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Thank you, Indianapolis Colts, for at least temporarily changing the subject from bounties to where Peyton Manning might play next.

Arizona and Seattle have quickly emerged as teams with interest in the soon-to-be-released Colts quarterback.

Both teams have quite a bit to offer.

Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic says Manning's health will be pivotal to the Cardinals' interest. The team has until March 17 to make a decision on Kevin Kolb. Somers: "Numerous people already are handicapping where Manning will play. I think Arizona makes more sense than the Jets, for instance, because I doubt Manning wants to play in the same area as his brother, Eli. The Redskins have a need, but coach Mike Shanahan has a firm belief in his offense. He likes to control every facet of the football operations. And anyone signing Manning will have to show flexibility in adapting to his desires and strengths. The Seahawks have a need, too, and a very good defense. But to whom will Manning throw?" Noted: I think Manning would have little trouble taking on his brother or anyone else, just based on his competitive nature. But that is just a guess. Sidney Rice, Zach Miller and possibly Reggie Wayne would be receiving options for Manning in Seattle. Doug Baldwin would be another option. He led the NFC West in yards per target last season (9.3) and ranked among the NFL leaders in third-down receptions for first downs.

Also from Somers: Darnell Dockett explains why he would welcome Manning to Arizona. Noted: There should be absolutely no offense taken by the Cardinals' other quarterbacks. Manning is one of the all-time greats. Any team without an established quarterback should at least consider him. Supporting Kevin Kolb or John Skelton over Manning would be borderline disingenuous, in my view, based on those players' résumés.

Brian Nemhauser of hawkblogger.com lays out potential risks associated with bringing Manning to Seattle. Nemhauser: "The Seahawks are onto something great with the patient approach to building a roster through the draft. Patience has not even been all that necessary given the amount of talent added in just two drafts. Going big on Manning feels like it could put the entire process at risk without enough reward to justify that risk."

Danny O'Neil of the Seattle Times has this to say about the Seahawks while handicapping where Manning might land: "It's hard to come up with a reason why Seattle wouldn't be interested. The Seahawks' proliferation of close losses last season showed just how close they might be to contending, and they don't have a long-term investment currently in place at quarterback. Also, it's not like signing Manning would preclude the possibility of developing a younger quarterback behind him. The bigger question is whether Manning would want to come and play in the NFL's most isolated outpost in a stadium that's outdoors in a city known for precipitation."

Michael Simeona of 710ESPN Seattle links to a fun Marshawn Lynch video that made the rounds Tuesday. Noted: Those wondering how a newly signed running back spends his discretionary income might learn something here.

Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch expects the NFL to suspend Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams. Rams chief operating officer Kevin Demoff: "Coach Williams has shown contrition for his actions and continues to cooperate with the NFL in this investigation. Out of respect for the NFL's ongoing process, we will refrain from commenting until the league has come to a final decision on all aspects of this matter." Noted: Williams did show contrition in the statement he released. He is presumably doing the same while meeting with league officials. I'm not sure sustained public contrition is in his nature. How he handles these allegations over the long term will shape perceptions about him.

Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch raises questions about criticisms of Williams. Miklasz: "I suppose I'm confused. Here you had this outlaw, renegade, out of control coach setting up bounties and sharpening a goon squad to wipe out helpless QBs with dirty hits ... and where was the NFL? Did the NFL miss all of the dirty deeds? Wouldn't you expect more fines than this? Did the folks in the NFL office miss all of these tawdry, disgusting 'kill shots' on QBs? Makes no sense. There seems to be an obvious disconnect between the Williams' reputation and the reality." Noted: Looks like the NFL will punish Williams for a bounty system that allegedly encouraged dirty hits, independent of whether that system produced an unusual number of such hits.

Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News explains why he thinks the 49ers will show no interest in Manning. Kawakami: "The 49ers of Trent Baalke and Jim Harbaugh aren’t in this for headline-grabbing media circus shows. They’re the far, far opposite of that–they love the blue-collar, no-frills attitude, which keeps the locker room calm and happy and everybody feeling like they’re equal parts of the machine. In this construction, nobody’s bigger than anybody else–theoretically. Crazy big free-agent signings would mess up that balance. If you need a reminder, just flick back to last year’s free-agency period, when 49ers Nation was going nuts while Baalke let the first week or so of F/A go by with nary a splashy move."

Daniel Brown of the San Jose Mercury News says the 49ers reject Dexter Manley's suggestion Bill Walsh's teams had a bounty out on him. Brown: "Craig Walsh said his father and Manley had a history but that 'it wasn't a vendetta.' He said Bill Walsh made a point of identifying the 49ers who would play pivotal roles in momentum-changing plays. And, on the eve of the game, Walsh would make those players stand up in front of the team and make them vow to fulfill their assignment. On Sept. 10, 1984, one of those key players was tight end Russ Francis, a top-notch blocker, whose crackback block on Manley would be crucial to opening up a running play for Wendell Tyler. ... Francis delivered as promised on "Monday Night Football" -- providing a crushing shot that Craig Walsh (who was on the sideline) said knocked Manley off his feet. The other 49ers players went nuts because they knew it was coming and because it was the key to the play -- just as the coach had drawn it up."

Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com thinks Saints receiver Robert Meachem could make sense for the 49ers.

Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee quotes Baalke as saying the team remains focused on re-signing Alex Smith and hasn't even discussed Manning internally. Baalke: "We haven't had Peyton in here nor are we even talking about those things internally right now. ... Is he going to play? I don't know. That's for the doctors to make the decision on and for him himself." Noted: Manning isn't even eligible to visit another team until the Colts release him. All signs point to the 49ers going with Smith and Kaepernick as their top two quarterbacks, but as long as Smith remains unsigned, other options have to be at least remotely in play. And the 49ers have presumably discussed those options internally.

The Santa Rosa Press-Democrat says attempts to block the 49ers' new stadium project met defeat in court.

Good morning. I'm back from the NFL scouting combine and ready for free agency, which unfortunately does not begin until March 13.

The gap between the combine and free agency was once shorter. Years ago, the combine became that time when teams lined up their options, with news breaking about which free agents planned to visit certain teams when the market opened for business.

The most recent combine lacked that feel of impending activity.

But as Howard Balzer of 101ESPN St. Louis points out, the St. Louis Rams might want to act sooner when it comes to trading the second overall choice. That is because the quarterback landscape will change once free agency opens. Some teams will fill their quarterback needs, and when they do, they might have less interest in acquiring the second overall choice for a chance to draft Baylor's Robert Griffin III. Balzer: "While trades involving draft picks normally don’t occur until draft day or at best a few days before, (chief operating officer) Kevin Demoff thinks there’s a possibility something could happen before the start of the league year or at the league meeting at the end of March. Of course, trades can’t become official until the league year begins, but the deal can be in place in advance."

Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Rams have "laid the groundwork" for trading the pick.

Bryan Burwell of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says a quick resolution to Peyton Manning's situation would help the Rams get value for the second overall choice.

Joshua Mayers of the Seattle Times suggests Leroy Hill's latest arrest could derail his career with the Seahawks. Noted: I don't think this arrest, for possessing less than one ounce of marijuana, will kill the Seahawks' interest in Hill. The arrest will hurt Hill's market value and give the Seahawks a better shot at re-signing him for less money. The situation would be different, in my view, if Hill had been caught in a more compromising position. In this case, he was hanging out at home when authorities showed up unexpectedly, acting on a search warrant after a neighbor apparently complained about smelling marijuana. The incident reflects poorly on Hill, but this allegation reflects behavior less reckless than, say, driving under the influence.

Brock Huard of 710ESPN Seattle thinks the Seahawks should consider Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson in the draft.

More from Huard: thoughts on combine quarterbacks.

Darren Urban of azcardinals.com says the team could bring back Deuce Lutui if he meets standards for physical conditioning. General manager Rod Graves: "It’s up to Deuce. We'd like to have him back, but one of the things we have to get worked out with Deuce is with his weight. We had to struggle with him the last couple of years. The bottom line is that Deuce hasn't played as well when he has been heavy. We would love to see Deuce come back, get in shape and play well for us and we’d love to have him under those conditions. But we can’t afford to not give someone else a chance if Deuce is going to come in overweight."

Also from Urban: to what degree the Cardinals could need to add receiver help.

Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee says the 49ers probably had Baylor receiver Kendall Wright in mind when they interviewed Griffin at the combine. Barrows: "The 49ers have traded up in each of the last two drafts, in 2010 to snag offensive tackle Anthony Davis in the first round, then last year to get quarterback Colin Kaepernick in the second. Wright ran his 40-yard dash Sunday in 4.61 seconds, which is slower than expected. He'll likely run again at Baylor's pro day March 21 when he also will catch passes from Griffin."

Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News checks in with former 49ers executive Carmen Policy. Kawakami: "As someone who gains nothing from praising the 49ers at this point, it’s very credible when Policy calls the stadium in Santa Clara a fait accompli, talks about Santa Clara receiving possibly the best deal any community has received from an NFL team and points out the twists and turns that solidified the Santa Clara effort. ... Policy confirmed he had dinner with Gideon Yu recently and was very impressed. ... Read over his comments about the Raiders’ situation, and everything points to Mark Davis looking for the best deal in hand, and that continues to feel like Los Angeles, at some point. ... The Jim Harbaugh/Bill Walsh resiliency/emotional comparison is fascinating, and I think probably quite accurate."

Also from Kawakami: Jed York as Mark Zuckerberg? Noted: Talk about comparisons that would not have been made before hiring Harbaugh, going 13-3 and getting a stadium deal done. Yes, times have changed, and quickly.

A certain not-yet-available quarterback nearly overshadowed Super Bowl week. Overshadowing other subjects during the latest NFC West chat was easy by comparison. And predictable. And welcome, actually. Few subjects can compete with Peyton Manning potentially joining another team.

Kathy from San Antonio wonders why San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh seems so "fixated" on Alex Smith as the team's starting quarterback. She thinks Manning could put the 49ers over the top. "Harbaugh seems like a guy who wants to be considered in the same sentence as Bill Walsh," she wrote, "yet he will hurt his long-term future as head coach if he sticks with Smith."

Mike Sando: Peyton Manning's health is a key variable. The 49ers might not trust his ability to get and stay healthy. The team might feel as though it has a good thing going, and the rewards of adding a diminished, older Manning might not appeal to them coming off a season in which they were really a play or two away from the Super Bowl. It is also possible the 49ers will reevaluate if anything changes with Manning.

Matt from Syracuse asks whether Arizona or Seattle is a better fit for Peyton Manning.

Mike Sando: I lean toward Arizona because the Cardinals play indoors, they have an offensive coach (Frank Reich) with direct ties to Manning and they have Larry Fitzgerald. But if they pay the $7 million to Kevin Kolb, it would be tough to pay Manning as well. The Seahawks are in better position to add a big-money quarterback because they do not have a big-money incumbent QB.

Josh from Iowa asks why assistants Gregg Williams, Brian Schottenheimer and Dave McGinnis seemed to eager to join Jeff Fisher's staff in St. Louis.

Mike Sando: I listened to McGinnis on the conference call. His excitement was definitely palpable. The fact that Williams and McGinnis would jump at the change to reunite with Fisher reflects well on Fisher. Fisher seems to know what is important. He seems to be no-nonsense and without pretense. He seems real. He's not walking around trying to prove to everyone that he's a head coach. This shows up in the confidence Fisher projects. Assistants are also looking for stability, which tends to be elusive in the NFL. Fisher lasted 16-plus seasons as head coach in his last job. That track record is appealing.

The next chat will be in two weeks. I'm taking off next week before ramping up for the NFL scouting combine.

One of our blog regulars, joe_cool585, correctly points out an omission from the NFC West blog recently.

Jim Harbaugh's naming as the NFL's top coach, as declared by Associated Press voters, got insufficient play here during Pro Football Hall of Fame fallout Saturday night. Time for every coach's favorite, the makeup call.

Harbaugh becomes the first NFC West coach since realignment in 2002 to earn the AP honor. Harbaugh and former St. Louis Rams coach Dick Vermeil are the only coaches for current NFC West teams to win the award in the last two decades.

Winning the award requires not only faring well, but also faring better than your peers in a given season, sometimes relative to expectations. The chart does not necessarily rank the best jobs head coaches have done for current NFC West franchises since the AP established the award in 1957. This wouldn't be a bad list to work from, however.

The chart's final column shows the difference between winning percentages from the previous season. For example, the 1999 Rams went 13-3, up from 4-12 the previous season. The difference between those winning percentages -- .813 minus .333, basically -- works out to plus .563.

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INDIANAPOLIS -- Thirteen modern-era NFL players were finalists for enshrinement Saturday in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Only one was named offensive or defensive player of the year during his career.

That was the Seattle Seahawks' Cortez Kennedy. His eight Pro Bowls, all-1990s selection and overall dominance made my job as his presenter quite simple. State the facts and let Kennedy's career do the talking. Picking the final five out of 15 modern-era finalists is always tough, however, because it usually requires leaving off worthy candidates.

The 43 other selectors and I met for more than seven hours before identifying Kennedy, Chris Doleman, Dermontti Dawson, Curtis Martin and Willie Roaf as the class of 2012. Jack Butler made it as a seniors candidate.

A few thoughts on the process and the results:

• This class made it through at a good time. Larry Allen, Michael Strahan, Jonathan Ogden, Warren Sapp, Bryant Young, John Lynch and Steve McNair become eligible for the first time in 2013. Shaun Alexander, Derrick Brooks, Marvin Harrison, Rodney Harrison, Tony Dungy and Mike Holmgren join the list in 2014. Isaac Bruce, Edgerrin James, Walter Jones, Junior Seau, Chris Samuels, Kurt Warner, Ty Law and Orlando Pace are among those eligible beginning in 2015.
• Former St. Louis Rams
  and Arizona Cardinals
  cornerback Aeneas Williams should feel great about cracking the final 10 in his first year as a finalist. Williams had 55 career interceptions and scored nine touchdowns. He was a big-time playmaker for bad and good teams alike.
• The situation at receiver remains a mess and it's not going to get easier with Harrison becoming eligible in a couple years. Voters are having a tough time deciding between Cris Carter and Andre Reed. Both made the final 10 this year. Reed made the final 10 last year as well. Having both crack the final 10 this year made it harder for one of them to break through. Voters were more likely to choose one wideout when forced to pick only five players.
• Former San Francisco 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr. did not make the reduction from 15 to 10. I think it's tougher for voters to quantify how owners and even coaches -- think Bill Parcells, who missed the cut from 10 to five -- contributed to their teams' success. The discussions for Parcells (55-plus minutes) and DeBartolo (42-plus minutes) were more than twice as long as the discussions for other candidates. Hall bylaws prevented voters from considering the legal troubles and suspension that preceded DeBartolo's exit from the game.
• DeBartolo was a finalist in part because he hired Bill Walsh, promoted a winning culture, cared tremendously for his players and helped win five Super Bowls. He spent this weekend with former 49ers player Freddie Solomon, who is in the final days of a battle with cancer. The 49ers' renewed success this past season also reflected well on DeBartolo, who has become a tremendous resource for current team president Jed York, his nephew.
• Electing one pass-rusher (Doleman, who spent part of his career with the 49ers) to the Hall could give former 49ers and Dallas Cowboys pass-rusher Charles Haley an easier time in the future. But with Strahan joining the conversation in 2013, Haley faces stiff competition again. Former Rams pass-rusher Kevin Greene did not make the final 10 despite 160 career sacks.

It's been a whirlwind day. Hall bylaws prevent me from sharing specifics about what was said in the room during the proceedings. The Hall also asked voters not to reveal their votes outright. I voted for five of the six players enshrined on the final cut and supported others. As always, however, reducing to only five in the end required leaving off candidates I hope will make it in the future.

The NFC lost in the Pro Bowl by a 59-41 count Sunday despite three touchdown receptions by Larry Fitzgerald.

Consider it a sign of the times.

Thirty-three years earlier, Seattle's Steve Largent tied what was then a Pro Bowl record with five catches. Not five touchdown catches, but five catches of any kind. The NFC won that game, 13-7 -- the sixth consecutive Pro Bowl in which the losing team failed to exceed 20 points.

On Sunday, Fitzgerald's three scoring receptions weren't even the highest total for the game. The AFC's Brandon Marshall caught four.

The game doesn't really matter, of course. Players love the Pro Bowl because they love hanging out with their peers in Hawaii, without any pressure.

Darren Urban of azcardinals.com breaks down Fitzgerald's contributions while noting that rookie Patrick Peterson also made an impact.

Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic explains why he does not expect Peyton Manning to play for the Cardinals. Bickley: "Assuming he becomes available, courting the future Hall of Fame quarterback will require breathtaking entrepreneurial spirit. Serious pursuit will be fraught with risk. It will require a ton of guaranteed money going out the door with no guarantees that Manning will last another season in the NFL. Sorry, that just doesn't sound like the Cardinals. This franchise hasn't changed that much. I welcome them to prove me wrong." Noted: The Cardinals would have a window in which to make a decision. The Colts have until March 8 to exercise a $28 million option on Manning. The $7 million bonus Arizona owes Kevin Kolb does not come due til March 17. The gap between those dates would give the Cardinals flexibility.

Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic has this to say about the Cardinals' refusal to let receivers coach John McNulty interview with Tampa Bay for the Bucs' offensive coordinator position: "McNulty is under contract, so the Cardinals can prevent him from interviewing for any job other than a head coaching position. That doesn't seem fair, as many of you have pointed out, but it's common in the NFL. A year ago, the Cardinals requested permission to interview Steelers' linebackers coach Keith Butler for a coordinator's position. They were denied."

Danny O'Neil of the Seattle Times revisits the Seahawks' apparent aversion to selecting quarterbacks in first rounds of drafts over the last nearly two decades. O'Neil: "There have been 208 quarterbacks drafted into the NFL since then, 44 of them chosen in the first round of the draft. Washington has picked three quarterbacks in the first round in that time. So have the Oilers-turned-Titans. But the Seahawks are one of four teams who have not chosen a quarterback in the first round of any draft since 1993. The Cowboys, Saints and the Patriots -- who picked Drew Bledsoe in the slot before Seattle took Rick Mirer -- are the other three."

Brady Henderson of 710ESPN Seattle says Red Bryant wants to become a better all-around player. Henderson: "Along with emerging as a dominant run defender, Bryant has blocked four kicks and intercepted two passes, including one he returned for a score. Of course, defensive ends are supposed to rush the passer, and Bryant hasn't done much of that since moving over from defensive tackle following the 2009 season." Noted: The Seahawks value Bryant for his strength against the run. Rushing the passer has not been a priority for him.

Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times updates where St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke stands among other bidders to purchase the Los Angeles Dodgers. Leo Hindery and Tom Barrack have put together an offer. Shaikin: "Hindery and fellow New York financier Marc Utay lead one of at least eight groups that survived Friday's first cut among the bidders. That group had been one of the two prospective buyers known to remain in the bidding without a significant tie to Los Angeles. The other, St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke, has a residence in Malibu and could move the Rams back to Los Angeles as soon as 2015, depending on whether the football team and its St. Louis landlord can agree on stadium renovations." Noted: Whether or not Kroenke succeeds in purchasing the Dodgers, his flirtation with Los Angeles remains newsworthy amid the Rams' uncertain future.

Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com says the 49ers would be more apt to use the franchise tag on Dashon Goldson than Carlos Rogers if the team were unable to strike long-term deals with them. Maiocco: "The franchise tag for safeties is expected to be $6.2 million for one year. The tag for cornerbacks will be around $10.6 million. So it would cost more than $4 million extra for the 49ers to franchise Rogers over Goldson. Plus, the 49ers have nobody behind Goldson to take his spot. The 49ers' third safety this past season was Reggie Smith, who is also scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent."

Mark Purdy of the San Jose Mercury News makes the case for former 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo as a Pro Football Hall of Famer. Purdy: "DeBartolo doesn't belong in the Hall simply because the 49ers won five Super Bowls under his ownership, though that certainly gives him a leg up. DeBartolo also belongs because in the 1980s, he and coach Bill Walsh virtually invented the modern way of doing NFL business in terms of upgrading every aspect of an organization to eliminate excuses and promote winning. In that respect, I've always said, DeBartolo was the perfect fans' owner. The setup was perfect. Walsh would strategize and DeBartolo would authorize -- whether that meant implementing the latest scouting technology, or deciding to charter roomier jumbo jets, or traveling to eastern road games a day earlier for better time-zone adjustment. In exchange, DeBartolo expected victory. Period. It created a magnificent dynamic of creative tension under pressure." Noted: DeBartolo deserves tremendous credit for weathering a rough start as owner, growing into the role and identifying Walsh as the man to lead the franchise. Walsh's success reflects well on DeBartolo to an extent. Walsh was so good, however, that others don't always get as much credit. As for DeBartolo and the Hall, choosing worthy candidates is the easy part. Deciding which finalists to leave off the final ballot is the hard part when reducing to five modern-era candidates on the final vote.

Conventional wisdom says the San Francisco 49ers need to score touchdowns, not field goals, to defeat the New Orleans Saints in the divisional playoffs Saturday.

But if the 49ers play the game their way, on their terms, they'll win with David Akers hitting at least a couple field goals — perhaps even the game-winner. After all, Akers set a 49ers franchise record for scoring on his way to the Pro Bowl this season.

ESPN's Rick Reilly explains why that would be a fitting scenario after all the Akers family has been through over the last year. Just one year ago, doctors discovered that Akers' 6-year-old daughter had a cancerous tumor. Akers himself had lost most of his career earnings to a fraudulent investor. He missed two field-goal attempts during the Eagles' 21-16 playoff defeat and soon found himself out of work. Reilly: "So there it was, the trifecta — nearly broke, a sick kid at home and silently dumped by the team he'd given 12 terrific years. Akers is a guy who's insecure about his footing in the NFL anyway. He'd been a waiter at a Longhorn Steakhouse in Atlanta, a substitute teacher and a kicker for NFL Europe in Berlin, where he nearly died during a one-month hospital stay for salmonella. The man who saved him from that life was then-Philadelphia special teams coach John Harbaugh, who called him up for a tryout in 1998. Akers stuck. And he's been terribly fond of Harbaughs ever since."

Daniel Brown of the San Jose Mercury News goes back in time with 49ers legends as they reminisce on the 30th anniversary of Dwight Clark's winning catch from Joe Montana in the NFC title game against Dallas.

Lowell Cohn of the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat says Clark sees parallels between that 1981 team and the current one. Clark: "It's way similar. We shocked everybody that year and this team has shocked everybody. I see similarities between Bill Walsh and Jim Harbaugh. Bill was a genius. Harbaugh comes up with some schematic thing on the field and I shake my head and say, 'Where the hell did he come up with that?' They have a similar way of creating plays."

Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch updates the Rams' search for a coach and general manager. Tennessee's Lake Dawson interviewed for the GM job, Atlanta's Les Snead was on his way to do so and Arizona's Steve Keim was also expected to interview. Thomas: "Meanwhile, the Rams expressed interest in Cincinnati offensive coordinator Jay Gruden, but Gruden quickly let it be known that he's staying put with the Bengals and would not interview for any head-coaching jobs." Noted: Keim would fit best if the Rams hired Cardinals defensive coordinator Ray Horton as head coach. Dawson would fit best if the Rams hired Jeff Fisher.

Also from Thomas: a chat transcript with a different take on how much money the Rams will save now that Josh McDaniels is working for New England. Thomas: "As I wrote about today, McDaniels will receive $1.5 million from the Rams next season. But whatever the Patriots are paying him gets subtracted from that total. Say the Patriots are paying him $1 million, then the Rams are on the hook for only $500,000 and they get $1 million freed up to hire the new coaching staff. Also, whatever McDaniels gets paid for the rest of this season with New England gets subtracted from McDaniels' $1.5 million he earned from the Rams this season." Noted: I thought that would have been the case if the Rams fired McDaniels, and that the Patriots would assume the full salary given that St. Louis never did fire him. I'll follow up on this.

Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Rams should hire an offensive-minded head coach if they fail to land Fisher. Miklasz: "If the Rams hire a defensive coordinator, what kind of staff would he be able to put together on offense? Again, it's imperative for the Rams to expedite Bradford's progress, ratchet up this offense, and join the NFL's modern age. An offense-oriented HC would have the necessary acumen to supervise the development of the QB and the offense. He would have a better feel (and a better chance) for putting together a quality staff on offense. NFL people will tell you that it's easier to find a defensive coordinator than an offensive coordinator."

Darren Urban of azcardinals.com says the team knows it must improve on offense. Urban: "The Cardinals’ first drive of the season went for a touchdown, starting at the Cards’ own 46-yard line and ending with Beanie Wells’ seven-yard run for a score. The next week, a first-quarter interception set up a short (37 yards) drive for another early touchdown. But the Cardinals didn’t score a first-quarter touchdown after than until the final game of the season against Seattle, far too long a drought. The Cards only scored 36 first-quarter points all season, putting them in a near constant hole. The flip side, of course, was the often strong finishes, especially once the defense became stout. In the fourth quarter and overtime, the Cards outscored opponents by 54 points. The big plays would pop up — 22 total on the season of more than 40 yards — and the Cards did gain 4.2 yards per rush attempt, but it didn’t happen enough. During the Cards’ 7-2 closing kick to the season, the most points they scored in a game was 23."

Brady Henderson of 710ESPN Seattle says NFL analyst and former quarterback Rich Gannon does not expect improvement from Tarvaris Jackson. Gannon: "I think what you see is what you get. I don't know if it's going to get a whole lot better with Tarvaris Jackson, and that's really my concern. Is he a good player? Certainly. Is he ever going to be a dominant player at his position? Is he ever going to be one of the elite players? Is he going to be a Pro Bowl player? I don't think so." Noted: Gannon might be right. That was the sort of thing people thought about Gannon years ago. Gannon went from Chiefs backup and sometimes starter to league MVP with Oakland. That path is obviously unlikely for Jackson, but it seemed unlikely for Gannon as well.

There was a point during Steve Spagnuolo's postgame news conference Monday night when his comments begged for elaboration.

The St. Louis Rams' coach was trying to explain some of the team's curious play calling near the goal line during a 30-13 defeat to the Seattle Seahawks. Spagnuolo pointed to the clock being a factor behind three consecutive pass plays from the Seattle 1-yard line.

I considered asking why the team had run twice to open the goal-to-go portion of the drive, once with backup running back Cadillac Williams and again with injured quarterback Sam Bradford on an ill-fated sneak, but there was really no reason to follow up. What could Spagnuolo say? Did it really matter at this point?

The cumulative effect of losing outweighed the need to examine in minute detail every aspect of this particular defeat.

Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch put it this way: "In St. Louis, we've seen this loss many times before; they all look the same by now. The players seemed to care. Running back Steven Jackson ran wildly and effectively, once again giving his all for a lost cause. The Rams defense played hard, putting up a fight until finally succumbing to fatigue and frustration. But the futile Rams offense failed to score enough points. With quarterback Sam Bradford playing on a gimpy left ankle and unable to consistently step into his throws, it was a challenge for the Rams to reach the end zone. ... What will (owner Stan) Kroenke do with his coach? I don't know. He could blow up the entire football operation and fire everyone. Or he could fire GM Billy Devaney and keep Spagnuolo. Or he could build another Wal-Mart."

Jeff Gordon of stltoday.com offers a Rams report card with an "F" grade for coaching. Gordon: "Where do you start with that offense? A late offensive line substitution led to a broken red-zone play. That turned a first-and-goal scenario into a field-goal try. Josh McDaniels steered away from Jackson on several short-yardage calls near the goal line. He also ordered too many slow-developing play-action passing plays that seldom drew so much as a nibble from the Seattle secondary. Coaches must adapt their playcalling to the circumstances, and the Rams did a dreadful job of that on offense."

Dave Boling of the Tacoma News Tribune put the Seahawks' victory in perspective. Boling: "Yes, it was just the Rams. But the Seahawks also were without three starting offensive linemen and their big-ticket free-agent receiver – all out for the season with injuries. Yes, it was just the Rams. But Marshawn Lynch put together his fifth 100-yard rushing effort (23 for 115 yards) in the past six games. He unleashed another “Beast Mode” run in the third quarter when he pounded out a 12-yard gain despite being hit by a half-dozen defenders. He’s scored touchdowns in nine straight games. Yes, it was just the Rams. But the Seahawks’ young players had another impressive outing."

Clare Farnsworth of seahawks.com checks in with the NFL's leading consumer of Skittles candy. Lynch rushed for 115 yards against the Rams. Fans showered him with Skittles when he scored a touchdown for the ninth consecutive game he has played. Lynch: "It really took off in college, when they gave me a pack of Skittles on the sideline at Cal. But it didn’t blow up the way it has like this."

Jerry Brewer of the Seattle Times sizes up Doug Baldwin's contributions for Seattle. Brewer: "His underdog tale continues to get better. He has evolved from undrafted free agent to rookie surprise to flat-out impact player. It's not a shock when Baldwin does great things anymore. He is, in the absence of Sidney Rice, the Seahawks' best wide receiver. He is, without a doubt, an essential part of the Seahawks' present and future."

Brady Henderson of 710ESPN Seattle offers postgame Seahawks notes, including one about Brandon Browner's up-and-down night. Browner on the big reception he allowed to Brandon Lloyd: "That double-move that he gave me, that should never happen. That's like what happened to me [against] Washington towards the end of the game. We're up, man. I've got to play off. I've got to play for the deep route."

Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic thinks the Cardinals should bring back Todd Haley to help their offense after Ray Horton has helped turn around the defense. Bickley on the defense: "They've yielded six touchdowns in their past six games, the third-lowest total in the NFL during that span. They rank third in third-down defense behind the Baltimore Ravens and New York Jets, a stunning turnaround for veteran birdwatchers. For the second consecutive week, they amassed five sacks from five players. That creates a powerful force inside the locker room."

Bob McManaman of the Arizona Republic says the Cardinals aren't talking playoffs just yet. McManaman: "If the Cardinals win out -- beating Cleveland, Cincinnati and Seattle -- they would finish 9-7. If that happens and the teams above them in the NFC wild-card race lose two of their final three games -- namely Detroit, Chicago, Atlanta and Dallas -- then Arizona is in. It's a long shot, but it's true. And even coach Ken Whisenhunt is a little apprehensive talking about it." Noted: The Cardinals could get into the playoffs even if they lost at home to Cleveland. Here is how.

Also from McManaman: The Cardinals say they aren't sure whether Kevin Kolb will play against the Browns. McManaman: "This couldn't have been how Kevin Kolb envisioned his first year as the Cardinals' starting quarterback would play out. In addition to taking a beating the first two months of the season, he missed four consecutive games because of a complicated right-foot injury. Then, just a week after returning, he suffered a concussion on the third play of Arizona's 21-19 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday."

Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News checks in with former 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr., who gives the current 49ers an edge over the 1981 version. DeBartolo on the current team's defeat to Arizona: "What happened yesterday is the same thing that happened to me, Bill (Walsh), Steve (Young) and Joe (Montana) -- just exactly like that. That happened to us so many times in Phoenix, it's unbelievable. We'd go down there, and we had the better team, and they'd just pop up and come up with games." Noted: Not so fast. This team does not have Young or Montana. The 49ers have hit a rougher patch in the past three weeks and did not look good during the first half of their lone victory during that stretch, over the Rams. Writing off the defeat to Arizona as a fluke ignores broader struggles and limitations on offense. This team isn't playing with the efficiency it showed several weeks ago. It feels as though it's getting tougher to overcome some of the offensive limitations.

Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle says the 49ers' Frank Gore is not 100 percent. Branch: "Gore is presumably dealing with knee and ankle injuries that he suffered in back-to-back games last month. During a win against the Redskins on Nov. 6, Gore hurt his ankle and, after the game, needed assistance stepping down from an elevated platform on which he’d addressed reporters. Gore played the following week -- collecting zero yards on six carries -- but didn’t finish a 27-20 win against the Giants after suffering a knee injury in the first half. Gore hasn’t missed a game since, but his production has dipped dramatically since he ripped off a franchise-record five straight 100-yard games, a streak that ended against the Giants."

Ronnie Lott witnessed one of the greatest coaching jobs in NFL history during the Bill Walsh years in San Francisco three decades ago.

The Hall of Famer thinks the 49ers' current coach, Jim Harbaugh, might be doing something more spectacular in leading the team to an 8-1 record against all expectations.

"This might be the greatest coaching that I've ever seen in the history of the game of professional football," Lott told Sirius NFL Radio recently. "It's his first [season as an NFL head coach] and not only is he hitting it out of the park but, man, he's hitting all the notes. Everything that you can think of, he's done."

Lott pointed to the 49ers' ability to play well and win under a first-time NFL head coach following a lockout-shortened offseason. The turnaround from eight consecutive non-winning seasons has been striking. Kenton Wong of ESPN Stats & Information put together a Harbaugh-related packet with the following key points:

• Stanford went from 1-11 the year before Harbaugh arrived as head coach to 4-8, 5-7, 8-5 and 12-1 over his four seasons at the university.
• The 49ers brought back most key players, notably Alex Smith, from a team that went 6-10 last season. Their eight victories this season match the rest of the NFC West combined. The 49ers have a .889 winning percentage, compared to .296 for the rest of the division. They are plus-95 in points. The rest of the NFC West is minus-198. The 49ers have one more road win (four) than the rest of the division combined.
• Smith is on pace for career bests in yards per attempt (7.2) and touchdown-to-interception ratio (3.7).
• Harbaugh's seven-game winning streak is tied for second longest by a rookie head coach since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger, according to Elias Sports Bureau. Ted Marchibroda's Colts won nine in a row in 1975. Bobby Ross' Chargers won seven straight in 1992. Chuck Knox's Rams (1973) and Nick Saban's Dolphins (2005) each enjoyed six-game streaks. Corrected info from Elias: Steve Mariucci won 11 in a row during the 1997 season, his first with the 49ers. And Jim Caldwell went 14-0 with the Colts in his first season. Those are the two longest streaks.

This is the best start for a rookie NFC West coach since Mariucci's 49ers opened the 1997 season with an 11-1 record. They finished 13-3.

Mike Martz's St. Louis Rams went 8-2 to open the 2000 season. Mike Holmgren's Seahawks opened the 1999 season with an 8-2 record.

I've put together a chart showing NFC West head coaches' first-year records since 1997, excluding interim coaches.
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The accolades keep flowing the San Francisco 49ers' way following their 5-1 start to the season.

Winning tends to validate every aspect of an operation.

Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle praises team president Jed York for naming Trent Baalke general manager and hiring Jim Harbaugh as head coach. Ostler: "The 49ers desperately needed a game-changer and Harbaugh was the only candidate who potentially fit that description. ... York snagged him. Maybe York got lucky. Maybe Harbaugh was ready to make the jump to the NFL and he saw the 49ers as the one team in which he instantly could seize near-complete control of the entire football operation. But give York credit. When he went into marathon discussions with candidate Harbaugh, some people on the outside (OK, I was one) thought that might be a deal-killer. What if Harbaugh chats with York and Paraag Marathe for several hours and realizes he is being recruited to head up some rich kid's Junior Achievement project? So yes, some of us underestimated York (and Baalke and Marathe)."

Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee lauds Harbaugh for succeeding in creating the family atmosphere that eluded the 49ers under former coach Mike Singletary. Players received an extra two days off for winning their final two games before the bye week. Practice-squad players travel on road trips. Barrows: "Long and tedious team meetings were common. Singletary often gave speeches -- sermons, really -- during the week. He wanted the 49ers to bond, but it was forced bonding. Jim Harbaugh also wants a family like atmosphere. But he is running the team in a different manner, like Patrick Swayze ran his household in 'The Outsiders.' Harbaugh is like the older brother who lets you drink out of the milk carton and who isn't beyond getting into scrapes of his own."

Lowell Cohn of the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat checks in with the 49ers' coordinators for an explanation on how West Coast offenses have evolved over the years. One key difference: Teams rarely use a split backfield, which was a staple under Bill Walsh. Noted: Mike Holmgren used split backs a fair amount of the time during his years with the Seahawks. Sometimes the team would shift from split backs into the I-formation and back to split backs. But it's uncommon to see split backs in the NFL today. I was watching the 1979 playoff game between the Rams and Cowboys recently. The Cowboys' use of split backs jumped out right away. Before that, teams used to have their receivers line up in sprinter's stances, which they never do any longer.

Cam Inman of the San Jose Mercury News profiles 49ers receiver Ted Ginn Jr.

Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Rams are bracing for a New Orleans team that has continued functioning at a high level despite coach Sean Payton's knee injury. Thomas: "Because of the surgery, Payton was less involved in game-planning for last Sunday's game against Indianapolis. On game day, Payton was upstairs in the coaches' booth, with offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael taking over the play-calling duties from Payton. The result was an amazing 62-7 victory over the Colts. It was the most lopsided victory in Saints history, and it matched the most points scored by an NFL team since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. Payton may not have a leg to stand on, but he still has his team's ear."

Also from Thomas: Mark LeVoir is back with the team and says Rams Park looks the same, only four years older.

Kathleen Nelson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Rams could be close to getting cornerback Marquis Johnson back from injury.

Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic says the Cardinals have lost their past 10 road games. Noted: They are one of eight teams in the NFL without a road victory this season. Carolina, St. Louis, Minnesota, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Miami and the New York Jets are also without a victory away from home. Carolina was the only team without a road victory all last season. The Cardinals haven't won a road game outside the division since beating the Detroit Lions during the 2009 season.

Also from Somers: The Cardinals hope to fix Kevin Kolb's footwork.

Danny O'Neil of the Seattle Times says Seahawks tight end Zach Miller has no hard feelings toward Giants safety Kenny Phillips for the illegal hit that sidelined Miller until this week. The league levied a $20,000 fine against Phillips. Miller: "It's part of the game. A few years ago, that hit would have been legal. You can't fault the defensive guys too much because they're trying to make plays on the ball. It's tough when you change rules when you try and adapt and play within the rules. I wish it wouldn't have happened, though." Noted: Those are the types of hits I think about every time a retired player experiences health problems at a relatively young age. I suspect absorbing a hit such as that one would be life-altering for the typical non-athlete. It's remarkable athletes bounce back so quickly, but the evidence increasingly suggests they pay in the long term.

Also from O'Neil: Red Bryant's transformation from average defensive tackle to formidable defensive end continues to serve the Seahawks well.

Clare Farnsworth of seahawks.com notes that the team hasn't played a home game since Oct. 2, meaning nearly a month will have passed between games at CenturyLink Field.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Coach Jim Harbaugh got a five-year, $25 million contract to remake the San Francisco 49ers, particularly on offense.

Wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. got an ultimatum: Take a pay cut, or be prepared for what happens when players refuse them.

Ginn, one week after taking a steep reduction in salary, bailed out Harbaugh's offense Sunday with two fourth-quarter touchdown returns. The irony was utterly implausible during the 49ers' 33-17 victory over the Seattle Seahawks at Candlestick Park.

Ginn became the first player in 49ers history to return a kickoff (102 yards) and a punt (55 yards) for touchdowns in the same game. Both came in the final four minutes of a game San Francisco had controlled, but was struggling to put away. Fans eager to see Harbaugh channel Bill Walsh instead watched the 49ers convert only once in 12 third-down chances on their way to 209 yards and 12 first downs.

Without Ginn, the game ball would have gone to Jimmy Raye or any other ex-coordinators 49ers fans love to hate.

"I thought our offense had a very blue-collar type of day," Harbaugh said.

Or, as tight end Delanie Walker put it, "Ted basically won the game for us."

Of course, now is not the time to pass definitive judgment upon an offense that understandably remains in the very early stages of its development. With a new coaching staff, new playbooks and Alex Smith still at quarterback, the 49ers weren't going to operate the way Green Bay and New Orleans performed during their memorable opener Thursday night. They were going to need time. They will eventually need a new quarterback.

But if this Sunday in the NFC West was any indication -- it's all we have -- the 49ers have to like their chances in the division.

The favored St. Louis Rams lost quarterback Sam Bradford, running back Steven Jackson, receiver Danny Amendola, right tackle Jason Smith and cornerback Ron Bartell to injuries during their 31-13 home defeat to Philadelphia. The Arizona Cardinals watched Carolina Panthers rookie Cam Newton amass 422 yards passing against them, prevailing 28-21 only after rookie Patrick Peterson scored on a punt return.

Then there were the Seahawks. They can feel very good about their defense, particularly against the run. Frank Gore, once the Seahawks' worst nightmare, now has only 89 yards on his last 39 carries against Seattle. He struggled to average 2.7 yards per carry Sunday. The Seahawks will be tough to run against as long as they have Red Bryant and Brandon Mebane on their defensive line. Free safety Earl Thomas was everywhere, matching strong safety Kam Chancellor with two tackles for loss. Aaron Curry had his moments, too.

Yet, even with quarterback Tarvaris Jackson exceeding very low outside expectations for him, this offense will struggle to score points consistently. A trip to Pittsburgh in Week 2 should provide the necessary confirmation even if top wideout Sidney Rice returns from a shoulder injury. He was a late scratch from the opener.

Jackson tossed two touchdown passes, and his lone interception came on a meaningless Hail Mary to end the first half. But he took five sacks and the Seahawks trailed 16-0 at halftime. They finished with 64 yards rushing on 22 attempts. Seattle fielded the least-experienced offensive line to start an NFL game since 1995, based on combined starts. The Seahawks' only chance is to avoid turnovers, run the ball, play tough defense and prevail on special teams. They failed on nearly every count.

"Very disappointed that this is the way that it happened," coach Pete Carroll said.

Over in the 49ers' locker room, there were many futile efforts from reporters to divine broader meaning from a game that didn't offer very much that way.

Harbaugh met Smith with a hug following the quarterback's hard-fought, 1-yard scramble for a touchdown. Harbaugh entrusted Smith with greater responsibility by calling a couple of downfield throws early in the fourth quarter, when Seattle had made it a one-score game at 16-10. Harbaugh said he thought Smith played "exceptionally well" despite only 124 yards and all the third-down struggles.

Pretty meaningless at this point.

Every game need not become a referendum on Smith or what Harbaugh thinks about Smith. The 49ers' one-year bet on their 2005 first-round draft choice should not be mistaken for a long-term investment. Sure, there's a chance Harbaugh will coax long-sought growth from Smith, turning him into the answer at quarterback. That is not what we saw happen Sunday.

Smith gets it. Asked if this victory provided any early vindication for the faith Harbaugh has shown in him to this point, Smith offered the appropriate perspective.

"I don't know about vindication," Smith said. "It's 1-0. That is great."

What we saw Sunday, mostly, were two struggling offenses matched against two tough defenses, and a return specialist who upstaged them all.

This was supposed to be the season when rules changes killed the kickoff return specialist.

"That's what they said," 49ers receiver Joshua Morgan said. "[Ginn] just shut them up."

Ginn has what cannot be coached: raw speed.

"When he was born, he ran out his mother," Morgan said. "He ran a 4.1, for real. He's all legs, little upper body that he got is all muscle. He runs like a 4.27, but for real, he runs as fast as he needs to run."

Ginn scored a return touchdown against the Rams last season. He scored twice on kick returns for the Miami Dolphins against the New York Jets in 2009. He has enjoyed two strong training camps with the 49ers, but a knee injury in the 2010 opener cost him.

The only man in position to gloat at Candlestick Park thought better of it.

"I'm a team player," he said. "It's not always about money. You come in and play the game, and as you play the game, good things should happen for you."

Give the man a raise.

Sammy Batten of the Fayetteville Observer checks in with Seahawks offensive lineman Sean Locklear. Locklear: "Anywhere I go, whether that's Seattle or somewhere else, I hope to go to a team that wants to win," Locklear said. "I love Seattle. I've been there my whole career. It's the only team I know. I want to be there. But that decision is not up to me now. It's up to the guys in the front office, or another team. Where ever I go, I'm hoping to help them win." Locklear has extensive starting experience and should have value on the market. However, he appears less likely to return after Seattle chopped off the final year of his contract and used a first-round draft choice on his replacement. Locklear will be eligible for free agency once the signing period opens.

Eric Williams of the Tacoma News Tribune says the Seahawks hope rookie Malcolm Smith can make an impact right away. Coach Pete Carroll: "He’s not built like a linebacker, he’s built like a skilled athlete,” Carroll said. “So, in nickel situations, he’ll be able to match up with anybody that we see. Hopefully, we’ll be able to develop him more. He’s played in our system, so we know that he can do those things, and that’s why to us he is maybe more valuable than he is to anybody else."

Clare Farnsworth of seahawks.com revisits the impact Joey Galloway made with Seattle during a relatively short stay with the team. I do not recall covering a faster NFL player. Farnsworth: "As a rookie, he broke an 86-yard touchdown run on a reverse off of a reverse; added a 59-yard TD catch; and capped it all with an 89-yard punt return for a TD. Galloway also became only the 10th rookie in NFL history (at the time) to surpass 1,000 receiving yards (1,039), and the first since 1986. He also set club rookie records for receptions (67), yards and 100-yard games (three). Before Galloway called it a Seahawks career, he had added punt returns for touchdowns of 88 and 74 yards; TD catches of 81, 70, 65 and 53 yards; and also broke non-scoring runs of 51 and 44 yards."

Also from Farnsworth: a look at Dennis Erickson's first season as Seahawks coach. The team immediately improved to 8-8, but would get no better during Erickson's tenure. Erickson, like successor Mike Holmgren, had a 31-33 record after four seasons with the team. Erickson, unlike Holmgren, did not have the clout to keep his job at that point.

Len Pasquarelli of the Sports Xchange thinks Texans running back Steve Slaton could provide value for a team such as the Rams. Pasquarelli: "Slaton is only 25 years old, doesn't have a lot of tread rubbed off the tires yet, and is a good receiver, so he could be an attractive No. 2 back for some team seeking to bolster the position. Rumors have linked him to St. Louis, where the Rams could use a reliable back capable of getting 6-8 touches per game, to reduce the workload for Steven Jackson, but the talk has been unsubstantiated. Slaton is under contract for 2011 at the league-minimum base salary, then would be eligible for free agency next spring. For the right price, though, he would provide a solid, experienced back for a year."

Bill Vilona of pnj.com says the Rams' defensive linemen are training in Florida. George Selvie: "I haven't seen these guys in four months, so it's just great seeing everybody again. It makes it more of ... this is what we're supposed to be doing."

Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com sees Mike Singletary's departure from the 49ers having no adverse effect on linebacker Patrick Willis. Maiocco: "Singletary seemed to emphasize focus and getting in the right frame of mind. I have no doubt that Willis benefited from being around a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame on a regular basis. ... Willis is at the stage of his career that he knows what it takes to be successful in the NFL. He's a highly motivated player, and Singletary -- with his long daily post-practice talks -- was all about providing motivation to his players. ... Now, it's more of a matter of how defensive coordinator Vic Fangio decides to utilize Willis' immense skills."

Also from Maiocco: The 49ers have been ready for free agency since March, so a sudden opening for business would not catch anyone off-guard.

Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee sizes up the 49ers' situation at receiver with special attention toward Kevin Jurovich and Kyle Williams. San Francisco opened last season with five wide receivers on its 53-man roster, down from six in 2009.

Also from Barrows: Some rookies will miss the 49ers' player-organized practices this week.

The 49ers' website catches up with Roger Craig, a finalist for induction into the team's Hall of Fame. Craig: "We have the best fans on the planet. They’ve always been supportive, through good and through bad. They’re faithful and I feel they deserve to get back in the playoffs, do some damage and win some more Super Bowls. I would love to see that happen very soon, because the fans were cheering us when we played and were a big part of the dynasty. The 49ers have the tools to make that happen with Jim Harbaugh now as their head coach. He reminds me of Bill Walsh and I think it’s in his DNA to make this happen because of his background. He’s seasoned and knows what it takes to take a team to the next level."

Kevin Lynch of Niner Insider looks at Harbaugh's involvement in the offense at Stanford.

Darren Urban of azcardinals.com notes, per ESPN's John Clayton, that cap space will not be a problem for the Cardinals once the free-agent signing period opens. Urban: "It’s impossible to know what is 'aggressive' and how the plan will play out (and part of that includes the moving parts once everything is able to begin; for instance, a trade for a quarterback complicates/affects things more than a straight free-agent signing of a QB would)."

Jim Harbaugh's reverence for Bill Walsh has been palpable since the San Francisco 49ers named him head coach this offseason.

Harbaugh has sought to round up old coaching tapes featuring Walsh installing game plans. He has embraced Walsh's offensive philosophy, pledging to run a similar version of the West Coast system. He has paid homage to 49ers tradition. Before Walsh died in 2007, he backed Harbaugh at Stanford, where Walsh was twice head coach. Walsh even spoke to players at Harbaugh's first spring practice.

Harbaugh has also been around the NFL long enough to know the league has produced a long list of outstanding coaches, even if few match Walsh in terms of success and overall legacy.

Lindy Infante was one of those coaches in Harbaugh's eyes.

"Lindy doesn't get near the credit that Bill Walsh does," Harbaugh said this offseason, "but in many ways they are equals in terms of football minds. I never played for Bill Walsh, but there's no question in my mind."

This statement struck me as profound, but context is key. Harbaugh wasn't comparing their careers. He was comparing football acumen. One of the things Harbaugh admires most about Infante, who coached him in Indianapolis and is now retired, applies directly to Harbaugh's current challenge with the 49ers.

"It would be the ability to make a quarterback really play well," Harbaugh said.

Not just any quarterback, but quarterbacks with limitations.

"I went to the Pro Bowl playing for Lindy and up until that point, I wasn't thought of as a good quarterback at all," Harbaugh said. "But coaching made a difference."

Bernie Kosar and Don Majkowski enjoyed their best statistical seasons with Infante coaching them.

All of this came to mind Thursday during our blog discussion measuring Don Coryell's impact on Walsh and, by extension, on the 49ers.

Coryell never won a championship as a head coach, but he affected modern football tremendously through his innovative scheming.

Though Walsh and Infante never worked together, Coryell influenced both. Infante expanded upon Coryell's innovations while serving as offensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals during the early 1980s. The concepts became staples within offenses around the league, including the one Infante taught to Harbaugh while both were with the Colts during the 1990s.

Infante, reached by phone at his Florida home, spoke specifically of the option routes Coryell used in San Diego to make Chargers tight end Kellen Winslow more dangerous.

The way Infante tells it, he was studying the Chargers' offense under Coryell when something unusual stood out on film. San Diego would run what appeared to be the same play from the same formation, but Winslow seemed to be acting on his own.

The first time, Winslow might run 12 yards and break toward the outside right. Ten or 12 plays would pass, and then the same play would come up again, but this time Winslow would run a tight hook to the inside, getting open for a first down. A quarter might pass and the same play would appear, with Winslow breaking across the field to his left.

"I kept writing these things down and diagramming them and I sat back and said, 'It looks to me like they are giving Winslow the right to go where he wants to go,' " Infante said. "We started playing around with what we call the 'Y' or tight end option. The first day out on the practice field, we had a full scrimmage and I said, 'Here goes, we're going to find out whether this thing is going to work.' "

It worked.

"By about the third or fourth time we ran it, Kenny Anderson and the tight end, Danny Ross, ended up on the same timing-type situation, but the quarterback got to the point where he could tell where the receiver was going to go way before he went," Infante said. "He was trying to get the ball there early and we had the ball hit Danny Ross in the face because he couldn't get turned around fast enough. We had to do some on-the-job training, but that is what got us thinking."

If the tight end could make such adjustments, Infante thought, why couldn't wide receivers do the same? If wide receivers could do it, why not the running backs? Before long, receivers could have as many as five options on a particular route based on the coverage, blitzes and the other factors.

Ross caught 71 passes for 910 yards and five touchdowns in 1981. He was on pace for even bigger numbers a year later, finishing the strike-shortened 1982 season with 47 catches for 508 yards in just nine games. Ross went to the Pro Bowl that season.

"It evolved to the point where we were doing a lot of option-route running, a lot of route adjustments after the snap of the ball and the quarterback would have the right to change certain plays if certain things were going on," Infante said. "It was exciting because it was inventive and you had to feel free to go and try to invent something. When I started coaching with Harbaugh, they brought me in to Indianapolis and the idea was I would bring my offense with me."

Harbaugh finished his playing career under Ted Marchibroda (Baltimore Ravens), Mike Riley (San Diego Chargers) and Marty Mornhinweg (Detroit Lions). He coached under Bill Callahan in Oakland before becoming a head coach at the University of San Diego and then Stanford.

The lockout has prevented Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Greg Roman from installing their offense with the 49ers. The coaching staff has used the time to refine exactly how they'll present information to players once the lockout finally does end.

Players might not know it, but former coaches will influence the process, at least indirectly.

"For this offense, there's a lot of Lindy Infante principles," Harbaugh said, "but I don't think it's exclusive to this offense. You talk about the option routes. The smash route now is a universally run route, but that was Lindy Infante.

"From a quarterback standpoint, I learned from him that there were more ways to read a route than just through a progression. I learned how to throw people open from him, that covered did not mean covered. That is a huge part of football now. The whole option game, the option routes, the smash concepts -- all those things I learned from him. He was very technical, very detailed. Just a different way to understand the passing game is what I learned from him."

Update: This item originally said Coryell and Walsh worked together with the Chargers. Walsh predated Coryell in San Diego.

Our recent discussions on playbooks and Bill Walsh's hiring recalled the days when one of my favorite football sites, one dedicated entirely to the West Coast offense, made available resources that could not readily be found elsewhere.

Years ago, when covering Mike Holmgren's teams as a beat reporter, I had downloaded a West Coast playbook from the site, a playbook I referenced in the video that appeared here Wednesday.

Turns out westcoastoffense.com is back online. The site is a terrific resource even though -- and sometimes because -- information dates back decades. Check out this excerpt from a Walsh speech to high school coaches:

"If you are talking about offensive football, the running game is the most vital part of the game, but when you talk about your running game, what you are saying is you have to be able to run when you are backed up. You have to be able to run on third-and-3, you have to be able to run on short yardage. You have to be able to run through tough situations. In the professional level, the forward pass dominates the rest of the game. But if you can't run in tough situations, your chances of success are minimal.

"So what do we do? We take a sheet and list our first 25 plays. ... You start the game with the first 25 plays, but now it is third-and-3. You turn the sheet over and go to the third-and-3 list. You have listed the plays in the order that you would call them on third-and-3. You take it; turn the sheet over and go to your next play. Trouble, long yardage -- you turn the sheet over and go to the long-yardage category. Punt, get the ball back.

"You have your first 25 plays listed, but of course, somewhere in here you are going to be backed up. You have the ball on your 1-yard line; so don't fight it. Turn over the sheet and look at your BACKED UP OFFENSIVE PLAYS. You make a first down, turn the sheet over and now we are on play number five. It works; go to number six.

"Oh, you got to the 20-yard line. You have another choice now. You can stay with your original list, which might have been a basic run; or you can decide to try to get into the end zone with a pass. Say you don't quite make it and you are on the 8-yard line. You are on the 6-inch line. You look at these categories. You score a touchdown. By the time you get back to the sheet, you are behind 21-7, but don 't worry about it. You have a lot of plays on your list to call.

"This is a way to pre-plan the game. We feel pretty solid about this."

The idea was to make the tough decisions during the week, before coaches found themselves mired in stressful and confusing game situations.

Westcoastoffense.com opens a window into how and why coaches think what they think. Separately, the playbook discussion we had on the blog Wednesday produced another welcome find -- an old St. Louis Rams playbook (the file is about 20 MB).

Looks like the play clock is running low. Better break the huddle here.

Enjoy your summer reading and remember, run those dagger routes at 18 yards.

Examining the most crucial event in the history of every team in the division.

A longtime Cincinnati Bengals assistant named Bill Walsh was having a hard time convincing NFL teams to hire him as a head coach.

The Bengals had promoted another assistant, Bill "Tiger" Johnson, when Paul Brown retired after the 1975 season. Walsh spent 1976 as offensive coordinator with the San Diego Chargers before leaving the NFL entirely for the best head-coaching job he could get. Years later, Walsh accused Brown of conspiring to keep him from advancing.

While Walsh was building a winner at Stanford, the sputtering San Francisco 49ers were running through four head coaches in less than two calendar years. Young owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr. made Walsh the fifth in 1979.

"Caution should be exercised in proclaiming Bill Walsh the savior of the 49er franchise," Bay Area columnist Ed Jacoubowsky wrote at the time. "But the selection of Walsh as director of the club's football operations probably is the best step the young owner could have taken."

Probably? Let's make that a "definitely" in hindsight.

The organization would never be the same. Offensive football would never be the same. The balance of power in the league itself would shift for a decade, and then some. This was the most crucial event in 49ers history and more significant than any the team's current division rivals have experienced.

That message came through clearly at the SportsNation ballot box, where Walsh's hiring received significantly more votes than any other NFC West Flash Point among the more than 129,000 ballots cast across the division. The 49ers' Flash Points drew more than 44,000 votes, most in the NFC West, and Walsh's hiring commanded better than half of them.

"If the 49ers never hired Bill Walsh, they would not have changed the organizational structure of the team, how players are graded and drafted, how to prepare those players for the season and utilize them on the field of play," razzberry80 wrote. "Bill changed EVERYTHING. Joe Montana was the best, but without Bill Walsh, Joe is probably not drafted by the 49ers."

Another 49ers fan, servegmo, credited Walsh for drawing him in as a fan living in Costa Rica.

"He is the reason people from all over the world started watching football," servegmo wrote. "He put the 49ers in a position where they changed football as a whole -- the offseason preparation, the inclusion of black coaches, the practices, the West Coast offense, how he managed the draft (drafting the best players EVER at quarterback, wide receiver and safety). How many coaches can say that?"

The 49ers won three Super Bowls in 10 seasons under Walsh, who qualified as a football visionary in strategy, philosophy and personnel evaluation. Walsh became famous for scripting plays to separate in-game emotions from the decision-making process. His personnel moves and broader philosophy scripted more lasting success: five Super Bowls, including two won after Walsh retired from the sideline.

With full support from DeBartolo, who had learned from past mistakes, Walsh showed an exceptional eye for talent. Has any coach possessed a superior vision?

"When he drafted Ronnie Lott, he thought, 'He's a corner now, but he'll be a longtime All-Pro safety,'" former Walsh assistant and two-time NFL head coach Dennis Green said for this project. "When he drafted Roger Craig, he saw him as a fullback now, but a little small for the fullback we really needed, so we would draft a fullback and Craig would make the transition to running back.

"Bill did that sort of thing constantly when he thought players could fit in a certain way and be very unique players."

Walsh's hiring commanded 53 percent of votes cast for the 49ers' Flash Points, with "The Catch" ranking second at 37 percent. Of course, there never would have been such a signature play if Walsh hadn't put together a 1979 draft class featuring Montana in the third round and Dwight Clark in the 10th.

RAMS: Trent Green's injury pivotal

The Kurt Warner story might never have been told if the San Diego Chargers' Rodney Harrison hadn't knocked out Green with a severe knee injury during the 1999 preseason.

Fans voted that moment supreme with 49 percent of more than 28,000 votes. Only Mike Jones' Super Bowl-saving tackle against Kevin Dyson (36 percent) came close to challenging.

The comments section of the Rams-related item drew barely more than a dozen contributions, however. So much for exit polling.

"The ownership change [in 1972] precipitated everything that has happened to the Rams in 'modern' times," patdpenguin wrote. "The true answer to the question would be the ownership change, but as a lifelong fan, speaking with my heart, I would choose the Trent Green injury. Prior to that, the team had not proven anything, and was spinning its wheels."

SEAHAWKS: Paul Allen trumps all

The Seahawks were planning a move to Los Angeles during their darkest days of the 1990s, at one point even conducting free agency from an elementary school parking lot in Southern California.

Allen wasn't much of an NFL fan at the time, but he rallied to the cause of keeping the team in Seattle. Allen led a push to secure a new stadium, contributing $130 million of his own money in exchange for $300 million in public funding, as part of a deal to purchase the team.

Within a couple years, the team had landed Mike Holmgren as coach and general manager. Multiple division titles and the first Super Bowl in franchise history followed.

"I went with Allen buying the team," DiLune2 wrote. "It is hard to point to any one of those [other] moments as the one point where it all changed. They were part of a long, ugly slide. Allen buying the team, though, was the one point in time where you can look and say, 'It all changed right there.'"

CARDINALS: Beating Eagles to reach Super Bowl

Sixty-eight percent of more than 26,000 Cardinals voters pointed to the team's victory over Philadelphia in the NFC Championship Game. No option for any team drew a higher percentage.

The runner-up for the Cardinals -- securing a new stadium in 2006 -- lagged with only 16 percent. But some felt strongly it should have prevailed.

"Wow, this is a slam dunk," longtime blog contributor Leesters wrote. "The stadium changed this team overnight. It went from the least competitive financial situation in the league to one of the best, in one year. Free agents could be afforded, better coaches, better home-field advantage. If it wasn't for this stadium, there would be no NFC Championship win."