A year ago, the San Francisco 49ers were 1-1, and a season of turmoil was only getting started. We had heard rumors of a strained relationship between Jim Harbaugh and Jed York and Trent Baalke. There was the Cleveland Browns trade rumor in the offseason, and things got progressively crazier as the 2014 season moved along. It made for plenty of media fodder, and was exhausting for 49ers fans.
A year later, the 49ers have plenty to figure out, but for the time-being, we have escaped the insanity of that kind of crap. Now, we get to observe others going through it. Enter head coach Chuck Pagano, general manager Ryan Grigson and owner Jim Irsay.
There had been rumblings about discord in the relationship between Pagano and his superiors. The Colts have found success since drafting Andrew Luck, but there have been concerns about the team's make-up and where they could go with their level of talent. The team added some notable names in the offseason, including running back Frank Gore and wide receiver Andre Johnson.
Two weeks into the season, they're off to an 0-2 start, with losses on the road to the Buffalo Bills and at home to the New York Jets. That resulted in some potentially pointed comments from Pagano after the game. Most notable was this comment about the team's offensive line issues on Monday:
"That's the case for three years now, has it not? He should be more than comfortable dealing with what he's dealing with. We've got to get it fixed."
The "he" was Luck, but that could be viewed as a shot at Grigson. And while we didn't quite have the same shots taken last year, the tension was there throughout the season. I've noticed a comparison here or there to the 49ers own issues last year, including this from The Big Lead. With Pagano and Grigson both in the final year of their respective contracts, the whole thing could unravel in a hurry. It is not an apples-to-apples comparison because I think Jim Harbaugh is a better coach than Chuck Pagano, but it is certainly a thing at this point.
One upside to the 49ers current situation is we don't generally hear about any issues between coach and front office. If the 49ers fall apart this season, that will be a bigger pain in the butt, but for now, at least we can focus squarely on the on-field product.
This Colts situation may bring us full circle on Harbaugh. This is just one tweet, but if the Colts struggles continue, you just know Harbaugh's name is going to show up in the mix for the Colts job.
Is there a dollar figure for which Jim Harbaugh would leave Michigan for the Colts after one year, and would Jim Irsay offer it?
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) September 22, 2015