By JUSTIN PORRECA
Contributing Writer
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Pack your signature pleated khakis, your cleats, and your whistle and get out of San Francisco Jim Harbaugh. But is that really such a smart decision in terms of winning?
The 49ers have a winning record, a competent and credible coach, and have been successful since 2011 when Harbaugh stepped in as head coach, replacing the fired Mike Singletary. Yet San Francisco CEO Jed York and General Manager Trent Baalke want Harbaugh out. Look at it this way York and Baalke, you could have Rex Ryan and be 1-4.
Prior to Harbaugh’s arrival in 2011, the 49ers had not made the playoffs since 2002, marking an eight year drought. Their combined record through those eight seasons was 46-82 with a .359 winning percentage. Harbaugh has made it to the playoffs in each of the seasons he’s coached in San Francisco. He’s 39-13-1 with a .740 winning percentage, and that is in three and a quarter seasons. Before Harbaugh took over the reigns as the 49ers coach, the average place the team finished in the NFC West was third, and they had zero division titles.
Since Harbaugh’s arrival, the 49ers have two division titles, three straight playoff appearances, three consecutive conference championship game appearances, one NFC Conference title, and one Super Bowl appearance. Harbaugh would have also made it to three consecutive Super Bowls if it was not for a muffed punt in the fourth quarter and fumble in overtime by return man Kyle Williams, and not to mention poor decision making by Colin Kaepernick to throw it in the direction of Richard Sherman while he was draped on wide receiver Michael Crabtree.
Other notable Harbaugh achievements in his short stint as 49ers head coach include a 2011 AP NFL Coach of the Year award. However, even better than that is how he resurrected the career of Alex Smith, who appeared to be a draft bust, and unveiled the future of the franchise, Kaepernick, as a potential star in the league. But where’s the beef? The guy is winning, he’s successful, and he resurrected the franchise from being a joke to a powerhouse. The beef is coming from the San Francisco hierarchy and the locker room.
All of the greats from Tom Landry to Mike Ditka have had their instances of in house fighting within the hierarchy of the organization. They have all gone through riffs with the suits in the franchise, but figured out how to make it work so they could win, thus the reason each of these head coaches are Super Bowl champions.
The writing is on the wall when it comes to the dislike between Baalke and Harbaugh. Baalke can claim that he and Harbaugh have a great working relationship, and York can claim that Harbaugh is not going anywhere, but can what they say really be trusted? The NFL is unpredictable, Harbaugh was almost traded this offseason to the Browns in exchange for a pair of third round picks. In short, anything can happen.
From ESPN NFL analyst Trent Dilfer claiming it is become toxic in San Francisco, to NFL Network’s Deion “Primetime” Sanders stating that guys in the locker room have told him that they do not want to play for Harbaugh anymore, to two Sunday’s ago when Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer said that even if Harbaugh wins the Super Bowl he is still ousted as the 49ers head coach, no one has a true understanding of what is going on. Either way, if Harbaugh hits the open market, he is going to be one hot commodity.
If Harbaugh is given the boot by the 49ers at the end of the season, look for him to take interest in the Oakland Raiders head coaching vacancy. If you think Tony Sparano is going to take over as the Raiders full-time head coach after this season, you must have been living under a rock during his stint in Miami. It’s been noted that Harbaugh’s wife loves the area and would like to stay in California if he were to be fired. The only coaching vacancy available in California would be in Oakland. Harbaugh also has ties to Oakland as his coaching career started there in 2002, where he was an assistant and quarterbacks coach.
Other teams that would be interested in Harbaugh’s services if he were to be a free man would include Cleveland, Miami, and New York.
It’s unlikely that Mike Pettine is the long term answer in Cleveland, and he is only there because the Browns could not complete the trade with the 49ers.
As each week comes and goes, Joe Philbin’s seat gets hotter and hotter. Miami attempted to replace Tony Sparano with Harbaugh in 2011, but he eventually fell into the clutches of San Francisco. Look for Super Bowl hungry owner Stephen Ross to make a push for Harbaugh again if he is available.
As for the Jets, Rex Ryan will likely be out unless he performs a miracle and turns around the season and makes the playoffs, which is a 1% chance. They have not had a notably good coach since Bill Parcells in the late 90’s, and owner Woody Johnson probably would like a coach with a proven track record. Harbaugh would be big head coaching splash and the New York media would love to eat that up.
No matter what, it’s gone from faint whispers in the wind in the Bay Area to loud hollers that are unable to be ignored. San Francisco better be careful what they wish for if they give Harbaugh his walking papers at the end of the season.
They could go from a playoff team on the cusp of winning a Super Bowl, to a team that finishes at best third place in the competitive NFC West.
