Greg Knapp is a respected offensive coordinator in the NFL. His former team's fans harbor other opinions. His Atlanta Falcons were never better than mediocre and his Oakland Raiders couldn't even manage those heights. He hasn't coached a good offense since his first season as an NFL offensive coordinator. His 2001 Niners were third ranked scoring points and third ranked producing yards. The team fell to 13th scoring points the following season and 9th Knapp's final season. That season he was retained by new coach Dennis Erickson. The 49ers were 30th, 30nd, 24th, 32th and 22th the following five seasons.
It says something that Knapp's offenses have been so bad, but that he's always landed on his feet. His only good offense was had in a transition year after taking over for Marty Mornhinweg. Mornhinweg foundered as a head coach in Detroit and then joined the Eagles. There he has orchestrated three top ten offenses. Coaches see a Knapp that's survived with unworkable quarterbacks. Fans see a Knapp that has never constructed an offense that works.
It's exceedingly hard to determine the value of an offensive coordinator. So don't expect to me shine lights if things go right or cast stones if the offense sucks. Throughout the preseason I will describe the composition, pattern and evident decision-making in Grag Knapp's offense. That starts tomorrow. I'm ratcheting up my tape breakdowns this season, and my first goal is to get everyone primed on our new offensive coordinator before the season starts.