CBS SportsLine

Notes, quotes, anecdotes
 
 
February 21, 2003
 
by The Sports Xchange.

--The pressure is on new 49ers coach Dennis Erickson.

The 49ers won the NFC West with a 10-6 record and advanced to the second round of the NFC playoffs under Steve Mariucci. Moreover, GM Terry Donahue said he believes the 49ers have as much talent as any team in the league.

"I think we have outstanding personnel," Donahue said. "When you look at our team, we have a Pro Bowl quarterback; we have a Pro Bowl wide receiver, arguably the best receiver in the game; we've got two interior offensive linemen that are in the Pro Bowl. You can argue that (fullback) Fred Beasley should certainly have been in the Pro Bowl. I think that our football team has talent, and we believe in our players."

Donahue added, "I think we hired the right person to lead us to the world championship."

Erickson inherits a team that made it to the NFC divisional playoff round with a young defense, which should continue to improve as long as it avoids the rash of injuries that plagued it last season. And because he is in charge of reinventing the offense, Erickson will be expected to improve on last season's offensive production.

"I would like to believe we can compete for a world championship this year," Erickson said. "I'm getting older. We got to get it going."

--Although team director John York said he did not fire Mariucci because of his performance, he did say that he thinks a better coach was hired when the team selected Erickson.

"I believe we did," York said. "I believe Dennis is going to have a better relationship with the organization and I think he's going to be much more aggressive on both offensive and defense."

The 49ers got Erickson for half the price of Mariucci. Erickson signed a five-year, $12.5 million deal, while Mariucci landed on his feet with a five-year, $25 million contract from the Detroit Lions.

--Tom Rathman, a starter on back-to-back Super Bowl champions in the late 1980s, left the organization to become running backs coach with the Detroit Lions. He held the same position with the 49ers for the past six seasons.

"I think whoever's coaching them will be inheriting an awesome group," Rathman said. "Those guys have been developed and they're playing at a top-notch level. It's too bad I can't work with them. My intentions were to stay here, but coach Erickson wanted to surround himself with his own people."

When asked if the organization has lost some history with his moving to Detroit, Rathman responded, "That's only for the writers to judge and the readers to judge. I don't think I'm in a position to judge that. All I know is this organization has been a part of me. Loyalty, integrity and respect -- those are the things that mean a lot to me. I've tried to live up to that."

--One of his challenges was keeping harmony in the running backs meeting room, Rathman said. Beasley, whose best friend is Garrison Hearst, and RB Kevan Barlow had difficulty getting along with each other last season. Late in the season, Barlow moved his locker to the other side of the locker room.

"All those guys are very competitive," Rathman said. "If one guy feels threatened, there might be a little dissension. Everybody is looking out for their friends and there's bound to be some tension. It was not that big of a problem."

--Hearst, one of Steve Mariucci's favorite players, might find himself on the outside with Erickson. With Barlow entering his third season in the league, the 49ers want to see how he will respond as the every-down back. Hearst is scheduled to make $2.2 million in base salary -- a high figure for any backup.

--The only notable player on defense who appears to be in trouble is veteran DT Dana Stubblefield. The 49ers can save $2.2 million in cap room if they release Stubblefield.

--Erickson has already hired Greg McMackin as linebackers coach and Al Simmons as cornerbacks coach. He will also add Tim Lappano (running backs) and/or Gregg Smith (assistant head coach) to his staff if either or neither get tabbed to replace Erickson at Oregon State.

--Civil rights lawyer Cyrus Mehri, who teamed with Johnnie Cochran to put pressure on the NFL to hire more minorities to positions of power, said he was satisfied that the 49ers conducted such a thorough search.

Three African-American coaches were interviewed for the 49ers' head-coaching job, including finalists Ted Cottrell and Greg Blache. Ultimately, the 49ers went with Dennis Erickson, whom Donahue has known for many years.

"We feel it was fair and deliberate and an inclusive process," Mehri said. "We don't have any issues with how they carried out the process. As far as we know, it was a fair and open process. Cincinnati and San Francisco created models that other teams should follow next year."

Earlier this offseason, the Bengals hired Marvin Lewis, making him the third African-American coach in the league.

Mehri said he is convinced that all candidates the 49ers interviewed were placed on a level playing field.

"I don't think if you interview Ted Cottrell for 14 hours, that's a show," Mehri said. "That's a serious look. There are lessons that were learned. It's not enough for a minority to compete to be a runner-up, which is what happened in Dallas and Detroit. You need all people competing for the job. You can't say that didn't happen in San Francisco."

--Donahue made it clear he did not want to begin contacting college coaches before national letter-of-intent day because of the negative impact it might have on any college or head coach.

Instead, 21 newly signed Oregon State recruits will suffer the consequences of losing their coach just six days after committing to the university. Donahue said that's just a cold hard fact of life. He said the timing is never right for a coach to leave his players. He added that the kids were signing to a university, not a coach.

"I used to make the analogy, if I got whacked in a car accident tonight, you have to know that you're going to be comfortable with your school and your teammates and the community you're going to live in and the academic environment you're going to grow in," Donahue said.

QUOTE TO NOTE

"No I'm not worried about that at all. The game is always evolving and recycling. He's an expert at what he does. I've admired his work since he was at the University of Idaho. He knows how to move the football. He has a great football mind. We have an offensive guru here and I'm looking forward to observing and enjoying the whole process" -- 49ers consultant Bill Walsh when asked if he's worried that the 49ers might start to get away from the West Coast Offense.


Tell us what you think on the new 49ers Clubhouse message board.
....