San Francisco 49ers

Ex-49ers player: Hiring Tomsula over Fangio as coach 'a slap in the face'

Published Dec. 5, 2015 4:23 p.m. ET

foxsports

Former San Francisco 49ers cornerback Carlos Rogers reportedly isn’t pleased with how Vic Fangio was treated by the organization. He considers it “a slap in the face” to his former defensive coordinator that the latter was passed over by his underling, current 49ers head coach Jim Tomsula.

Both men were candidates to replace Jim Harbaugh after the 2014 season, but Tomsula, who rose to his current position unexpectedly after previously coaching Fangio’s defensive line, got the job officially on Jan. 14. A day later, Fangio was released from his contract in San Francisco. Four days later, he was announced as the defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears -- the 49ers' opponent on Sunday.

Rogers, speaking with Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, expressed his discontent about how things played out. Not surprisingly, he expects Fangio to have some extra fire in his belly this weekend when the 49ers take on the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field.

“They turned him down for someone that was under him,” Rogers said. “I think that’s a slap in the face and I think he’s going to go and really try . . . I mean, he’s going to play his defense, he’s not going to do anything extra. But I think it’s in his mind.”

The former 49ers coach knows the team’s offensive strengths and weaknesses better than perhaps anyone else, having coached against them for four seasons during training camp and practices.

He has Chicago’s defense playing better than most expected he could, given the lack of talent on the edge, questionable linebackers and a mediocre secondary. Fangio is one of the game’s true masters -- one of those rare coaches whose schemes and understanding of other teams’ offensive schemes are actually good enough to mask deficiencies in the talent department.

It’s going to be fascinating to see what he’s got dialed up for this weekend’s game.

The Bears are trending upward right now, having won three of their last four games. The 49ers, on the other hand, come into the game tied with Dallas for the worst record in the NFC at 3-9 and have lost four out of five.

A win for Chicago is desperately needed in order for it to stay relevant in the NFC playoff race.

More from Sportsnaut: