Jay Feely: “I think they’re confident with Jim Tomsula moving forward.”

Check out what sideline reporter Jay Feely said during Sunday’s broadcast, courtesy of CSN Bay Area: “I had a chance to talk with Al Guido, the COO for the 49ers, beforehand. They knew what they were getting into when they had all the defections. (Guido) said they underestimated a little bit the impact that it had on the locker room, specifically the lack of leadership. … But I think they’re…

December 20, 2015
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Jim Tomsula disputes his own players’ claims that 49ers overlooked Browns

This is the transcript of Jim Tomsula’s Monday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. department.   Opening comments: “The injuries; again, the guys are still coming in and you know this, but [G/T Alex] Boone is going for an MRI today on that knee. [RB Kendall] Gaskins did have a concussion, so he’s in the concussion protocol. [WR] Torrey Smith that back spasm did happen to him in the…

December 14, 2015
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Jim Tomsula on Blaine Gabbert: “He’s got a nice personality.”

SANTA CLARA Here is the transcript of Jim Tomsula’s Monday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. department,   Opening comments: “The injury report, again guys are still coming in, but [LB Aaron] Lynch and [TE Vance] McDonald are both in the concussion protocol. [LB Michael] Wilhoite is getting an MRI on his ankle today. [LB NaVorro] Bowman, as of right now, looks like everything is really well. He went through…

December 7, 2015
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49ers fans should wish for a Bears victory

This is my Sunday column. Twelve reasons to root for the Bears Sunday if you’re a 49ers fan: Reason No. 1. The Niners front office may start thinking Blaine Gabbert is the franchise quarterback if he beats Chicago, and may decide against taking a quarterback in the first few rounds of the upcoming draft. This is very bad thinking. See reason No. 2. Reason No. 2. Gabbert is not the…

December 5, 2015
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49ers front office shift needs a bit of analysis

This is my Saturday column. Wednesday, 8:14 a.m. I get a phone call from the San Francisco 49ers’ vice president of communications. Not expecting the call. Never got a call from him this early in the morning. Hmmm. I pick up the phone. The V.P. says he wants to give me a heads up Jim Tomsula won’t make his 10:30 a.m. Wednesday press conference. The V.P. says he’s telling me…

December 4, 2015
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Jim Tomsula: “Maybe we need to sprint off the bus.”

SANTA CLARA This  is the transcript of Jim Tomsula’s Monday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. department.   Opening comments: “The injury report; what we’ve got here, we’ve got some bumps and bruises, but [TE Garrett] Celek is going for an MRI. But again, we still feel like nothing is broke, that it’s what our people have categorized a high ankle sprain. And obviously with those we’ll have to…

November 30, 2015
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Jim Tomsula says Blaine Gabbert’s conservative approach on third down is “absolutely not OK.”

SANTA CLARA Here’s what Jim Tomsula said about Blaine Gabbert Monday morning. Q: Blaine Gabbert has 16 third-down completions, but only six have gone for first downs. Is that OK? Would you like to see a more aggressive approach? TOMSULA: “Absolutely not OK. We need to get first downs on third down. So, we’ve got to do a better job there.” Q: You’d like to see him throw beyond the…

November 30, 2015
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Jim Tomsula: “We’re in a performance-based business and all of us in it get it.”

SANTA CLARA This is the full transcript of Jim Tomsula’s Wednesday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. department. Opening comments: “Injury report; [DL] Glenn Dorsey and [QB] Colin Kaepernick both had successful surgeries yesterday. Glenn had his knee repaired over here at Stanford and that went really well. Report I got there and the report I got on Colin, he was in Colorado and that went really well. Those…

November 25, 2015
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Jim Tomsula: “Glenn (Dorsey) got hurt there, and I didn’t like our body language. OK? We have to address that.”

SANTA CLARA I asked San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Tomsula a question at his Wednesday press conference. Here is his answer. ME: “The team seemed lethargic early in the game against the Seahawks. Afterward, I spoke to Ahmad Brooks and asked why the team seemed lethargic. He said he couldn’t speak for anyone else, but it did take him a while to get going in the game. How do…

November 25, 2015
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Is Jim Tomsula worse than the worst head coach of all time?

This is  my Wednesday column. Is Jim Tomsula worse than Mike Singletary? Fair question, even though some (most?) consider Singletary the worst head coach in the history of the NFL. Let’s compare him and Tomsula. Singletary was a linebackers coach before becoming the Niners’ head coach. He was articulate — he could have been a preacher. But, he often said vague things like, “I need to look at the film,”…

November 24, 2015
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Jim Tomsula: “We’ve just got to keep pounding through it and get to the other side.”

This is the transcript of Jim Tomsula’s Monday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. department.   Opening comments: “Injuries, I really don’t have a lot to update you on from last night. [DL] Glenn [Dorsey] is getting an MRI now and again with [S Jaquiski] Tartt and [WR Anquan] Boldin they’re in there getting some rehab, but both of those guys I think were OK. So, questions?”   Just…

November 23, 2015
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49ers 13, Seahawks 29: Grades

SEATTLE Here are the grades for the San Francisco 49ers’ 29-13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. GABBERT: B. Played better than he did during his first start for the Niners two weeks ago against the Atlanta Falcons. This week, Gabbert faced a top Seahawks defense, threw for 264 yards and a touchdown while making no major mistakes and getting sacked only twice even though he had no running game. RUNNING…

November 22, 2015
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Jim Tomsula: “To answer that question would be that I had a view that Seattle was on the decline, which I do not.”

SANTA CLARA This is the transcript of Jim Tomsula’s Wednesday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. department. Opening comments: “Everybody will be on the field today for practice. [LB NaVorro] Bowman will be normal Wednesday. We’re just going to stay on that deal leading into the game. As far as [WR Anquan] Boldin, [RB Carlos] Hyde, [CB Tramaine] Brock, they will be out there, they will be going and…

November 18, 2015
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Jim Tomsula: “We’re moving forward with Blaine.”

SANTA CLARA Here is the transcript of Jim Tomsula’s Monday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. department. Opening comments: “Good morning. The injury report here; [LB Aaron] Lynch, [CB Marcus] Cromartie, [DB Jimmie] Ward, [CB Keith] Reaser, they’ll all be full go. We’re in great shape there. [CB Kenneth] Acker will be go. He’s finished up and finishing up, but we expect him to be on this week. As…

November 16, 2015
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Kaepernick: “I’m not out of breath, so I don’t understand that reference.”

SANTA CLARA Colin Kaepernick spoke at his locker Friday afternoon for the first time since getting benched. Here’s a transcript. Q: What was the conversation like on Monday when you found out your coach had made a decision (to bench you)? KAEPERNICK: They told me they were going to sit me, and that was about the extent of the conversation. Q: Did you ask why, or were there any reasons…

November 6, 2015
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49ers’ salvage plan probably far too late to matter

This is my Friday column. The San Francisco 49ers hit the iceberg weeks ago. So, why are they benching Colin Kaepernick now? What does this move say about the mindset of the franchise? We’re looking at two issues here: the Jim-Tomsula issue, and the Jed-York-Trent-Baalke-dynamic-duo issue. Although the issues are similar. Let’s deal with the Tomsula issue first. Tomsula is desperate. He realizes he’s in over his head, and probably…

November 5, 2015
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Jim Tomsula: “I think I’m a guy that’s in the locker room more than most coaches.”

SANTA CLARA This is the transcript of Jim Tomsula’s Wednesday press conference, courtesy of the 49ers’ P.R. department. Opening comments: “Good morning. Injuries; [S] Antoine Bethea was down at Stanford, had his surgery on his pectoral yesterday. They said everything went wonderful. [LB NaVorro] Bowman will be off today. [RB Carlos] Hyde will be off today. There’s a handful of guys that will be in limited things just in this…

October 28, 2015
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Why Tomsula’s 49ers were unprepared for Seahawks

This is my Sunday column. SANTA CLARA As the Seahawks took a 17-0 lead before halftime Thursday night, I remember thinking the 49ers seemed sluggish and unprepared. So, I asked the following question on Twitter: “Did the 49ers even practice this week, or did the players vote against it?” I was joking. I assumed every week all teams practice, even the bad teams. Even the teams that play on Thursday….

October 24, 2015
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Tomsulary and pompinstance

SANTA CLARA Jim Tomsula had an endearing moment during his Monday press conference. Q: What do you recall from that Thursday night game against them here last year? It was Thanksgiving and Richard Sherman was eating turkey on your field and there were a lot of elements. TOMSULA: I didn’t remember that until you just brought that up. Yeah, I don’t really pay much attention to the pompinstance around it….

October 19, 2015
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Colin Kaepernick’s mechanics need a trip to the garage

This is my Saturday column. Colin Kaepernick isn’t huge on mechanics. He said so on Wednesday. This revelation shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who has ever seen him play. Kaepernick is one of the most inconsistent quarterbacks in the NFL. His college coach, Chris Ault, broke down Kaepernick’s inconsistencies last week to Foxsports.com. Ault was the only college coach who gave Kaepernick a football scholarship. Ault created Kaepernick….

October 16, 2015
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