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San Francisco 49ers: Ranking the 2016 Head Coaching Vacancies

By Bryan Knowles

How coveted is Jim Tomsula's old job? Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
How coveted is Jim Tomsula's old job? Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 20, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman (53) celebrates after the 49ers recovered an onside kick during the fourth quarter at Levi's Stadium. The Cincinnati Bengals defeated the San Francisco 49ers 24-14. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 20, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman (53) celebrates after the 49ers recovered an onside kick during the fourth quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Cincinnati Bengals defeated the San Francisco 49ers 24-14. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports /

Overall Talent

There’s still talent on the roster, especially defensively. NaVorro Bowman wasn’t quite back to his old self after missing all of 2014 with knee injuries, but he showed more and more flashes of his old self as the season went on—if he can recover the speed that allowed him to run with tight ends after another year passes, then he’ll regain his standing as one of the top inside linebackers in the game. Couple that with budding pass-rushing superstar Aaron Lynch, and you still have some defensive pieces. The secondary still has a good coupling of safeties with Antonie Bethea and Eric Reid as well.

On offense, Carlos Hyde looked dynamic before going down with an injury, Joe Staley is still one of the top offensive tackles in the league and Torrey Smith remains a weapon, assuming the 49ers ever find someone who can throw him the football. The team isn’t nearly as loaded as it was when they went to three consecutive NFC Championship Games, but there’s still some talent here.

Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Carlos Hyde has shown flashes of being someone you can build around. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /

It’s underwhelming talent, however, when compared to some of the other open jobs out there. Despite some of Chip Kelly’s more questionable moves as de-facto general manager, he does leave the team with a significant amount of talent outside the quarterback position. They have a three-headed monster at running back, talent on the offensive line with Jason Peters, Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson, one of the league’s best defenders in Fletcher Cox, a very strong trio of linebackers and Byron Maxwell and Malcolm Jenkins lurking in the secondary. It’s the most talented opening from top to bottom by a significant margin.  Remember, this team won 26 games over the last three years, so it’s not like it was a disaster of a situation.

A rung below is Miami, which has some building blocks in place. Ndamukong Suh and Cameron Wake are a terrific duo on the defensive line and Reshad Jones is one of the top safeties in football. Add Quinton Coples, Jelani Jenkins and Koa Misi, and you have the elements of a great defense in place.

The 49ers fall down with the Giants general level of talent. No, the 49ers don’t have anyone with the same punch as Odell Beckham, but they’re a bit deeper across the board. The Giants would rate much higher if players like Jason-Pierre Paul, Robert Ayers, Cullen Jenkins and Prince Amukamara were not free agents this season. The Giants will probably end up with the better roster due to picking and choosing which of their own free agents to sign, but in terms of the players actually under contract, the 49ers are right there with them.

Then you have the two teams that are already rebuilding in Tennessee and Tampa Bay. Would a coach prefer to take on an already-in-progress rebuilding project, or start from scratch in San Francisco? The Buccaneers boast some young defensive studs in Lavonte David and Gerald McCoy and a talented receiver in Mike Evans. The Titans have Jurrell Casey, who’s budding to be a superstar, as well as some other talent like Delanie Walker and Kendall Wright at receiver.

Again, the Browns probably trail the pack here, but at least they can point to Joe Thomas and maybe Joe Haden as their stars for the future.

The 49ers fall somewhere towards the bottom of the middle of the pack here—not enough, at least, to stand out among their contemporaries.

Verdict: Underwhelming

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