Kyle Williams is destined to be one of the most talked-about names by 49ers fans this offseason (and rightly so), but thanks to the way the team has UNANIMOUSLY rallied to his defense, I'm not sure he's going to go down as an all-time goat the way so many other sports figures have. The way this team stood behind him to a man was unbelievable. Steve Young said in an interview that it shows this locker room is united, and that a united locker room is what it takes to win a championship. The 88 49ers were floundering around at 6-5 until they united as a team and went on to win 2 straight superbowls. They had the talent, but until their locker room came together they couldn't work it out on the field.
I don't mean to compare the two teams, obviously. That was an all-time roster. Just pointing out that great things can happen to teams that have that kind of unity amongst their players. They're all accountable, and they're all there for each other. That has both helped ease my pain from Sunday's loss and made me as optimistic as I've ever been about the future of this team. The coaching staff isn't going anywhere and will have an entire off-season to teach the team for the first time. Many of the pending FAs want to sign here again. The front office has proven their ability to get production out of everyone they draft, from the 1st round pass-rusher to the 4th round (possible feature) RB down to the 7th round special-teamers.
This team should be in the super bowl, no doubt. If Kyle Williams falls on the first punt, or just runs away from it, they're probably going to win that game. Instead of dwelling on that, though, every single player in the locker room had his back. I'm proud to root for a team like that. Imagine if the Jets' season had ended similarly. Or any one of 20 other NFL teams. Not many teams would react that way, and not many players would stand up and take responsibility the way Williams did. I don't think I've ever been prouder of a team I root for than I am about the 2011 49ers. They gave us a magical season, and when it ended in horror, they handled it as well as you could possibly wish for. This season was in every way an unqualified success, and for the first time I have complete confidence that they will improve this off-season and be competitive for years to come.
