The San Francisco 49ers have major free agents hitting the market in Michael Crabtree and Frank Gore and this comes as the team is trying to hire a head coach to replace Jim Harbaugh and names like Greg Roman, Josh McDaniels, Rex Ryan, Vic Fangio, Kyle Shanahan, Mike Shanahan, Todd Bowles, Teryl Austin and Adam Gase all could be potential targets for Jed York and Trent Baalke.
The 49ers had a down season compared to what they had done in the previous three years and that is one of the reasons why the team moved on from Jim Harbaugh. ESPN and other outlets reported on the friction between Harbaugh and the front office and after the team went 8-8 this season and missed the playoffs, the two sides parted ways. Harbaugh is now with Michigan and the 49ers have to find a head coach to take over and whoever it is will have big shoes to fill.
When Harbaugh arrived four years ago the Niners were an organization stuck in neutral and he immediately made an impact. The team won the NFC West that season and went to the conference championship game and Harbaugh took the team to the NFC championship in each of the next two seasons. The team also made one Super Bowl and Harbaugh won 44 games during his four year run with the team, as great success for any coach. But this season the offense and quarterback Colin Kaepernick took a major step back and that was a major issue for the front office and now they may bring in a more offensive minded head coach.
According to Niners Nation at SB Nation, the head coaching search has a number of different candidates on both sides of the ball, with Mike Shanahan, Kyle Shanahan, Adam Gase and Josh McDaniels options on the offensive side. The team is also looking at Rex Ryan, Vic Fangio, Todd Bowles and Austin as potential options. The Shanahan's could come in as a package deal, as Mike is on the market, but Kyle is with the Browns and will need permission to interview with the Niners. Roman is another option after he ran the offense for the 49ers, but since the teams struggled this season they may look elsewhere.
Kaepernick plans on working with Kurt Warner this offseason and that could help him improve going into next year. The team has Gore and Crabtree as free agents and losing either player will be tough. Gore has been as consistent as anyone in the NFL in his career, while Crabtree has explosive potential and was second on the team behind Anquan Boldin with 68 catches this year.
Last season the 49ers finished 8-8 and out of the playoffs after losing four of their last five games and now the team has major changes on the horizon at head coach. The roster also could look very different, as Crabtree and Gore are free agents along with a number of other mid-level players. The defense was strong last year despite numerous injuries, but the offense took a major step back and ranked 30th in the league in passing yards per game.
