I have been too bellicose to you or anyone else on here, please forgive me. Charge it to my head, and not to my heart….

              4. mid,

                You have nothing to apologize for. There is a big difference between some of the conversations that get heated in here at times, and somebody who is just here to stir up sh*t. As fans we all get a little emotional arguing our positions at times, but it’s done because of a deep love of the team and the game. This guy is nothing close to that and deserves no response..

              5. Imagine how skinny Mary/ DS would have been if not fed…
                I’m glad that INT in the Super Bowl substituted for a baked apple pie and shut her up.

      2. And dont you fergit it.
        Remember Roman? he said he was NOT verbose…..And I believe him.

    1. DClark,

      This sounds like when kids promise to take care of the dog, when begging for s puppy.

      1. Hmm maybe you are delusional. Engaging the sophomoric sycophants and their puppy dog eagerness to oppose me is not pleasant. My contempt for them is evident yet I consider them a big waste of time.
        All I want to do is post with like minded Niner fans who just want the Niners to win multiple Lombardis. Oh how I wish for pleasant discourse discussing Niner strategy and personnel.

    2. I just throw back their own words in their face. Delusional is their term for some of my ideas. They think it was delusional when I wrote a year and a half ago that the Niners should run the no huddle with quick snaps. According to them, Tomsula would never implement such delusional thinking.
      Poor babies…feelings got hurt? I will try to be kinder. Just seems they walk right into it. I really do not have to try, they do it to themselves.

    3. Still want to see a prediction, but these regulars just will not do it because they know that they will be on record, and people can look up their predictions.
      I have the confidence to make a prediction. I am not afraid to be wrong, and many of my predictions do not pan out.
      However, I did make this prediction a couple years ago. I said that Kaep should roll out, use his mobility to buy time, and succeed in flustering the defense. They will forget all about the receivers because they do not want to look ridiculous like that GB LB who was face palmed in that playoff game. Kaep will hit a wide open receiver, and he will walk into the end zone. The next week, AB did just that. I notice that nobody has disputed that, because it is archived as nynah on the sfgate blog.

    1. Well, he didn’t lose it,….he knows where it is, he just doesn’t want it anymore because it’s broke. It must have been shredded if full amp was the call. I’d assume significant rehab time.

    2. It’s unclear how much of the finger was lost. Here’s how PFF is reporting what Schefter said:

      “ESPN obtained Pierre-Paul’s medical records, which show he underwent a “ray resection,” which would leave his finger amputated down to his knuckle. It’s obviously terrible news after previous reports indicated JPP had only suffered flesh injuries. At this point, it’s not clear what kind of on-field impact this will have on JPP (Texans OLB Whitney Mercilus and Cardinals S Rashad Johnson both play without the tip of their fingers). Pierre-Paul reportedly elected to have the surgery to accelerate the recovery process, and could be back in fewer than two months.”

      So was only the tip down to the first knuckle amputated or was it down to the middle knuckle?

      1. Thanks for the info cubus. Still lots that is unclear. As PFF mention there are players missing the tips of some digits and it doesn’t appear to impact them much.

  47. PFF is reporting this on Marcus Lattimore (originally from SB Nation):

    “Retired RB Marcus Lattimore admitted in an interview with SB Nation that he was “shocked” GM Trent Baalke drafted him in 2013.
    Baalke blew a fourth-round pick on Lattimore, who never came close to playing a snap for the Niners. “I went out there and put a smile a smile on my face like everything was alright,” Lattimore said about his time with the 49ers. “But it was hell. Every day.” Lattimore suffered two devastating knee/leg injuries at South Carolina. “My running backs coach was like, ‘Good job! Good job!’” Lattimore said. “My offensive coordinator — I was catching balls out of the backfield — was like, ‘Man you look good!’ I was like, ‘You have no clue.'” Lattimore is currently working as a student ambassador at the University of South Carolina.”

    I guess I find this a bit surprising, but it’s history now. It would be interesting to know how Baalke feels about this, but I suppose we’ll never know.

    1. I remember there were quite a few people that were excited by the pick but it was always a surprising pick for me. I understand why he would have been shocked by it, but at the same time he appeared to project a determination to rehabilitate and get it right leading up to the draft and after being selected. I didn’t really like the pick, but I could understand with so many picks why they might be willing to risk it on such a player.

      This is from the actual article on Lattimore: http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2015/7/8/8900709/marcus-lattimore-profile-feature

      “Baalke knew right away the road that lay ahead. “The odds were not in our favor, or at best they were 50/50,” he says now of Marcus’ chances to turn a profit in the NFL. But the GM leaned on what he had uncovered about Marcus’ character and disposition in researching the prospect, about his work ethic, about how his commitment to the game was always accompanied by a smile. “If anyone was going to get back,” he says, “it was going to be a young man like that.”

      Lattimore’s comments on the article sound like he had the right intentions to start with, but the reality and pain of rehabbing from such a gruesome injury just wore him down.

  48. Grant you never re-visited your post: http://49ers.pressdemocrat.com/predict-colin-kaepernicks-2014-stats/

    How many passing yards? 3369

    How many touchdown passes?19

    How many interceptions?10

    How many rushing yards?639

    How many rushing touchdowns?1

    I think Leo and Houston9er and JPN001 came the closest in actual guesses. My prediction of simply adding 1-2% to his 2013 stats wasn’t that far off either. Not sure anyone was close enough to qualify as a Genius but the 3 mentioned were pretty close.

  49. What we will not miss about Coach Harbaw:
    1. His sideline pirouette (emotional fits)
    2. His khaki tutu (see #1)
    3. His Super Bowl loss to the Ravens.
    4. His psychotic interview stare (down & to his left)
    5. His slogans (who has it better than we do….)
    6. His ongoing drinking/dipping habits.
    7. His highest compliment: “a football player”…

    1. Dude, you can’t get even get the catchphrase right. Get over your sick infatuation with Harbaugh already.

      1. Is it a coincidence that “Alex for president” and Sebny showed up at around the same time?
        Are we experiencing a DS (with another alias) return?

        1. Don’t know, but here’s hoping that it’s just a coincidence and not a double poster.

  50. I will attempt to humor our new troll with his penchant for predictions as I gaze into the 49ers crystal ball:

    I see more screens on the horizon, and outlet passes to the running backs. I see them getting to the line of scrimmage and executing before the play clock expires on a consistent basis. I see the passing game attacking every point on the field. I don’t see any tweets from Cassie, but I do see:

    Kaepurnicus – 3000 through the air and 875 on the ground
    Mr. Hyde – 900 on the ground and another $1.50 receiving
    Bush – 300 on the ground and another 300 through the air
    VD – 10 TD’s
    Aldon – 20 sacks
    Bowman – 110 tackles and come back player of the year

    It’s getting really foggy, but it looks like they finish 10-6 and sneak into the playoffs as a dangerous wild card….

    1. OK. you are predicting exactly what I predicted. Sounds like you are getting smarter all the time.

    2. Here is another one of my predictions. Niners are going to take a page out of rugby game, and will do more laterals to attack openings in the defense. Tomsula may try to maximize Hayne by accentuating his strengths.

    3. I’ll take your prediction, in part because it doesn’t require the core players to have extraordinary seasons. If Aldon, Vernon and Bowman play up to their capabilities (even factoring age and injury recovery) the 49ers will be a dangerous team.

      Before Anthony Davis retired I felt pretty good about the odds of a “shock the world” playoff scenario. I still like the roster, but with the O-line in flux there’s a new variable. If they move Boone to a new spot and Kilgore heals slowly, that’s 4 out of 5 spots with new players.

      I posted above “Before Anthony Davis’ retirement I was thinking 50/50 shot at 11-5 or 6-10. Now I’m guessing 40% shot at 10-6, 60% shot at 6-10.”
      (I was expecting alot of friendly contradictions, but everyone was distracted)

      But if the line gels and thrives under the new system, a playoff run shouldn’t surprise anyone.

      1. B2W,

        RT isn’t a totally new position for Boone. He’s gotten work there before. Also, he adapted pretty quickly when he was moved RG. He could struggle if moved to either LG or RT, but he’s a good o lineman and has done well when moved before.

    4. My only contention would be that I expect bigger things from Bush, even with Hunter in the picture. I think he can easily challenge for a 1,000 yards from scrimmage….. I think Hyde remains somewhat unproven to date and his performance will dictate the number of carries Hunter and Bush get……. I think it will be a 60/30/10 scenario, but wouldn ‘t be surprised if Hyde gets down to 50%.

      1. I agree. I hope they do a RB by committee this season and keep all the RBs fresh for the end off the season.

  51. Thoughts on Maiocco’s early roster odds

    http://www.csnbayarea.com/49ers/49ers-early-roster-odds

    I like Maiocco’s Lock:, Looking Good, 50/50, Must Impress approach.

    He lists Vance McDonald as 50/50 chance of not sticking. “This is the position where a lot of things can happen…”
    Surprising, but not surprising. Backup to VD will be the most fluid spot till cut down day.

    1. Yep, his contention that a TE gets traded before training camp is plausible….

    2. Yes I agree trading a TE is plausible and would be the only way McDonald is not on this team this year imo. I want him to get a real shot to be a factor in the passing game, but with the other candidates they have, I would understand if they traded him, provided it’s a reasonable pick in return.

      1. He has to earn his shots and if he’s traded, it means the 49ers think he’s shooting blanks….

      2. Rocket,

        What seems like reasonable compensation for VMcD, to you?

        Seems like a fifth, maybe a late fourth (if there’s s team out there that also really liked VMcD and thinks he never got a fair chance to show what he can do) would be the most the 49ers could get.

        I agree with you about VMcD, it remains to be seen what he can do. After all, the poor guy had his own teammates defending passes intended for him (Vernon Davis “breaking up” a would be TD pass that was right to VMcD).

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