You have got to be kidding, right?
The San Francisco 49ers have replaced arguably the best coach in football, Jim Harbaugh, a proven winner at every stop he has made, with defensive line coach Jim Tomsula, a man who has never been an NFL coordinator, let alone full time NFL head coach. Few, if any, in Niners Nation are buying into this fiasco.
A Puppet replaces a Winner
New state of the art Levis Stadium should be known as “The House That Harbaugh Built.” Before Harbaugh arrived, the 49ers went eight straight years without a playoff berth or winning season. He immediately led the franchise to three consecutive NFC Championship Game appearances and a berth in the Super Bowl.
That sustained success made the construction of Levi’s Stadium possible. But, as Harbaugh got more accolades as the savior of the team, the more general manager Trent Baalke resented it. The egos collided in full force one year ago and Harbaugh was rumored to be a trade candidate to the Cleveland Browns. It was the beginning of ugly corporate backbiting and rumor mongering that ended in a parting of the ways last month.
Tomsula was the 49ers defensive line coach and was rumored to be in line to replace Harbaugh for much of the season. The rumors only added to the incredible amount of tension at 49ers headquarters.
Tomsula Loses a Revealing Press Conference
A team always wants to win the press conference when it hires a new head coach. Tomsula’s introduction was not only a rambling incoherent debacle but it also exposed him as the puppet that he truly is. Baalke finished many of Tomsula’s answers at the presser as the undeniable puppet master.
The most memorable line at the press conference from Tomsula is that, “it takes a village” for a team to succeed. Well, at least Hillary Clinton would be impressed.
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Mirror Opposite
Harbaugh would rather torch a village in the name of victory than build a village based on comfort zones and defeat. Harbaugh was an uber-competitive pain in the rear but he was also an outstanding leader and proven NFL winner.
Tomsula is renowned as a nice guy and players’ coach. Nice guy/player coaches usually end up being eaten alive in the cut throat world of the NFL and their teams often play with a sloppy lack of discipline. Regardless of what the 49ers players say about the coaching change, they must realize that Tomsula is a Baalke puppet and carries little actual leadership or power cache. In no way can Tomsula compare to Harbaugh.
“I’m not Jim Harbaugh and Jim Harbaugh’s not Jim Tomsula,” said the new 49ers coach.
No kidding.
Parting Shots
49ers CEO Jed York, Baalke and Tomsula all seemed to be taking passive aggressive shots at Harbaugh at last week’s presser.
York again made his much repeated demand for the 49ers to “win with class” and stated his disappointment with the 49ers off the field issues of last year.
Baalke said that Tomsula was, “A man of high integrity. A person who has a lot of humility and one of the finest men I’ve ever been fortunate to be around.”
Humility is never a word associated with Harbaugh.
Tomsula himself had the most cutting comments.
“One statement that comes to mind for me is the difference between confidence and arrogance is ignorance,” said the new 49ers coach. “So the way you carry yourself is a fine line of crossing from confident to arrogant and I think sometimes we teeter on that, especially today in our world. Confident people to me, they dance on that line too much. So, I think that’s the first step of winning with class. Second step of winning with class is how you conduct yourself.”
Fans Not Fooled
The reaction to the Tomsula hiring was one of outrage by 49ers fans. The fans, who pay among the most exorbitant prices in the NFL to sit at Levis Stadium, can sense the disaster that is in the making.
Baalke has won his power battle with Harbaugh. He now has his puppet coach that he is already speaking for. The 49ers now have a compliant village of a front office.
What they don’t have is a proven winner of a NFL head coach.
