As a Bay Area native and San Francisco 49ers fan, I try to refrain from writing anything about football here.
First, I'm incapable of being rational about the Niners.
Second, the NFC West might be the worst division ever and I would hate to detract from Seattle's euphoria over their NFC West championship that has propelled them to the playoffs.
But forgive me for dropping a little Niners excitement on you today.
Breaking: Jim Harbaugh Expected to Sign 5-Year Deal with 49ers!! - Niners Nation
Adam Schefter just tweeted with his trademark "Filed to ESPN" that Jim Harbaugh is expected to sign a 5-year contract with our very own San Francisco 49ers!! I don't know how to feel...I DON'T KNOW HOW TO FEEL! TELL ME HOW TO FEEL!?!?!
I don't really know how to feel either.
As a University of Michigan alum as well, I'm actually torn - I think they needed a coaching boost even more than the Niners. Bringing back fellow Michigan alum Harbaugh would have brought that excitement. Obviously, the Niners can compete in this garbage division without much effort.
That said, my initial reaction about Harbaugh's hiring after thinking he was already committed elsewhere was really simple - enjoy your playoff trip while it lasts Seahawks fans because your days of sneaking into the playoffs under .500 are over (and there might have been a few obscenities mixed in).
That was just a little meaningless trash talk.
But since that point I've calmed down - as Bob Condotta tweeted, the last guy to leave Stanford for the Niners was some guy named Bill Walsh and he made the Niners into the Team of the 80's.
"We're unstoppable. Remarkable. More famous than Cosby and the Huxtables."
I can't just come out and say the Niners will now own the division for the coming five years because this team has work to do, namely finding a quarterback. The Rams already have one of those quarterback people we used to know something about in San Francisco and the teams that don't have other things going for them.
But many people believed the Niners to be the most talented team in the division and coaching was a glaring inconsistency this year. And even though Harbaugh was starring at Michigan when the Chicago Bears did their Super Bowl shuffle, he will bring a swagger to this franchise and, as stated by others, make the NFC West fun with him and Pete Carroll as adversaries again.
And plus, Niners fans now know that experience in Super Bowl rap songs has no bearing on head coaching success.