To Jim
I welcome you to the 49ers nation with open arms. As a die-hard San Fransisco 49ers fan I, along with my fellow fans, have endured far too many sad and disappointing football seasons in recent memory. I loved your opening public speech and how you spoke of being excited to meet the great professional men in the 49ers locker room... A word to the wise though - Jerry Rice, Steve Young, Joe Montana and other great professional players are no longer in the 49ers locker room.
I am not a football guru like you Mr. Harbaugh. I could never do what you did at Stanford or what I hope you will be doing with the 49ers in the near future. All I am is 49ers fan from Cape Town, South Africa, who plays NFL Madden at the higher than ALL MADDEN rating of 15 (I play at my own skill level 20) and who religiously follows the NFL and our team the San Fransisco 49ers.
Now, you may ask yourself what advise a South African fan who plays NFL games on his Playstation 3 could possibly give a great coach such as yourself. What I can only offer as my miniscule credential is that I took the 49ers to 3 successive playoffs, 2 successive Super Bowls and one Championship... albeit on the Playstation.
This is how I did it:
1. I kept Alex Smith as my quarterback
I know, I know... Alex Smith is at best an average quarterback. I suffered through his inaccuracy and moments of poor play in crucial situations. Yes, he probably cost me more than a few games. But you know what Jim? I got used to the inaccuracy and moments of dirt bin like passes... I moulded a team around him that could beat not only the opposition, but also overcome the mistakes of Alex Smith. Every game for two seasons I told myself that I would either trade or release A. Smith, but I never did. The result was by playing Smith consistently, something unique and crazy happened.... He got better. My suggestion then Jim, is that you pick a quarterback to be your starter and you stick with him through the good and very bad. You have a 5 year contract. By the 3rd year, that quarterback will naturally improve because you have consistently played him for more than 30 games as a starter.
2. I retooled the defensive line
I know that this might seem strange. When you enter the 49ers building, you may think that the defense is the strength of the franchise and the offence is where your work will have to begin. But Jim, this team can't win the NFC West, not because they cannot score points, but rather because they simply allow too many points on defence. Look at the New York Jets, they often win games when the offence scores less than 20 points because they have a great defence. So what I did was use the 3-4 system currently implemented at the 49ers, I traded for two bulky defensive tackles who could substitute each other and clog the line of scrimmage and I drafted and traded for speedy defensive ends who could get to the opposition quarterback and cause turnovers.
3. I brought in veteran defensive backs
The NFL is a passing league these days. If you can't cover the pass, you can't win games, period. End of discussion. I kept the current safties, Goldson and Mays. I also kept Spencer as my number 1 corner back. Then I added veteran corner backs with great awareness... Tyron from the Packers, Tramon Williams and Grimes. The result? Great coverage in passing and interceptions after my revised line had put pressure on the opposition QB. You have to pressure the QB Jim, and you have to capitlise on mistakes that result from that pressure.
4. I put priority on getting the ball in Frank Gore's hands
Frank Gore is the most talented playmaker currently on the 49ers roster. Why just use him in the running game Jim? I tried to get the ball in Frank Gore's hands at a minimum of 50% of the time that my offence had the ball. Whether it was runs, screens or check down passes, I knew that the moment Frank Gore had the ball after the line of scrimmage, I had a chance to score points. Keep that man healthy Jim, and keep the ball in his hands.
5. I drafted a second athletic tight-end
While tight-end may seem like a position of strenght with Vernon Davis filling that position on the 49ers roster, I always worried what might happen if Vernon Davis got injured. Also, I drafted a second great tight-end because I knew that my QB would need to get the ball out his hands fast and I also made the consious decision to play 30% of my offensive snaps out of a two tight-end formation. This assisted me in the run game while providing the QB with multiple check down targets.
My final word of advise to you Jim, although I doubt you've read this far, is simply this. The team that you have inherited is not good enough to win the Superbowl. It has been several years since this franchise have been good enough to win its division. Acknowledging a problem is the first step to overcome the problem.
The success of the 49ers will depend on the decisions that you make in moulding the fanchise and it's players. I have given you a brief summary of decisions that I made which brought success to the 49ers franchise... albeit on the Playstation.
Be bold Mr. Harbaugh. Make the hard decisions. Develop a winning strategy and go for the championship with everthing you have...
Remember, if it's in the game, it's in the game.
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