Yardbarker
x
Dolphins are built off 49ers blueprint, so a Super Bowl win for San Francisco hints....
USA TODAY Sports

The San Francisco 49ers have been climbing the NFL's mountaintop for four of the past five seasons.

The storied NFL franchise competing in Sunday's Super Bowl has accomplished everything a football team can achieve other than win the big game.

They've undergone a scorched earth restart, which led to the franchise making it to four NFC Championships in five seasons.

They've swapped quarterbacks three times in the past three seasons, and still produced one of the NFL's top rated passers.

The 49ers have arguably the best roster in football, and a top shelf coaching staff that continues to get picked from when it comes to coordinators being elevated to head coach positions. 

San Francisco has become the gold standard of how an NFL franchise should be built, but they haven't won on the biggest stage.

If they do so by beating the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, redeeming that painful fourth-quarter collapse to the Chiefs in 2019, San Francisco's rags to riches story will inject hope into franchises like the Miami Dolphins, which are seemingly building off the 49ers blueprint.

Mike McDaniel grew up in the NFL right alongside Kyle Shanahan, whom he served as a ballboy with during their teenage years with the Denver Broncos, and accompanied Shanahan to everyone of his coaching stops, becoming his right hand man.

The Dolphins and 49ers run a similar offense, one that featured a balanced attack that feasts on explosive plays and speed, and uses motions to force defenses to declare their intentions.

Miami and San Francisco each have dynamic playmakers on offense, and young quarterbacks who rely heavily on timing, accurate passes and precision throws.

They each have physical defenses that are designed to harass the quarterback without blitzing, and create turnovers.

While the personnel of both rosters differ some, and injuries at times have impacted each team's performance (see the Dolphins' final three games, all losses for an example), these two franchises are about as close as any two in the NFL can be when comparing philosophies, coaching, and personnel.

That's why San Francisco's performance on Sunday in football's biggest game could potentially have influence on what the Dolphins do this offseason, and how General Manager Chris Grier and head coach Mike McDaniel parlays last year's success into 2024.

An embarrassing loss by the 49ers might be a sign for the Dolphins to blow it all up and start over because Kansas City remains the gold standard of the AFC, the conference the Dolphins reside in.

Miami's roster needs to be retooled this offseason, or better yet, re-financed because of the oncoming cap crisis (Miami's $52 million over the projected salary cap and must purge the roster some to balance the books) the Dolphins' business practiced the past couple of seasons has created, and if the 49ers can't get to the promise land by beating Patrick Mahomes and dethroning the Kansas City Chiefs, what hope does Miami have of doing it in the near future?

A win by the 49ers would inject hope into South Florida because it's proof that the blueprint Miami's using works, and that the individuals in charge of constructioning this title contender aren't erecting something that would need to be demolished quickly.

The 49ers winning it all would serve as evidence that quarterback who aren't Patrick Mahomes, or Tom Brady, or Peyton Manning can take their team to the mountaintop in this fantasy football friendly era of American's sport.

While Josh Purdy, who happens to be the top rated quarterback in the NFL in only his second season, is no slouch, he's far from the silver spoon holding quarterback crowd of former Elite 11 quarterbacks who eventually go on to become first-round picks.

Much like this entire 49ers roster, Purdy got it out the mud, as the young kids say, and has earned everything he's accomplished these past two seasons.

His success on Sunday could give us hope that Tua Tagovailoa can lead a Dolphins team with a strong running game, a reliable offensive line, and a forceful defense to the promise land in the near future.

The Dolphins have plenty of work ahead to rebuild last year's roster, which delivered 11 wins before flatlining the end of the season, but a 49ers victory would serve as proof it won't be in vein.

This article first appeared on Miami Dolphins on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads:

Customize Your Newsletter

Yardbarker +

Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!