From one Jim to another

After three consecutive trips to the NFC Championship followed by a disappointing 8-8 finish in 2014, the San Francisco 49ers brain trust decided to bid a farewell to head coach Jim Harbaugh as the two sides agreed to mutually part ways. With Harbaugh landing a job with his alma mater Michigan, the 49ers were left with a head coaching vacancy. After an extensive search to find the team's next head coach which included the interviewing of 8 other candidates, the 49ers had their man all along in Jim Tomsula. A name not widely known outside of the Bay Area, Tomsula has been on the 49ers' sidelines through the teachings of several head coaches with the likes of Mike Nolan, Mike Singletary and the recently departed Jim Harbaugh. And now, team owner Jed York and GM Trent Baalke will hand the gavel to Tomsula.

Despite his inexperience, Tomsula does however have a 38-7 victory over the Cardinals under his belt in the one game that he served as an interim head coach after the firing of Mike Singletary in 2010. Before that, you'd have to go all way back to 2006 when Tomsula served as head coach of NFL Europe's Rhein Fire who finished the season 6-4 with Tomsula at the helm. But experienced or not, not a single player has expressed their doubts regarding the 49ers new hire. Players took to Twitter to congratulate and express just how happy they are for Tomsula and how excited they are to be playing under him which tells a little about the guy and how much of a players coach he is. Something Jim Harbaugh was not, according to murmurs in and out of the 49ers locker room. Since Tomsula joined the team as the defensive line coach in 2007, only the Baltimore Ravens have allowed fewer rushing yards per rush at 3.6, one tick fewer than San Francisco's 3.7.

From a fan standpoint, the decision comes as somewhat of a surprise given the 49ers aren't too far from being Super Bowl contenders once again and yet they decided to hire someone with little to no head coaching experience. Not to mention the mountain high expectations Tomsula inherits from coach Harbaugh who went 49-22-1 during his tenure with the Niners and led the team to three consecutive NFC Championships in his first three seasons, a feat no other coach has accomplished. But perhaps Tomsula's 8-year familiarity with the team and its personnel will make up for that, knowing from the inside what kinks need to be worked on in order to help the team take that final step. With defensive coordinator Vic Fangio reportedly on his way out and offensive coordinator Greg Roman already agreeing to join the Buffalo Bills under the same job title, the 49ers will feature an entirely new coaching staff under Tomsula.

Whoever Tomsula decides to hire to stand alongside him on the sidelines or in the booth, will be given the task on offense to help mentor and groom QB Colin Kaepernick to regain his form after a down season which I blame in large part on Greg Roman's misuse of the duel-threat QB and poor play-calling. As for the defensive side of things, Vic Fangio's replacement will be taking over a defense which ranked fifth overall this year despite being without one of if not the best linebacker tandems in the league for most of the season.


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