Above the grade

Through 4 weeks, the San Francisco 49ers sit atop the worst division in football with a record of 3-1. Head coach Jim Harbaugh was paid big money to come in here, take a broken team, with mediocre players, and build them into a winner. The season is often broken down into 4 game segments and dissected from there. With 1/4 of the season in the books, The Niners are feeling very good about themselves and have proven that they can win games ugly.

I have watched this team play very good football, only to find a way to lose the game. Under Mike Singletary and Mike Nolan, they rarely played a pretty game, but on those rare occasions when they did, the found a way to lose the game and with it, the confidence that can be built from playing a good game. Thus far, Harbs has this team believing in each other. He has given Alex Smith a very simple game plan. Don't turn the ball over, make the smart decision with the ball, trust your teammates and don't fuck it up!

A lot of analysts and "experts" love to give credit to the players when things go right and rip the coach to shreds when things go wrong. In this case, I'd have to give a lot of the credit to coach Harbs. He took over a terrible team, with a lot of bad players and expectations by a fan base that is still living in the Joe Montana Superbowl days. Well, maybe we have moved on to the glory days of Steve Young, but however you slice it, we expect to win. He was forced to do a lot in a short amount of time because of the lengthy NFL lockout, he was forced to give Alex Smith the starting job simply because the GM refused to go out and get a free agent QB. He took control of this team from the word go and put his fingerprints all over this team. He couldn't change the roster, he couldn't change the talent on that roster and he couldn't change the fact that this team has become accustomed to losing. But what he did change, was their perspective, their attitude and their willingness to work hard. I feel strongly that the players on this team have contributed in ways that I never imagined, they have busted their ass and played with a lot of heart and soul. That being said, the coach is the reason why they are playing such an inspired brand of football and I am really glad that The York's wrestled Harbs away from the Miami Dolphins and thus far, he's worth every last dime.