SANTA CLARA – This is the transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s Friday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. “I can tell by the audience that we’ve probably ploughed through all the ground there is to plough through.” You don’t want to answer any questions today? “No, I didn’t say that. I said judging by the sparseness of the crowd, we probably have covered everything.” Keeping the farming reference…
SANTA CLARA – This is the transcript of Frank Gore’s Thursday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. You haven’t worn that in a while? “No.” Why’d you pull it out today? “It’s a work day. That’s about it. Just want to have a good work day.” What’s it going to take to have a good work day on Sunday? “We just have to play 49ers football. Do…
SANTA CLARA – This is the transcript of Greg Roman’s Thursday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. Opening Statement: “Sorry to keep you waiting. Good afternoon. Obviously we’re very excited to be back in the Championship Game against a great Atlanta team. They’ve won a lot of games this year, won a lot of games really the past several years, and the great thing about our guys is they’ve…
NFL Network analyst and former NFL player Heath Evans spoke on KNBR Thursday morning. Here’s what he said about the 49ers and the Falcons. Q: The 49ers are a four-point favorite on the road over the Falcons. Does this stun you? HEATH EVANS: No. Not at all. I was talking with Darren Sharper the other day, and I’m telling you – anyone that is picking Atlanta is either biased because…
SANTA CLARA – This is the transcript of Colin Kaepernick’s Wednesday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. [Head coach Jim] Harbaugh mentioned last week that you were really picking up the game plan, a savant-like game he said. Did you feel like it was like another level for you, that the mental part was really picking up? “I think it’s just something you have to do in this playoff…
SANTA CLARA – Delanie Walker spoke at his locker Wednesday afternoon. This is what he said. Q: Is it going to be important to establish you and Vernon in the passing game against the Falcons? WALKER: Most definitely. Crab’s been doing that, so I’m pretty sure they’re going to have to stop Crab. And that’s going to give everybody opportunities to make plays. Q: You guys do a lot of…
SAN FRANCISCO – The 49ers massacred the Packers 45-31 on Saturday night. Here is the grade for the 49ers’ coaches. Coaching: A. Both the offensive and the defensive game plans were terrific. On defense, the 49ers struggled to get pressure on Aaron Rodgers with four rushers, so Fangio blitzed more than usual. He blitzed Patrick Willis in particular, who sacked Rodgers once and forced him to throw it away twice….
The 49ers play the Packers Saturday at the Stick. In the meantime, I’ll break down the key matchups. Dom Capers vs. Greg Roman Greg Roman completely outcoached Dom Capers in Week 1. Capers expected the 49ers to run up the middle with Gore and around the outside with Kendall Hunter. So Roman did the opposite – he ran Gore around the edges and Hunter up the middle. That won’t trick…
SANTA CLARA – Greg Roman spoke in the media tent Tuesday afternoon. Here’s what he said about Jim Harbaugh and the 49ers offense, courtesy of the 49ers. We don’t get to watch WR A.J. Jenkins in practice but can you describe how he’s done this year and I guess the progress he’s made through the course of the season? “Yeah, A.J. is making really good strides, week-to-week. He hasn’t…
SANTA CLARA – Greg Roman spoke in the media tent Tuesday afternoon. Here’s what he said about the Packers defense, courtesy of the 49ers. Opening statement: “Good afternoon, really proud of our players for winning the NFC West again. As we head on into the postseason, here we are staring at the Green Bay Packers in the face again, just like we were out of training camp. It’s a…
Greg Cosell spoke on KNBR Monday afternoon. He explained how the 49ers’ offense should attack the Packers’ defense. Here’s what Cosell said. Q: What do you see as the key matchups in this game? COSELL: We spoke about one, and that’s the ability to limit Rodgers when he gets outside the pocket. If he breaks down your defense that way and starts making explosive plays, you’re in trouble. I think…
Tom Gamble, the 49ers’ Director of Player Personnel, is being courted around the league to become a general manager. He’s already interviewed with the Jaguars, and the Jets, Browns and Chargers are reportedly interested in him as well. About a year ago, the Raiders expressed interest in him, too. Gamble has a great reputation in the NFL. He was a college scout for the Indianapolis Colts from 1998 to 2004….
According to Howard Eskin of WIP radio, Greg Roman is one of five initial candidates for the Philadelphia Eagles’ head coaching job. The other candidates are Penn State head coach Bill O’Brien, Falcons offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter, Colts offensive coordinator Bruce Arians and Oregon head coach Chip Kelly. I have two questions for you: 1. If you were the Eagles, would you hire Roman to be the head coach? If…
SANTA CLARA – At his Monday press conference, Jim Harbaugh addressed the possibility of one of his coordinators getting hired as a head coach elsewhere. Here’s what Harbaugh said about that. Q: Have you factored in the possibility that some of your coaches might not be able to work all seven days this week, that they might get an interview with all the head coaching vacancies out there right now?…
SAN FRANCISCO – We learned a few things about the 49ers today – some good and some not-so-good. Here are those things. The Good The 49ers earned the No.2 seed and a first-round Bye with the win and the Packers’ three-point loss to the Vikings. The Packers and Vikings play again next weekend. If the Packers win, they play the 49ers at Candlestick in two weeks, on Saturday, January 12th…
SAN FRANCISCO – The 49ers stomped the Cardinals 27-13. Here is the grade for the 49ers coaches. Coaching: B-. The 49ers stomped a team they should have stomped, but they got beaten in the first quarter. The Cardinals scored six points and the Niners scored none. The Cardinals had two first downs and the Niners had none. The Cardinals had 42 yards rushing and the Niners had 10. The 49ers…
There are two reasons why this game against the Arizona Cardinals matters deeply to the 49ers. First, there are playoff implications. If the 49ers win, they’ll be 11-4-1. They’ll get the No.2 seed and a first-round Bye if the Packers lose to the Vikings. If the Packers beat the Vikings, the 49ers get the No.3 seed and they would not get a Bye. They would play the No.6 seed at…
SANTA CLARA – Greg Roman spoke in the media tent Thursday afternoon. Here’s what he said, courtesy of the 49ers. Opening statement: “Good afternoon, we’ve got a tough opponent this week, Arizona. Their defense, we have a lot of respect for, we know pretty well. You saw what they did to Detroit a couple of weeks ago. They’ve got good players, some guys we really think are among the…
Brent Jones spoke on KNBR Monday afternoon. Here’s what he said. Q: On a 1-to-10 scale, how much of an alarm meter would you ring on Sunday night? BRENT JONES: I think it’s a 10. The thing that scares me the most is the defense. There have been four games this year – the Vikings game, the Giants game, the Patriots game and this game where we just flat-out got…
SEATTLE, Wa. – The Seahawks crushed the 49ers 42-13 Sunday night. Here are the grades for the coaches. Coaching: F-. For the fifth time this season, the 49ers were flat and unprepared and did not win after winning two straight. That is Jim Harbaugh’s fault. His team is built around being more physical than their opponent. Tonight, their opponent was stronger and tougher and just beat them up. Bill Walsh…
