The past three years have been kind to the 49ers: three straight National Football Conference (NFC) championships, two division titles and a Super Bowl appearance. Any team and coach who could have accomplished such accolades should assuredly, and appropriately, be one of the best in the business. Head coach Jim Harbaugh has met all these marks, yet he is still coming under fire as speculation about his future with the organization floods the social media platforms. Therefore, the question is, what did he do that warrants him to lose his job?
We all know and will forever recognize the glory years of the 49ers throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s. Montana, Rice, Young and even Jeff Garcia and Terrell Owens had their own time. But from 2004 to 2010, the 49ers were arguably one of the worst teams in football. They won 39 games and lost 73 during that span, making them the fifth worst team in the NFL.
In came Jim Harbaugh for the 2011 season, who took a team that went 6-10 the previous season, and led them to a 13-3 record in his first year. Alex Smith became one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the league, and the Niners started to win games.
Beforehand, the 49ers had four different coaches in the losing years from 2004 to 2010, yet none of them accomplished a season over .500. The drastic improvement could not be attributed solely to the players added to the arsenal. Just the coach: Harbaugh. The only coach to lead a team to the NFC Championship game in his first three seasons and carry a record of 40-14-1 cumulative regular season record, second to only Tom Brady and Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots. Yet, anaylsts Deion Sanders, Jay Glazer, Randy Moss and other NFL Network insiders claim Harbaugh needs to be — no, will be — fired at the end of the season? That his players do not like him, that the Niners can do better, and that he is incapable of leading them to a Super Bowl victory?
Good luck. Honestly. Good luck trying to find someone better. The Niners spent over six years looking for the coach to lead and to turn around the team. He did that and made them the best team in the NFC. Who else can do that that has not already? And it is not like Harbaugh only did it once. It was not lucky. He came in and began his career as a head coach at the University of San Diego and led them to an 11-1 mark en route to a Pioneer League Championship. He then went to Stanford and gave the program their first 11 win season and made them a top five team in the nation. He groomed a future NFL quarterback at San Diego, Josh Johnson, and helped turn Andrew Luck into the number one overall pick.
And then he arrives and all of a sudden, Alex Smith finally puts up touchdowns instead of interceptions. And it wasn’t Harbaugh’s fault that Kyle Williams decided to fumble two punt returns in the NFC Championship game and cost the team a possible Super Bowl. He has done just about anything you can ask for in a coach.
With Harbaugh, the 49ers are super bowl contenders with another franchise quarterback named Colin Kaepernick, who Harbaugh insisted the Niners trade up and draft for in the second round. Firing him would kill the 49ers foundation to their success, and put them back into another rebuilding stage that does not need to be endured.
The time is now for the 49ers to win. Just let Harbaugh do his thing, because the only result that could come out of it is more success for the 49ers. Winning is the only thing Harbaugh knows.
Most importantly, Harbaugh’s players do not just like him. They love him. Kaepernick came out and went on the record saying, “I love coach Harbaugh. I’d go to war with him any day of the week.”
And even Michael Crabtree took to Twitter to say, “I don’t know what people are talking about with Mr. Deion. But we good over here!”
If that wasn’t enough to have two of your best offensive players confirm their love for their coach, offensive lineman Alex Boone, who is fresh off a holdout of his own, wasted no time in calling out guys like Jay Glazer and all of the reporters as “losers” in his post-game interview, effectively emphasizing his support for Harbaugh. With that said, in any given situation where the players are going out of their way to convince the world that their coach is “The Man,” then that is the utmost respect any coach could ever want. On top of all of the success he has had in his time in San Francisco so far, his players support him, admire him, and “would go to war with him” anytime.
Sounds like a pretty sweet operation to me – a system not worth being broken up.
Just a season ago, the 49ers enjoyed a lofty pedestal above a majority of their opponents and reigned as one of the elite teams in the National Football League (NFL). In fact, while the 2013-2014 season was still young, many anticipated for the Red and Gold to be among the strongest organizations throughout the league, specifically citing the intense fire that burned inside of them following their conference loss to the Seahawks last January. Unfortunately, that expectation has since disintegrated. Eight weeks removed from the team’s number three position in the first ESPN Power Ranking, the Niners have since dropped to a mediocre number seven. Moreover, the chances of the team matching, or even improving on, their season record of 12-4 from the year before seems more and more unlikely as the team, currently 4-3, continues to get exposed and their flaws become increasingly apparent throughout the league.
While many of the team’s offensive and defensive woes may be attributed to the unavailability of their best players, that is certainly no excuse. Injuries to key players are a subplot of every season. Only teams with the capability to downplay such conflicts and still tally wins are appropriately regarded as true, formidable contenders. Thus far, the Niners’ inability to overcome the nefarious injury bug only adds to the metaphoric mountain of problems they are already faced with. As a result, some, particularly head coach Jim Harbaugh, may start to feel sweat creeping down their forehead as they inch closer to the dreaded hot-seat.
The previous Stanford Cardinal head coach, without a doubt, has renewed the franchise and uplifted the team from the disastrous, lowly seasons that preceded his four-year tenure. Since taking over the helm, Harbaugh has led the team to a 40-10 record and the NFC round in each of his postseasons. Yet, Harbaugh’s problems extend beyond the team’s performance on the field.
In regards to their offense, opposing defenses have be able to easily contain the Niners’ obvious and predictable plays such that their third down conversions are drastically restrained from 68.8 percent in the first half of contest to a meager 45.0 percent in the second half. In years past, even though opponents may have had a hunch as to what the Niners were going to do on the line of scrimmage, little could be done to stop the formation.
However, since then, their precise, efficient execution has flipped in favor of the opponents, who have successfully held the team’s scoring output to only 7.6 points in the final two quarters. More alarming is the team’s decline in the run game and increase in sack rate occurring in the second half as well.
Nonetheless, there is no refuting the facts. According to teamrankings.com, the Red and Gold’s productivity in the first half yields them 15.0 points, which nearly double their scoring output in the second half, and places them at a respectable fourth in the league. In addition, the team’s defense has definitely held its ground, limiting opponents to 306.0 yards per game, second to only the Detroit Lions. Thus, the pending question remains: what is wrong with the 49ers?
The problem can be found in Harbaugh and his recalcitrant personality. His intense behavior, piercing personality and potential issues getting along with others were no secret when the Niners landed Harbaugh. The harsh reality remains that given the team’s subpar performance, it is easier to expose even the smallest conflicts sulking around the organization. Persistent rumbling within the front office is more transparent and the disgruntlement circulating the locker room is publicized to a greater degree.
In fact, it has become increasingly obvious that the executives are exploiting this situation and thrusting Harbaugh into the public scrutiny. His dynamic coaching approach differs from that of the front office and owner Jed York, as shown by their hesitancy to discuss an extension with Harbaugh. Unless his method yields the number one seed in the NFC and more touchdown celebrations in the end zone, throwing the headstrong coach into the vicious media assembles an elaborate plan to run Harbaugh out of town.
All in all, the affectionate fanbase that passionately fills the Bay Area sports pubs and loyally equips themselves in vibrant displays of Red and Gold deserves better. The statistics validate the team’s inexorable potential, but also expose the team’s frustrating failure to meet such expectations. The statistics reveal that the players are clearly delivering on the field, but distractions occurring between the coaching staff and the executive office are interfering with the team’s ability to dominate on the field. Perhaps the week eight bye and week-long hiatus preceding their next contest against the Rams on Nov. 2 may give the fans and front office just the time it needs to realize that the team must approach each game with a more consistent and solid composure if they truly intend to contend for the elusive Vince Lombardi trophy – and maybe that starts with reassigning the man pacing the sidelines and shouting orders at the players.
