Tim Kawakami is a Bay Area San Fran Beat writer that has opined
that there’s no way Jimmy will go to Ann Arbor.
Which got me to thinking because I’m not even sure Jimmy knows what’s
going on in his head right now much less how he’s going to decide his fate for
the next 5-10 years. Let’s take Timmy’s criteria and read between the ‘ole
lines and see what we get….and if there’s any real insight into what he’s
writing or if he’s just some other A-hole
with an opinion…..(Tim’s column in BOLD The
MMQ insight in Italics)
Let's go through some of
the criteria:
Every indication is that Harbaugh wants to stay in the NFL and
win a Lombardi Trophy, which is impossible to do at the University of Michigan.
Every indication? Which indicators are those? Are those the ones where Harbaugh can be
directly quoted? And where are those
quotes? I’m not saying this isn’t a
valid observation, but I hate the “Every
indication” broad-type statements. I
don’t think it’s every indication, IMHO…..
Do you think Harbaugh wants to leave the NFL after watching his
brother and then Pete Carroll win the Super Bowl the past two seasons?
Yep…This one would grind
my stones if I was Jimmy. But I gotta’
believe at this point that Jimmy has seen what it takes to win a Super Bowl and
may now realize that if he’s not with San Fran next season, he’s going to be a WHOLE LOT FARTHER away from the Super Bowl goal with whoever he’s
with. And that might bug him a little…..And
he may also see that Carroll went both
ways – (Won a National Title) after
being in “The Show” and then went back
to the NFL to a better opportunity to win a Super Bowl. Who’s to say that isn’t the route Jimmy is
thinking about?
Harbaugh and his family also are believed to have a strong
preference to remain in the Bay Area -- which is one of the reasons he picked
the 49ers in 2011, with many other options back then.
This, by far, is the most grossly over-blown reason for
going to the hot mess that is Oakland
Raiders football. Yeah, the Bay area
is nice…but maybe they want a change of scenery? Again, has Harbaugh really come out and said “How much he loves the Bay Area and never
wants to leave?” Didn’t think so…..
Notably, Harbaugh has never coached anywhere outside the state
of California since Al Davis gave him his first job in 2002, and Harbaugh has
been in northern California for 10 of those years.
So what? So he was a head coach at SDSU and Stanford
took a bit of a flyer on him. Then, once
proven, sure – Why wouldn’t the 49er’s
take a shot and why not go with what is a class organization like the
Niners? All that was simply elementary
at that point and has nothing to do, whatsoever, with “Northern California”
except that’s where it all happened.
Harbaugh wants to join a team with some talent, especially at
quarterback, and the Raiders have Derek Carr, Khalil Mack and a lot of
salary-cap space going into next offseason.
?????? Uhhhh….Tim…..I can’t
believe you just typed that with a straight face. Derek Carr is….well, I guess he’s “some talent”. But this NFL
observer isn’t ready to throw Carr into the Brady – Peyton-Brees-Rogers “Talent Pool” just yet. I MIGHT put him in the 2nd tier pool of Luck-Stafford – RGIII – Kaepernick – Ely M
(I know, even though he has 2 rings)-and others….but not until he does
something. If I’m Jim, I’m NOT licking my chops at having a “David Carr” toy to play with. Nope…Not
buying this one AT ALL…..
Would Harbaugh be scared to join a downtrodden team that might
finish 2-14 this season? Well, he took over Stanford after a 1-11 season and
the 49ers after 6-10.
And Michigan was 5-7 with a LOAD of 2 deep talent coming back next season
and can completely salvage if not
completely turn around this recruiting class at Michigan by adding his name to
the Michigan Stationery. Harbaugh’s pull
will be huge at Michigan and he knows it….And his best chance at success might
be right there, right now for a National
Title…
He actually likes the tough turnaround jobs -- that's exactly
when his burst of wild energy and competitive mayhem works best.
Tough turn-around jobs,
you say? Let me tell you about a little school in Ann Arbor that hasn’t even
sniffed at a B1G Title since 2006 and has a loyal fan base that’s ravenous
for success right now…and will fully appreciate the efforts you put into
building a winner. Jimmy – Tough Turnaround Jobs ought to have a
picture of Wolverines Football right next to it.
Also, there's little doubt that Harbaugh would love to win big
in the same media market as the 49ers -- and he could help get another stadium
built in the Bay Area.
????? Again – is your
face on straight? I have no idea (and I’ve been reading A LOT
OF STUFF) where the statement: “Jimmy’s interested in getting a new stadium
built in the Bay Area and loves that media market” came from. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen any of that in
the same sentence in any article regarding Harbaugh. DAVIS might be very interested in getting
a new stadium…but not Harbaugh. So, besides
what Kawakami wrote…which, I’ma throwing
the BS flag on this one…..
Meanwhile, after his battles with Baalke soured his entire 49ers
tenure, it would be immensely significant for Harbaugh to get the chance to
bring in a hand-picked GM.
???? Does ANYONE
think that Oakland would let Jim do that?
I don’t. And I really don’t think Jim thinks he could get that either. He’s not the Tuna. The Raiders are the most dysfunctional
organization in the NFL….and that’s saying something….So I doubt they’re in a
big hurry to throw the reins over to what is apparently a Hot-Head coach that
has authority issues and give him a blank check. Just a hunch, here on my part….
My understanding is that the Raiders are open to that, partly
because the likeliest candidate is Eagles exec Tom Gamble -- who worked with
Harbaugh with the 49ers and was one of Al Davis' last close confidantes.
PFFFFTTTT!!!!! So what? Saying you knew Al Davis and were a close confidant is
like saying I got rid of that herpes/aids thing a while back. And if you take a little trip to the
Philadelphia news, you can see that Gamble
and Philly are pretty happy with each other right now and what Chip Kelly
is accomplishing there. It would take
some big $$$$$ to get Gamble to leave,
is what I’m saying….
Can Mark Davis afford the expected $8 million a year it would
take to land Harbaugh, then also buy out Reggie McKenzie's final two years ($5-$7M?)
plus add a new GM and new personnel staff?
Uhhh…Let’s see…if I add
all this up, carry the 1….That’s a LOT
OF DOUGH. And if I’m looking at the “Average Cost per Win in the NFL” issued by Forbes Magazine, you’ll find that EVEN IF
YOU CAN GET THE RAIDERS TO A WINNING
RECORD you’re still below the performance of the great teams like New
England, Green Bay, and yes, San Fran.
And you’ll actually have a much higher
combined Player Payroll and Coaches Salary and Buyouts….What’s it all worth in the end if you DON’T Win??? And is one coach worth all that? And what if it doesn’t work? (Of
course, you can ask the same question at Michigan…I suppose)
I'm told Davis understands none of this comes cheap and that he
needs a major lift from the team's performance to land the best stadium deal.
I’m sure Davis
understands all this better than anyone associated with the Raiders. That’s
his JOB, dumbass….Mr. Kawakami, with
all due respect…The fact that you stated you were “told” that Davis understands
this implies that…well…..You’re kind of a dolt. Stating the obvious and making it “Seem” like a reason for “Harbaugh to
Oakland” makes sense is asinine. In
fact, if I’m Davis, I’m trying to figure out how I can make it all work and
whether or not Harbaugh is really the best fit for the kind of money I’d have
to lay out for him. And it makes me
nervous knowing that Jim can’t catch a pass, throw a pass or score a TD – and I
need more guys that can do that….
As the days dwindle on his current lease in Oakland, it's
looking more likely that Davis could agree to one more short-term deal with the
Coliseum, at least for the 2015 season.
Two separate issues that
Kawakami intertwines….Either way, the new stadium issue NEEDS to be addressed with
or without Harbaugh. And let’s face
it: the Raiders are no strangers to
moving around California if necessary.
Harbaugh to Oakland reasoning is mute, or actually not applicable here…..
If Davis can land Harbaugh, the Raiders can play out 2015 as a
glamour team -- and wait to see if Oakland can get anything done, while Los
Angeles looms in the background possibly for 2016.
Or if the Raiders land
any better coach, or a sexy draft pick
or whatever….Glamour team? Seriously? Who is this guy writing to, who is he trying
to butter up or who’s butt is he trying to shove his own head up?
Of course, Harbaugh will have other bidders, possibly including
the Jets, the Bears, the Dolphins and, yes, Michigan.
Finally….Kawakami says something that makes sense. And the Raiders already have a coach with two
years left that was supposed to be pretty good when he was hired, are going to
have a great draft position and possibly
can trade some players for even more draft picks and be a better use of the
money that they would have to dole out on Harbaugh, personnel and a new GM…..
Hey, Harbaugh might be wary of the Raiders' nebulous stadium
situation.
Geeee….If I’m Jim Harbaugh and my paycheck says “$8,000,000.00”
I’ll coach in that shit-house over there across the free-way…..WTF???
But if you’re saying that this is a reason Jimmy won’t go to the
Raiders….whatever, I’ll take it.
Or Mark Davis could have second thoughts about moving McKenzie
out.
This…this makes some
sense - FINALLY. If there’s ANY cohesion
right now in the Raider’s locker room and that can be made into something
promising with next year’s draft picks…that’s the way to go. Changing coaches constantly never gets you
very far….and costs money.
Or York could make it tough because Harbaugh still has another
year on his 49ers contract, which is why the 49ers are making noises about
getting a good draft pick in a Harbaugh trade.
This is the 2nd most OVERBLOWN “fact” that I’ve seen thrown around in the press…Again, if I’m a GM for an NFL team and I know
you’re unhappy with Harbaugh and you come to me and tell me you’ve got an offer for him I’m thinking, “Yeah..Right!”
I’ll probably politely decline and
tell you to take the offer and you’ll get caught bluffing and then you'll can him anyway. When you can him, I can make a run at him and it costs me nothing. This
trade assertion, Mr. Kawakami, makes you look like a complete boob……
But it makes sense for the 49ers, at some point, to just do a
deal so they can get their own search started.
????? So, you’re saying that the 49ers have painted
themselves into a corner and need to get moving on to whatever plan “B”
is? That’s brilliant. All this analysis and it boils down to you
saying the 49ers can go out and do what they need to do anyway….
And it makes sense for everybody to get this done, eventually,
if that's what everybody wants.
How in the world do you know what the hell everybody wants? You have about a million
moving pieces to this puzzle and you’ve concluded nothing except what you “think”
to be true about Jim Harbaugh. “He wants to stay in the NFL.” Even though Jim’s never said that.
Nothing this season has been reasonable, but maybe the Raiders
and 49ers can start 2015 by making a reasonable deal: Harbaugh to the Raiders
for a fourth-round pick.
Really? That’s all the SAVIOR for the Raider’s franchise is worth?
A 4th round draft pick?
After ALL THAT YOU JUST WROTE about him being the most logical candidate for the turn-around
that Davis needs for the new stadium that he wants? 1 measly 4th
round pick? Seriously? How about that 4th rounder, a bag of balls, and one Monopoly Token – from the Raider’s "Gold Edition" that they keep in the
Locker Room. Hey Lookieeeee Heeerrree…..It’s the Race Car!!!!!!!!
Then the 49ers can hire their next guy, the Raiders move on with
Harbaugh, and everything begins again.
Everything begins
again. Yep…Sounds like you have everything figured out there, Kawakami. You’re right on top of it. I guess my hopes can remain utterly and completely dashed at the
prospect that Jim may never head back to his alma mater for $49M over 8
years and have a shot at a National Title….Yeah….you’re right. You’re so right and that’s why you make money
writing for a newspaper….So we can read and pay heed to your wonderful opinions….
Gosh…I wish I was more
like you!!!!
The MMQ
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