Jeff Garcia may have deleted his tweet about being the next head coach of the 49ers, but it’s clear he still wants the job.
The former 49ers quarterback joined KNBR 1050’s The Audible on Wednesday morning, and gave a passionate pitch for why he should be considered as the team’s next head coach
Garcia began by dismissing the idea that he’s not experienced enough.
“Let’s be honest with each other,” Garcia began. “As much as I believe and feel that I am capable of leading a team, people don’t want you to be able to take the shortcut. They want you to go through the process. They want you to start as the assistant. They want you to work your way up to the coordinator. They want you to work your way into that head coach position.”
“I’ll tell you what, the 17 years of professional football experience that I have had in my back pocket, and the years of growing up around a father who was a head coach, and just being around the game, have prepared me to be the leader of a football team. And that’s what this team needs; they need a leader of the football team. They need somebody who is gonna come in and is not gonna take any trash; not gonna take any instability as far as the personality is concerned, and understand that this has to be about the team. It can’t be about your individual success, it can’t be about your individual contract, it’s gotta be about the team.”
Garcia played for the 49ers from 1999-2003, making the Pro Bowl three times during that stretch. Garcia has had two professional coaching positions since retiring in 2011, working as the quarterback’s coach for the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL in 2014, and the offensive assistant for the St. Louis Rams in 2015. Garcia has expressed interest in helping develop the mechanics of Colin Kaepernick.
“Yes, there is a business side to professional sports,” Garcia continued. “Unfortunately or fortunately, that’s something for the GM and his people to handle. I’m about the football side and I’m about the team concept. I’m about doing whatever is best for this team, from the scheme that we run, to the players that are gonna run it, to the coaches that I have on the staff.”
“Everybody needs to buy in to that culture, and everybody needs to get on the same page, and everybody needs to work their tail off and grind, and inspire, and motivate, and encourage, and go out, and battle every single day. Not just on Sundays, every single day in practice. We’re creating a culture where you’re gonna compete, and the best players that give us a chance to win are gonna be the guys on the field.”
At this time, there haven’t been any reports that anyone from the 49ers organization has reached out to Garcia.
Listen to the full interview below.