HEADLINES

Justin Smith

NFC Links: Cutler, Cromartie, 49ers

January 17th, 2015 at 12:49pm CST by Ben Levine

Washington general manager Scot McCloughan believes the roster he’s inherited at his new stop is better than the team he had when he joined the 49ers.

“This roster, from what I know, was much more improved than the 49ers,” McCloughan said (via John Keim of ESPN.com).

“Things just weren’t meshing, but you could see each year we were adding good players, and you could see it in the offseason, how hard they worked and how important it was for them to be a family and grow together. All of a sudden, they hit a peak and Coach [Jim] Harbaugh came in there and then took off.”

Let’s take a look at some assorted notes from around the NFC…

  • With the front office and coaching staff stabilized, Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com says it’s time for the Bears to focus on Jay Cutler‘s future with the organization.
  • Cardinals cornerback Antonio Cromartie spoke on the NFL Network about his impending free agency. “I’m leaving the door open,” Cromartie said (via Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com). “Right now, until the Super Bowl is over, I’m still an Arizona Cardinal. Until they come to me about a conteact, I’m still an Arizona Cardinal. Once March 10 at 4 o’clock hits, March 12 at 9 a.m. hits, and no one’s offered me a contract, then I’m free game. And I’m open to anything to go out and try to win a championship and help any organization.”
  • A friend of 49ers defensive end Justin Smith told Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee that there’s a 50-50 chance the veteran will return next season (Twitter link).

49ers Notes: Tomsula, Smith, Harbaugh

January 15th, 2015 at 7:59pm CST by Zachary Links

The 49ers have a new head coach in Jim Tomsula, but he’d rather not be compared to his predecessor, as Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes.

“For whatever reasons, the job was open and I interviewed and that’s where it is. I get that. In terms of the fan base, I don’t believe I do anybody any good trying to justify anything. I’m not going to do that. I don’t have a bad word to say about anything that’s happened in the last four years. You can’t. We won a lot of games. We didn’t do what we were accustomed of doing (this year). I got it.”

“I’m not Jim Harbaugh. And Jim Harbaugh is not Jim Tomsula. I’m not trying to be that guy, and that’s no disrespect to him. I am comfortable with who I am. I’m very comfortable and I’m convicted in what I believe. I’m excited about it,” Tomsula said.

More from today’s presser in San Francisco..

  • 49ers defensive end Justin Smith is reportedly set to retire after completing his fourteenth NFL season. GM Trent Baalke would ostensibly like to have him back in the fold, but he won’t start a full court press right away. The GM said that he plans to give him several weeks after the season ends before calling him to see if he wants to play, according to Eric Branch of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter).
  • It sounds like Baalke will have a big hand in the hiring of assistants, referring to it as “our staff,” as Maiocco tweets.
  • “[The] job was offered to one person and one person only, and that was Jim Tomsula,” Baalke said, according to Maiocco (link).
  • Team CEO Jed York said Tomsula is the head coach not just for one specific reason, but for his body of work and all he brings to the table, Maiocco tweets.
  • When asked if he has spoken with Harbaugh, Tomsula said “No, I haven’t. I have not,” according to Branch (on Twitter).
  • When he heard speculation in 2014 that he could be the next head coach of the team, Tomsula said it was “terribly uncomfortable” for him, according to Maiocco (link).

Justin Smith Expected To Retire

December 28th, 2014 at 4:28pm CST by Dallas Robinson

After wrapping up his fourteenth NFL season later today, 49ers defensive end Justin Smith is expected to retire, reports Alex Flanagan of NBC (Twitter link). Smith, 35, has spent the past seven years in San Francisco after playing the first half of his career with the Bengals.

A first-round pick out of Missouri in 2001, Smith was a fixture on a mid-2000s Cincinnati team that made the playoffs just once during his tenure. In 2008, he joined the 49ers on a six-year, $45MM contract, and became a stalwart of SF’s defensive line, playing at both tackle and end in the Niners’ 3-4 scheme. An extremely durable player, Smith has missed just three games during his career. All told, he’s started 216 games, racking up 87 sacks, 613 tackle, and 16 forced fumbles.

Even in his final season, Smith grades out well according to Pro Football Focus’ metrics, rating as the ninth-best 3-4 defensive end among 46 qualifiers (subscription required). Per PFF, he was dominant from 2009-11, when he graded as the No. 1 overall 3-4 DE each season.

Losing Smith will be just blow to the 49ers defense during the offseason. Head coach Jim Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio are expected to depart, fellow defensive lineman Ray McDonald was released following sexual assault allegations, and most of the club’s reliable cornerbacks are unrestricted free agents.

49ers Links: Harbaugh, Gore, Crabtree, Smith

December 24th, 2014 at 5:21pm CST by Ben Levine

Jim Harbaugh isn’t the only member of the 49ers organization whose future is in doubt. The assistant coaches are uncertain about their jobs next season as they wait for an inevitable coaching change. As Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes, Harbaugh will certainly take some of his assistants with him wherever he lands, but some others will have to hope that the next 49ers coach retains them.

“The last game’s always a little different when you know it’s your last game,” said defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. “But you know, when we’re in meetings as coaches, whether it’d just be us as a defensive staff or with the players, it’s normal. It’s just all the stuff around that everybody notices it to some different degrees than others. It’s just part of the deal.”

Let’s take a look at some more notes from the 49ers…

  • Daniel Brown of MercuryNews.com explores the potential complications of a Harbaugh trade. The writer suggests that the head coach could decide to play hardball and force the team to fire him if he doesn’t agree to be traded. Furthermore, Brown cites the NFL’s Anti-Tampering Policy, which states that “an employee under contract to a member club… who voluntarily resigns or retires prior to the expiration of his contract, is not free to discuss or accept employment with another NFL club without the consent of the prior-employer club.”
  • We previously heard that Harbaugh’s family was pushing for the coach’s move to Michigan, but his brother, John Harbaugh, disputes that report. “My dad and I both . . . I will say this: The report that said that his family is encouraging him to go to Michigan by Adam Schefter is absolutely incorrect,” he said (via Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com). “There has been no family that I know of that has given him any advice at all because that’s a personal decision. It’s his to make, and that’s just absolutely false. I don’t know where that came from, but it didn’t come from the Harbaughs.”
  • While the organization has apparently soured on Harbaugh, the coach’s lead running back has not. “He’s my best coach,” Frank Gore told Can Inman of MercuryNew.com (via Twitter). “I didn’t enjoy it here until we started winning. Since he’s been here, I’ve won.”
  • Gore also didn’t mince words when he was asked where he wants to play next season. “I want to be here,” the upcoming free agent said (via Matt Barrows of The Sacramento Bee). “I was raised here, man.”
  • Meanwhile, wideout Michael Crabtree is looking forward to free agency. “I’ve grown a lot, seen a lot and we’ve done a lot as a team,” Crabtree said (via Inman). “I feel I’ve contributed a lot to the team, and I can’t wait to see what’s the next chapter of my career, and to maximize my talent and my youth.”
  • 49ers defensive end Justin Smith could retire this offseason, writes Maiocco. Of course, that doesn’t mean the organization doesn’t want him back. “We would welcome the opportunity to coach 94 one more season,” general manager Trent Baalke said. “And I think our fans would love to see 94 give it one more go. Whether he’s going to do that or not is really his decision. He’s earned that right to go out on his terms and I’m sure he’ll make the right decision for him and his family.”

49ers Notes: Tryouts, Kaepernick, Bowman

December 8th, 2014 at 7:27pm CST by Ben Levine

49ers coach Jim Harbaugh was not a man of many words following his team’s loss to the lowly Raiders on Sunday. After the game, reporters wanted to question the coach’s future with the organization, but Harbaugh made his intentions clear.

“My priorities are: No. 1, winning football games,” Harbaugh said (via Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com). “No. 2, the welfare of our players, coaches and our staff. And lastly, is what my personal/professional future is.”

So, does the coach want to remain with the 49ers next season?

“My priorities,” he said, “are winning games.”

As we try to decipher Harbaugh’s comments, let’s take a look at some more notes out of Santa Clara…

NFC West Notes: RGIII, Harbaugh, Smith, Sam

December 3rd, 2014 at 6:16pm CST by Zachary Links

As the Rams get set to face Washington, St. Louis coach Jeff Fisher says that he would make 2012’s blockbuster draft trade with the Redskins all over again, writes Mike Jones of the Washington Post.

“If you take into consideration I have three defensive starters that are playing at a real high level – Alec Ogletree is playing as good as any linebacker behind the ball the last few weeks, Janoris [Jenkins] is an outstanding corner who has two interceptions returned for touchdowns, and [defensive tackle Michael] Brockers. And then we were able to pick up [left tackle Greg Robinson], who is our future at left tackle, and we have Stedman Bailey, who in our last game had five catches for 100 yards, and Zac [Stacy] is an outstanding young back. So, I think we’ve made the most of it,” Fisher said on conference call. “We’re building our team to compete in the division and I feel like we’re making strides. That’s one of the questions we wanted to have this year.”

Washington, meanwhile, might feel differently about the haul it gave up to land Robert Griffin III. More from the NFC West..

  • There’s a chance that 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh ends up at Michigan, but right now his preference is to be in the NFL, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link). Harbaugh wants to focus only on football, Cole says, and not have to worry about things like boosters and showing his face at events.
  • When 49ers defensive tackle Justin Smith signed a two-year extension in 2013, he was adamant that he would retire before becoming a part-time player. 18 months later, he’s showing no signs of slowing down, but he was noncommittal when asked if he’d return for his 15th NFL season. “I haven’t given it any thought,” he said, according to Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle. “It will be something to think about after the season.”
  • Despite the way things might have looked in a recent TMZ video, former Rams draft pick Michael Sam says that he doesn’t believe that he’s being blackballed from the league, as he explained in a pair of tweets.