Bill Was Right

I hope Eddie buys part of the Raiders. The fact that he's even rumored to be talking to Al Davis' kid with the Dutch Boy haircut says all you need to know about how he really feels about his sister, her jackwad husband, and her moron offspring.

Before You Get Too Excited...

Just remember - Cody Pickett once led the 49ers to victory, too. The 49ers' record that season? 4-12.

Was it nice to see the 49ers win a game? Sure. But once the stadium was cleared out and the afterglow of the victory fades away, this game didn't help the organization in terms of the big picture.

The only thing the 49ers accomplished yesterday was dropping a few more notches in next year's draft order, making it more difficult to put themselves into position for finding their next franchise quarterback. I'd rather be 2-14 with a chance at a top draft pick than 5-11 in a continuing cycle of mediocrity.

That said, a few observations from the game...

• The 49ers put up 17 points against a terrible defense. No problems on offense were solved yesterday. Wait until they play an actual NFL defense.
• Why is Vance MacDonald still on the 49ers' roster? And, more importantly, why is he still getting balls thrown to him? Another terrible Baalke draft selection.
• Jerome Simpson? Gone. Another poor roster move by Baalke. A wide receiver with legal issues who cannot catch the ball.
• I tweeted this yesterday (which seems to have been deleted): Levi's Stadium security crew not recognizing Dwight Clark (on alumni day, no less) and forcing him to show his on-field credentials is the most 49ers thing ever during the York era. Clueless.
• Funny how the coaching staff, on a day that news "leaked" about how the 49ers will be done with Kaepernick after this year, installed a few naked bootlegs into the gameplan for Gabbert. You know, the types of plays that may have helped a running quarterback in the 49ers' offense the past month or so and were nowhere to be found.
• Lots of empty seats. Good to know that at least the concessions revenue will be down.

And, We're Back.

Take a look at the post below this one, from back in 2013.



It was intended to be my last entry after watching the 49ers' organization complete a remarkable turnaround, from irrelevant, dysfuntional failures to perennial Super Bowl contenders. Oh, to be so young, innocent and full of optimism about the team's direction and that fancy new stadium!

What an idiot I was.

Back then, it seemed like the 49ers had set themselves up to be a model NFL franchise for the forseeable future. And yet, less than a year later, before the paint had dried on Levi's Stadium, everything started to unravel.

In the aftermath of an NFC title game loss to the Seahawks, news started (strategically) leaking out from 49ers HQ about Jim Harbaugh's status and how difficult he was to work with. A couple of months later, Harbaugh was "rumored" to have been the subject of a trade to the Cleveland Browns. By the time the 2014 season kicked off, it was only a matter of "when," and not "if" the 49ers would part ways with the individual most responsible for their greatest success in the 15 years since Steve Young called it a day.

When I finally made my first visit to Levi's Stadium last December, the Niners were already knocked out of the playoff race and were playing out the string in a dismal (for the 49ers) 8-8 season. The fans in their fancy new football palace were more concerned with craft beers and gourmet food than anything taking place on the field. I thought back to a night four months earlier, as Paul McCartney serenaded us while we said our final good-byes to Candlestick Park and wondered what lied ahead in Santa Clara. Never would I have thought it would go to shit so definitively, and so quickly.

Less than two weeks later, Lil' Jed put the finishing touches on the narrative he carefully crafted by kicking Harbaugh to the curb, throwing the stability and viability of the franchise into a freefall that continues to this day.

If you are reading this, you know what's happened since that day. Boastful statements about "winning with class" and "total accountability." A slew of player retirements, some slightly expected, but most coming at a complete surprise. A head coaching search that never extended past the locker room. Another questionable draft. Losing team leaders to free agency. Fan unrest. More retirements.

And then the 2015 season started.

How do you explain a 2-6 record that feels more like 2-600? That awful, dreading sense of deja vu from the Erickson/Nolan/Singletary eras? How an entire stadium can be financed and built on fan deceit? How a quarterback who was ONE PLAY AWAY FROM WINNING THE @#$% SUPER BOWL has regressed to the point that he's been benched in favor of the worst starting quarterback in recent league history?

How can you fathom the notion of a head coach without any experience as a coordinator? A defensive coordinator who was on the offensive staff two years ago? A position coach who failed miserably at his job last year being promoted to offensive coordinator? An offensive line that provides less protection than a windbreaker during an ice storm?

So, here's where we are. Here is the reality of the San Francisco 49ers as an organization:

1) The CEO is an arrogant, petty, small man who was born into his position of influence. He likes to talk about total accountability, yet he is now hiding in his office while fans and the media demand he address his customers - the same customers who have committed to spend thousands of dollars each over the next ten years just for the privilege of watching a directionless team with substandard NFL talent. This CEO made one - ONE good decision during his administration, and that decision was completely negated earlier this year by another series of terrible decisions. Lil' Jed has drawn the wrath of the entire Bay Area and now he won't own up to his costly mistakes.

2) Did I mention the dearth of talent on this roster? Well, that's courtesy of our CEO's hand-picked General Manager, who has stockpiled more draft picks than any other team in the league over the past few seasons, but hasn't managed to identify any impact players to crack the starting lineup. However, he appears to be very good at telling the CEO what he wants to hear, which has cultivated a culture of smug, ignorant complacency as both of these executives think they are the smartest people in the building while never demonstrating that they are.

3) A head coach who seems like a nice enough guy (once you get past the rumors that he was instrumental in underminding the Harbaugh regime throughout the 2014 season), but who is clearly in over his head more than any other head coach I can recall. And I can recall Mike Singletary. Really, the less said about the head coach, the better, because even a casual observer of the NFL is aware of his shortcomings and ongoing failures in the most basic aspects of his role.

4) An angry fanbase that has turned on the entire front office, disgusted with the direction this organization is headed towards. A fanbase that was sold a bill of goods when they purchased season tickets to Levi's Stadium, thinking the core of the team would remain intact and competitive for years to come. A fanbase that currently leads the league in the amount of tickets they are trying to sell, despite the team playing games in a brand-new stadium that will host the Super Bowl and the NCAA Championship over the next few years. A fanbase that has already suffered through over 15 years of the meddlesome York family tearing the franchise down to its framework.

These four issues will become the basis for anything I post as Adios 49ers is resurrected from the dead.

Adios

On the eve of 2013 training camp, I've decided this is my last post, which probably won't be much of a surprise, considering I've had less than a half-dozen since the aftermath of the Super Bowl...

I started this blog during the darkest days of the Niners' post-Super Bowl XXIX era to voice my dissatisfaction with the organization, from top to bottom. I was (and still am) a fan who gave money (not anymore) to an increasingly dysfunctional NFL team that had become irrelevant within league circles. When Lil' Jed opened up the family purse strings to hire Jim Harbaugh, my only reaction was "they'll screw this up, too."

I was wrong.

It's pointless to keep a blog running that was originally intended to rip an organization that has now reclaimed its role as one of the premier franchises in the league. I always remained a fan, but the difference is that now I believe the Niners are going to win every time they take the field, just like I did in the 80s and 90s. And I will expect it this year, even with the loss of Michael Crabtree and Colin Kaepernick's regretful choices in offseason headwear.

I leave you with this image of the aforementioned Mr. Kaepernick, who provided one of the most amazing non-Montana or Young postseason performances by a Niner quarterback when he shredded the Packers in the divisional round at Candlestick this past January. He (along with Harbaugh) represents the future (and possibilities) of this team more than anyone else. 

So, in Colin I trust, and Go Niners!

Well, That Ain't Good

Looks like Michael Crabtree will have plenty of time to eat all of the Subway sandwiches he wants over the next six months (story via ESPN).

In related news, the officials at 4949 Centennial Blvd. are locking the doors in anticipation of uninvited visits from the agents for Randy Moss and Terrell Owens.

And to think, I didn't even have enough time to post an item about the new stadium hosting Super Bowl L...

Hey Pete - What's My Deal? THIS is My Deal!

There is no way I'm putting up a Boldin
photo from the Super Bowl on this blog.

Wow. Just hours after the Seahawks gave up a first-round pick for Percy Harvin, the Niners come out of hiding and acquire Anquan "Niner Killer" Boldin - for only a sixth-round pick.

I know the Ravens were getting desperate to unload Boldin - it was obvious they weren't going to be able to pay him his $6 million dollar salary after inking Joe Flacco to his megacontract. But to only get a sixth-round pick in return? Sounds like a Harbaugh family discount. And it also sounds like the Niners are heading into one of those "Lombardi Trophy or bust" offseasons that we haven't seen since 1994. Look for some short-term contracts for some big-name veteran defensive players before the week is over.

So, while it was really cute of the Seahawks to make a bunch of headlines earlier this morning, the Niners end up holding serve with a much-needed upgrade on the wide receiver depth chart - and all they give up is one of their two sixth round selections. With a healthy Mario Manningham and Kyle Williams returning to join Michael Crabtree and Boldin, the 49ers' wideouts are starting to look like a potential area of strength in 2013.

Game on, Seattle.

Final, Final Word on the Super Bowl...

...courtesy of Kissing Suzy Kolber. This says it all....

Why Aren’t People Discussing Jimmy Smith’s Unflagged Helmet-To-Helmet Hit?

More details on the play - and the league's hypocrisy over head injuries can be found here.