Who will be 49ers Next Head Coach?
Now that it is imminent that Jim Harbaugh will not be the head coach of the 49ers beginning next week, let's take a look at who will be the next coach.
Let's start with the candidates that the media has floated around and then I'll finish with who should be the head coach.
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Jim Tomsula - Defensive Line Coach, 49ers
There is no doubt that Jim Tomsula has done a great job with the 49ers defensive line over the last few years. Aldon Smith nearly lead the league in sacks a year ago, Justin Smith was the team's MVP in 2012 and rookie Aaron Lynch has already made an impact. Most impressively, the Niners have been fantastic at stopping the run, ranking in the top 10 the past four years. However, being the head coach of an NFL team requires a little more than just coaching a few players on the defensive side of the ball and having a full set of chest hair. Yet, Jed York is a huge fan of Tomsula. It must be his deep V-neck jackets. York even made Tomsula the interim head coach for the final game of the season when Singletary was let go. It wouldn't be a surprise that Tomsula is at the top of the list for York once again. If that's the case, then Jed York needs to remove himself from making football decisions. He's already going to be responsible for letting one of the most successful head coaches leave, don't compound the mistake by hiring a guy who is completely unqualified for the position. While I like Tomsula's passion, we've seen before how far passion can take the 49ers. It results in pants being dropped in the locker room. Mike Singletary was the consummate passionate leader (who infamously dropped his trough at halftime to "inspire" the team), but he didn't have the NFL smarts to put together a successful offense. Tomsula won't be able to either.
Josh McDaniels - Offensive Coordinator, New England Patriots
My oh my how the NFL experts can be fooled. Josh McDaniels was one of the most unsuccessful head coaches in NFL history. As coach of the Broncos in 2009-2010, he managed to get rid of Jay Cuter and Brandon Marshall due to personal conflicts. Then he drafted Tim Tebow in the 1st round of the NFL draft. All resulting in a record of 11-17 and a winning percentage below 0.400. Despite that huge warning signal, he's once again considered a head coaching candidate due to his success with the Patriots offense. But here is where NFL GM's and the media get fooled so often. They make the mistake of thinking that the offense's success is due to the coordinator, when the main reason for the success is the elite QB. The Patriots are a great offense because of Tom Brady. The Broncos because of Peyton Manning. Rodgers and the Packers. When you have an elite QB, the offensive coordinator isn't responsible for the success. For example, Aaron Rodgers' former offensive coordinator, Joe Philbin became head coach of the Miami Dolphins. They haven't made the playoffs. The Packers are on top of the NFC. The other issue is that even though they may be good play callers, it doesn't mean they'll be a great head coach. The head coach is the CEO of the team and is responsible for everything related to the team, such as drafting players, coaching offense, defense, handling player's personalities and the media. It requires so much more expertise than simply calling great plays. That's why Josh McDaniels would be a complete disaster once again as a head coach.
Adam Gase - Offensive Coordinator, Denver Broncos
Here's another name that the media has thrown out there as a potential head coach. Apparently according to ESPN's Chris Mortensen, the 49ers are "looking at a young offensive specialist to take over the team". Adam Gase fits that bill. Except there's nothing special about the Broncos offense other than Peyton Manning. In fact, it's all about Peyton Manning. He runs the show. To think that Adam Gase is responsible for breaking touchdown records and winning 11 games, is completely irrational. While, I agree that the Niners need to find a great offensive mind who knows how to utilize a mobile QB, like Kaepernick. There's nothing in Adam Gase's resume that shows that he's capable of making that happen.
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Jim Mora - Head Coach, UCLA
There are several successful Pac-12 coaches who have had successful offenses with mobile QBs. One of those coaches is a former defensive coordinator for the 49ers, Jim Mora. Mora may be ripe for returning to the NFL as he's had a successful run bringing UCLA football back to relevancy and his QB, Brett Hundley is leaving for the NFL. But Mora might bring some of the same personality issues as Harbaugh as he is a fiery character willing to stir things up. Do they really want another "Jim" to deal with? I don't see the 49ers going after Mora even though he's proven that he can develop a mobile QB. I wouldn't be upset about this move, but I have a feeling that York and Baalke are going to stay as far away as they can from volatile leaders.
Mark Helfrich - Head Coach, Oregon and Rich Rodriguez - Head Coach, Arizona
Both of these coaches run dynamic offenses that are fast paced lead by a mobile QB. They met in the Pac-12 championship game and could be the offensive mind to lead Kaepernick back to the Super Bowl. However, Oregon's offense was created and implemented by the previous head coach, Chip Kelly. How much of the success is due to Helfrich? While he's an interesting choice, the Niners would have to outbid Phil Knight and Nike and that simply won't happen. Rich Rodriguez has a bit of a checkered past, with a scandal and poor performance at Michigan. But what he's done with freshman QB, Anu Solomon is impressive and can't be over looked. Rodriguez would be another passionate leader, which may actually hurt his chances in this case.
Brian Kelly - Head Coach, Notre Dame
Brian Kelly is a smart guy. He's a great offensive mind who has had a lot of success both in college at Cincinnati and Notre Dame and in the NFL with the New England Patriots. He managed to take Notre Dame to the BCS Championship game a couple years ago, which is impressive considering the difficult schedule that Notre Dame faces each season. Jed York is a Notre Dame alum, so he's quite familiar with Kelly. He would be a great leader, a great CEO-type head coach and capable of keeping all of the distractions away from his team. However, he's not a player's coach. And his style may not work well in the NFL.
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Sean Payton - Head Coach, New Orleans Saints
This would be an absolute steal. The Saints are having a poor season and coming after a year when Sean Payton was suspended for the whole season, so it may be time for them to part ways. Sean Payton is a great offensive mind and has done amazing things with Drew Brees and the Saints offense. He is a Bill Parcells disciple, who Trent Baalke is a big fan of. Payton has proved that he can win the Super Bowl, doing so with an average defense. Imagine if Sean Payton had a good defense like the 49ers to go along with his offense. He's a successful coach with an aggressive style. Remember the onside kick in the Super Bowl? That's the gutsy play-calling that the Niners need. He's won over 10 games five times in 8 seasons. He did so by elevating Drew Brees, who was average while at San Diego. Can he do the same with Kaepernick? I think he's a great fit and the Niners should heavily pursue him.
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Vic Fangio - Defensive Coordinator, 49ers
If the Niners can't secure Payton and keep Fangio as the defensive coordinator, then they should promote Fangio to head coach. The success that Fangio has had with the 49ers defense goes without saying. They've been one of the best in the league since he's taken over and what is more impressive is his ability to maintain excellence no matter who is on the field. Half of his defense has been turned over or is out due to injuries this season and they've still been great. The Niners must do everything they can to retain his services. But since he's had great success, he's going to be a head coaching candidate for other teams and isn't going to sit behind Jim Tomsula as head coach. The only question is if Fangio becomes head coach, who is going to fix the offense? That's why I think the 49ers will go with an offensive minded head coach and hope to keep Fangio as the defensive coordinator. Can they pull it off?
