It’s over. The San Francisco 49ers watched their championship window shut on a tipped ball and an interception at Seattle in Jan. 2014. It seemed like a brutal setback at the moment. Instead, the sounds of cheers at CenturyLink Field was the chorus of San Francisco fading into contender oblivion.
Last year, the 49ers went 8-8 before Jim Harbaugh and the franchise mutually parted ways. Harbaugh is now with the University of Michigan, and San Francisco promoted defensive coordinator Jim Tomsula to Harbaugh’s old post. Tomsula might turn out to be a good coach, but he has absolutely no experience as a head coach let along a coordinator anywhere on this continent (Tomsula was the defensive coordinator of Berlin Thunder of NFL Europe).
His inexperience was painfully obvious during this interview, courtesy of CSN Bay Area and Deadspin.
Tomsula is also taking over a declining roster. Michael Crabtree, Frank Gore and Mike Iupati are slated to be free agents, and the former and latter are expected to walk. San Francisco is currently projected to only have $1.3 million of cap space, according to Over The Cap, hurting its ability to retain pricey free agents.
Some money can be created with the release of tight end Vernon Davis, who is clearly toward the end of his career. Cutting Davis would save $5 million, basically paying for the 49ers’ incoming draft class. Outside linebacker Ahmad Brooks is another likely cap casualty, shaving an additional $6.5 million.
General manager Trent Baalke must realize that his best course of action is to get younger and a bit cheaper. Defensive lineman Justin Smith is on the wrong side of 30, along with receiver Anquan Boldin, tackle Joe Staley, linebacker Patrick Willis, safety Antoine Bethea and Gore. It’s time for Baalke to consider trading off some of these pieces while they still have value.
Dealing Willis is a notion most 49ers fans do not want to consider, but what would the return be? If Baalke chose to trade Willis, could he get a first-round pick and perhaps a third rounder back? Willis is a potential Hall of Fame player but San Francisco has depth at the position along with NaVorro Bowman returning from a torn ACL.
With Colin Kaepernick still trying to prove he’s worth anything close to $126 million and the rest of the NFC West rising in talent, San Francisco is forced to take realistic stock of its position. Baalke should stockpile picks and hope to build a contender with those selections instead of holding on to an aging core that has seen its best days.
Looking back will provide mixed feelings for 49ers fans. On one hand, the franchise went to three consecutive NFC title games including a Super Bowl appearance. On the other, San Francisco failed to achieve the ultimate goal, coming up tantalizingly short.
It is a tough pill to swallow, but this group needs to be blown up.