|
|
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
This was not the year John York had in mind, not after last season. The 49ers owner figured things would be on an upswing after the team finished 10-6 and made the playoffs in 2002.
Instead, the 49ers regressed under new coach Dennis Erickson, who needs a victory
today to salvage a .500 record.
On the eve of the season finale against the Seattle Seahawks at Candlestick Park, York talked with the Mercury News about the 49ers' disappointing year and looked ahead to a challenging off-season.
York commended Erickson for holding the team together during a trying season
and vowed that the organization is poised to be "extremely aggressive"
in trying to retain its free agents, a group that could include receiver Terrell
Owens, linebacker Julian Peterson and cornerback Ahmed Plummer.
At least one thing will remain the same: the coach. Erickson received an endorsement
from York, who noted that the team pulled off victories over the top teams in
the NFC, the St. Louis Rams and Philadelphia Eagles. York predicted better things
for 2004, saying, "I am not sure that we have seen Dennis' biggest impact
yet."
The rest of the conversation with the 49ers owner:
Q How did the 49ers go from 10-6 and winning a playoff game a year ago to just
hoping for an 8-8 finish this season?
A I'm not sure I can adequately explain that. I think that we went through the
preseason and played so well that we were all expecting things to be different.
We opened with Chicago, won easily and it looked like everything was rolling
along. We have a group of good players. I think, obviously, the coaches needed
to come together, but they've done that as the season has progressed.
I would look at the season overall as disappointing in terms of the record.
We didn't want to be fighting to be 8-8. We wanted to be in the playoffs and
I think we have the players to do that, but we had injuries at the beginning
of the season and our kicking game just wasn't there in the first half. We put
ourselves behind too much of an eight ball and have never been able to completely
recover.
Q How would you evaluate Dennis Erickson's first year as coach?
A I would have said things looked very good in the preseason and the first game.
Now, we're out of the playoffs and we really have been out of the playoffs for
three, or realistically, four weeks.
The thing that I would say is that Dennis has held the players together, along
with the assistant coaches. The players have continued to come out and play
well, play hard and perform at a level that is as high as any team in the league
-- particularly last week with our win in Philadelphia.
Being able to keep the team together is the role of the coach. At this stage
of the season, I think that speaks very highly of Dennis.
Q What would you point to as his biggest impact on the field -- something beyond
the locker room?
A I am not sure that we have seen Dennis' biggest impact yet. I think we're
starting to see it identified with the attacking offense. And I think we have
seen a different defense out of Jim Mora this year. Jim has been much more aggressive
in attacking with some of his great players.
We're starting to see the attacking offense of Dennis Erickson, but I think
we'll see it even more next year.
Q Erickson could finish 8-8. He also went 8-8 three times with the Seahawks.
How can 49ers fans know that he is a better NFL coach than that?
A I think they just need to have the confidence to stick with him. He can do
a lot more here in San Francisco. I think working with General Manager Terry
Donahue and the players for another year will result in a different outcome.
Q You mentioned Donahue, who obviously faces some important personnel decisions
this off-season. How active do you anticipate the 49ers will be in free agency?
A We have an awful lot of free agents on our team. We're going to be extremely
aggressive in trying to get every one of those players back. The way the salary
cap is set up makes it difficult to keep everyone, but we're going to be as
aggressive and creative as we can be to try to get those guys back on the team
and work toward next year.
Q Does that mean the organization is prepared to spend more in signing bonuses
than it did last season?
A I think we will definitely spend more in signing bonuses. But we have a double-edged
sword in that we have been up and down in terms of spending and results with
the team. We had a purge of the team back in '99 and 2000 when we were in absolute
salary-cap oblivion, and we turned things around to come back and be in the
playoffs twice, but we still have not created a very sound salary-cap plan.
Terry Donahue and the football staff have started to really put it together
over the past year.
It will be put into place so that we can win year after year and be in position
to get into the playoffs and win the Super Bowl. We want to have the salary-cap
room to spend money on free agents before they are free. We want to do things
that we haven't done in the past.
I think that Terry's plan, as he unveils it, will really show that we are going
to be long-term capitalists.
Q Will the salary-cap outlook be better by 2004?
A I don't know that the salary-cap outlook itself will look better, but the
plan itself will start to look good.
Q You stated that you wanted to bring back all of your free agents. Does that
mean that you are not facing a choice between Julian Peterson and Terrell Owens?
A They are not an either/or situation at this point. If we can work out something
with both players, we would love to have them both back.
Q What is your gut feeling about where Owens will play next season?
A I don't have one right now. I think that Terry has some things in mind, and
hopefully we can be in position to have both Julian and T.O. back as well as
a number of the other free agents.
Q Will Owens' behavior over the past few years cost him when it comes to contract
offers from around the league?
A I think that remains to be seen. At times, he is a tremendous team player.
At other times, he gets off track a little bit. I think that doesn't affect
the 49ers as much as it may affect someone else. He has been with us for so
many years and people have gotten to know how vocal he can be. He still comes
out and plays hard and plays well. I don't know what his personality is going
to do to his value.
Q The 49ers talk a lot about building the team and the organization around quality
characters. How does Owens fit into that dynamic in terms of what kind of personalities
you want in the locker room?
A T.O. has been an over-achiever. He went to a small school and played well.
He was drafted in the third round and became a Pro Bowl player. You never read
about T.O. being in trouble with the law or with alcohol or anything else. He
just happens to be extremely vocal about his opinions.
Q Looking back at 2003, what was the high point and what was the low point?
A I think the high point has been watching the defense go to such an aggressive
game that teams are worried about playing the 49ers, regardless of our size.
They are worried about our speed, our quickness and the fact that our defensive
linemen really disrupt many offenses no matter how well they plan. That's the
highlight.
The low point is probably seeing so many of the players, particularly on the
offensive line, injured so that we could not meet the potential that we thought
we had. That extends to other players beyond the offensive line. Jeff Garcia
has had his share of injuries. Garrison Hearst. Eric Johnson and even T.O. The
biggest disappointment is that we could not be where we should be.
Q Since you identify the defense as the high point, are you concerned that you
could lose defensive coordinator Jim Mora to one of the head-coaching vacancies
around the league?
A That is the nature of the NFL. If people move up in the ranks and perform
well on the stage, they get rewarded with either a coordinator position or a
head-coaching job.
We certainly interviewed Jim as a potential head coach here in San Francisco.
I believe others will look at Jim as well. Whether that happens this year remains
to be seen.
Q Would the 49ers be in the playoffs with a better kicker to start the season?
A There is a chance that it is true. There is no question that the kicking game
really failed us at the beginning of the year. But I will say also that you
cannot blame the season just on the kicking game. We have had some games where
the offense has been down and we have had games where the defense has not carried
its weight. It's not just the kicking game.
Q This season, when people recognize you at the stadium or around the city,
what's the first thing out of their mouths?
A It's almost as varied as the number of people that speak to me.
Q No common theme?
A Not really. When we lose, they're disgruntled. When we win, they are walking
on air. There is always a smattering of people who want to know where the new
stadium is.
Q Where is the new stadium?
A I think I've answered that on a number of occasions. It's much more expensive
than we were led to believe when we came in here. It's a fairly complex problem
that we haven't solved. It's difficult, but we've been working on it on a regular
basis and will continue to work on it to get this thing done.
Q Anything else our readers should know about this season or next?
A We have great fans that have supported us for years and years. We're glad
to be part of the San Francisco sports scene and the Bay Area sports scene.
We're committed to winning. We have a different philosophy that Terry Donahue
is going to unveil in terms of the salary cap. In the long haul, that's going
to put us in a position to win year after year. I am confident in saying that
we're going to be in the playoffs and contending for the Super Bowl.