Niner Noise
FanSided

Ranking 49ers Teams over Last 10 Years by Strength

By Chandler Wright

Remember Curtis Holcomb? Neither do I. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Remember Curtis Holcomb? Neither do I. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 17, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; East head coach Mike Singletary points during the second quarter at the East-West Shrine Game at Tropicana Field . Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 17, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; East head coach Mike Singletary points during the second quarter at the East-West Shrine Game at Tropicana Field . Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

No. 9: The 2010 Niners

Ah, the 2010 Niners. They’re remembered well for their disappointment. At the time, Jim Miller — former Chicago Bears quarterback and current Sirius XM analyst — said the 49ers were Super Bowl bound. Talent came in bunches on the roster, and Miller wasn’t the only one predicting success for these 49ers.

So, why was this team so disappointing?

Talent Level

The 2010 team had players such as Joe Staley, Mike Iupati, David Baas and Anthony David on what was supposed to be a strong offensive line. That year, the 49ers also had great defensive talent in Patrick Willis, Takeo Spikes, Justin Smith and Nate Clements.

So, what went wrong for these players?

For starters, Clements wasn’t able to adjust in a league that featured heavy doses of a wide open passing attack, with smaller-quicker receivers. He was a great run stopper, forced a ton of fumbles and was a playmaker, but his coverage skills really were slowing down.

Smith, on the other hand, had no help getting to the quarterback. Former first-round pick Manny Lawson and company just couldn’t get to the passer, continuing to expose a back end that couldn’t hold up in coverage.

But the players weren’t the real problem.

Incompetent Coaching

Led by Hall of Fame linebacker Mike Singletary, the 49ers coaching staff was the worst in the league. Other than defensive coordinator Greg Manusky, the Niners couldn’t boast one strong coordinator, and offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye was the bust of them all.

The Niners ranked 24th in both yards and points for on offense. The lack of sustained drives really hurt a defense that ended up 16th in points against and 13th in yards given up. They really showed their talent on defense and hope of turning things around quickly for 2011, which they did.

The coaching staff really showed their true colors, starting quarterback Troy Smith in a division-deciding game at St. Louis in Week 16. Alex Smith played the second half, and almost made a comeback. Had the 49ers won, they would have been playoff bound, but things turned out for the better because missing the playoffs allowed for the hire of Harbaugh one month later. This decision just showed how bad Singletary really was for the team, and Jim Tomsula replaced him on an interim basis for the final week.

Bottom Line

The 2010 49ers had all the talent they needed, without a coaching staff, and their record showed. If not for so much time between now and then, this may have been the most disappointing and worst team on the list, but runner up says it all just as well.

Next: No. 8, the 2007 Niners