Jed York better have a ace up his sleeve if he lets Harbaugh go

[Band of Brothers]

I keep hearing how Harbaugh wears out his welcome with programs about 4 years into each job. He is a high intensity coach who wants to be paid with the best and he wants to shop for the players he wants. This is not new to the NFL and for that matter the 49ers. Bill Walsh had his ups and downs with Eddie D and almost left the 49ers a few times before retiring from the NFL after the 1988 season. Bill Parcells left the Giants because he wanted more power. Jimmy Johnson and Jerry Jones had a ego tug of war that ended with Johnson leaving the Cowboys.

Jed York is about to embark with his own tug of war with Harbaugh. Does he stick with Harbaugh and pay him with the rest of the top coaches in the league and give him more power evaluating players? Will he get rid of Balkke to bring in someone who can get along with Harbaugh?

Whatever he decides York better have that ace up his sleeve in case he gets rid of Harbaugh. York better put out some feelers to someone like David Shaw (Head Coach from Stanford) if he would be interested in the 49ers job.

Personally I hope Harbaugh stays. I think he is a elite coach. I would get rid of Balkke before I would get rid of Harbaugh. Top notch coaches are hard to find and getting rid of Harbaugh might blow up in the 49ers faces. York seems to be in the middle of this tug of war and he needs to step up and solve the problem and get back to striving for Super Bowl wins.

 

[purguy12]

He wants Harbaugh locked up. He has stated this many times. York wants harbaugh. His relationship with Harbaugh is fine. ITs Baalke and Harbaugh who have a problem.

 

[my2cents]

I keep hearing how Harbaugh wears out his welcome with programs about 4 years into each job.

I keep hearing this on ESPN and NFLN also, and my question is where is this coming from? I had never heard of this prior to the Browns fiasco. He left San Diego State for a better job as Stanford (essentially a promotion as most coaches follow a similar path) and he left Stanford for an NFL coaching job (another promotion so to speak). The difference is that a lot of other coaches take a lot longer to get their "promotions" to NFL head coach and Harbaugh went relatively quickly. I don't think its a matter of one "wearing out his welcome", but rather some talking head in the media needing to fill a time slot and placing his own spin on Harbaugh's career.

 

[sjballer03]

Good to hear from you BoB. Been wondering where you've been. I agree with everything you just said. Let's see how this all plays out.

 

[deep9er]

what do you mean by "letting Harbaugh go", trade him now or not extending him longer?

 

[TobyTyler]

Fuck Harbaugh. If that greedy bastard doesn't want to finish out his contract then let him walk. He's an excellent coach but I wouldn't let him hold me hostage.

 

[deep9er]

Fuck Harbaugh. If that greedy bastard doesn't want to finish out his contract then let him walk. He's an excellent coach but I wouldn't let him hold me hostage.

his want for a bigger contract is warranted, so for me that isn't being greedy. but he should negotiate with Baalke and go to York if necessary. but he and his agent should do these things professionally......like everybody else. Baalke is doing his job and Harbaugh/Dunn should know that.

if Baalke and York wants him to play it out, then he should. no reason to turn it so personal which to me its become.

 

[sjballer03]

To me, Harbaugh is over-stepping his bounds here. Jed/Baalke have given him plenty of resources to succeed. It is not their fault that he can't seem to figure out the timeout and delay of game issues. Not to mention the lack of creativity/adjustment on offense and the untimely failures on defense. He can blame Baalke all he wants about the lack of control on the personnel side. But Harbaugh hasn't held his own staff accountable for the numerous mistakes that have caused the team to come so close, yet so far. Loyalty is fine and all, but if certain coaches aren't producing results, they need to go. Based on the lack of turnover on the coaching staff, it seems Harbaugh is trying to deflect the blame towards Baalke and his scouts.

That being said, I still rather have Harbaugh over Baalke. But the more and more I think about this whole situation, I'm starting to have second thoughts.

 

[ChrisPozz]

I keep hearing this on ESPN and NFLN also, and my question is where is this coming from? I had never heard of this prior to the Browns fiasco. He left San Diego State for a better job as Stanford (essentially a promotion as most coaches follow a similar path) and he left Stanford for an NFL coaching job (another promotion so to speak). The difference is that a lot of other coaches take a lot longer to get their "promotions" to NFL head coach and Harbaugh went relatively quickly. I don't think its a matter of one "wearing out his welcome", but rather some talking head in the media needing to fill a time slot and placing his own spin on Harbaugh's career.

I don't think it's ALL a matter of "wearing out his welcome" but more so that he wears on co-workers and those above him emotionally. That part is very well documented at almost every single stop he's been at.

To say that his wearing on people for whatever reason(s) has always made it such that he has "wore out his welcome" at every stop would be a bit much IMO. It's well documented though, and others who have worked around him have even came out publically and said that his overall make-up and everything that comes with it can be hard to stand, put up with, deal with, work with, tolerate, etc., at times, depending on who you are. I'm not sure anybody can argue too strongly against that. Granted I'm sure there are some who don't find it as big of a problem to deal with as others do.

-----------

One of the biggest things that's getting to me is this notion or belief that the 49ers don't want to pay him like a TOP PAID COACH. He's already one of the top paid coaches but you could probably say fairly that he's not in the ELITE of elites in terms of pay. I think the 49ers know that if they do another deal with him that they'll have to pay him more than now (obviously) and among the elites in the game.

However, it sounds like Harbaugh is trying to be paid above, right at, or just below the top salary in the league (Payton). Not just around the top of the list or slightly above where he's at now. The 49ers, from what I gather, don't want him at Payton money or coming in just below that until he wins a Super Bowl.

It's kind of a small margin of what some are arguing and what I'm arguing but I hope people see the difference. That being I think the 49ers know and are OK with paying him closer to the top if he'd take it but that they aren't going to touch number one paid coach money or slightly below it until a Super Bowl can be attached to his name.

Obviously personnel and other demands he might have factor into how these negotiations are going to go and are currently going as well. In addition to if the 49ers even want to extend the marriage at all given where they're at right now and what it would be like during the day-to-day operations now and into the future based on what's already happened.

 

[purguy12]

no way its being greedy. 3 NFC championship games and 1 super bowl. He earned it. Coaches do less and get an extension.

 

[Hangman]

From what I hear around here its not the money so much as it is the control. He wants to pick his players and have Baalke just do the deals. The reason Baalke and Harbaugh are not talking to each other is they both have different opinions on which type of players to acquire.

I have heard that it was Baalke who wanted LeMichael James and A.J. Jenkins and Harbaugh did not want them at all. That he felt that they do not fit the scheme the 49ers run on offense. That is most likely why Jenkins got traded and James gets almost no play time.

 

[ChrisPozz]

From what I hear around here its not the money so much as it is the control. He wants to pick his players and have Baalke just do the deals. The reason Baalke and Harbaugh are not talking to each other is they both have different opinions on which type of players to acquire.

I have heard that it was Baalke who wanted LeMichael James and A.J. Jenkins and Harbaugh did not want them at all. That he felt that they do not fit the scheme the 49ers run on offense. That is most likely why Jenkins got traded and James gets almost no play time.

How did the Jim Harbaugh-Trent Baalke breach open up? Let?s go back through it: Owen Marecic, A.J. Jenkins, Aldon Smith? ? Talking Points

* Harbaugh never asked for personnel powers during those negotiations and he hasn’t asked recently, I’m told.

He doesn’t want to be a GM–you think he wants to put together draft boards, review 30 game tapes of potential 6th-rounders from New Mexico or spend all of March going to Baylor/Maryland/Colorado/Nebraska pro days and gossiping with college coaches and other execs?

No, he does not.

The bolded part I guess doesn't make your statement completely wrong because I'm not sure how you'd define the control that you think Harbaugh wants. However, Tim Kawakami, who for whatever reason seems like the most plugged into reporter in this specific situation, points out there that Harbaugh hasn't asked for personnel power yet. There's some room there to say that he might be asking for some kind of similar control but if Kawakami is right, that's something to think about a little bit.

By the way, the part about the types of players and playing those types, that part I don't have a problem with assuming for whatever it's worth. Although, I might feel more comfortable in changing it to not the type but THOSE players specifically he didn't like, along with some others, for various reasons.

 

[-AC-]

This all hinges on Harbaugh...

It's up to him to practice what he preaches, which is to put the team first and know his role. How can he expect his own players to follow his lead and expect them to buy into what he needs them to do as a team when he can't even do the same for the organization? If his players were as abrasive and as confrontational as he is, this team would have no chance at success under his leadership. Just like the fans and media have been turned off by these recent stories, you have to think it will eventually creep into the locker-room and affect the players as well...

Harbaugh just needs to tone it down, and everything will fall into place for him. But if he can't, it might be time for him to move along...

 

[Epic Voidfield]

Where is it documented that Harbaugh has issues with Baalkee? Is this shit even real?

 

[Epic Voidfield]

Fuck Harbaugh. If that greedy bastard doesn't want to finish out his contract then let him walk. He's an excellent coach but I wouldn't let him hold me hostage.

ROFL. I bet you're foaming at the mouth for this team to suck another 10 years. Thanks for your concern, troll.

 

[RobertPhD01]

I would think that when convienent, Coach should be making a statement!

 

[TobyTyler]

his want for a bigger contract is warranted, so for me that isn't being greedy. but he should negotiate with Baalke and go to York if necessary. but he and his agent should do these things professionally......like everybody else. Baalke is doing his job and Harbaugh/Dunn should know that.

if Baalke and York wants him to play it out, then he should. no reason to turn it so personal which to me its become.

We disagree. He signed a contract and he should honor it. If he hadn't had success, should the 49ers be allowed to re-negotiate his contract downward? Not a chance that could happen and it should work both ways.

 

[SY8goat]

I hope this is just one of Harbaugh's schemes to bring the team closer together.

 

[deep9er]

We disagree. He signed a contract and he should honor it. If he hadn't had success, should the 49ers be allowed to re-negotiate his contract downward? Not a chance that could happen and it should work both ways.

if you read the second paragraph, that's what I said.

its ok to seek a new contract, but if it doesn't get done, then honor the current one.

 

[purguy12]

if you read the second paragraph, that's what I said.

its ok to seek a new contract, but if it doesn't get done, then honor the current one.

Players do it all the time. Its ok for them to do it but not coaches. The guy earned a raise.