Funny - Great minds think in parallel directions. I just posted a piece on the BRS contrasting the 2 coaching and FO styles.
Wiz came in with a plan modeled on that of the Steelers and was long on fundamental procedures and structure. While he would occasionally stray from the plan and make abrupt changes based on events on the ground, Wiz remains primarily a systems guy.
The new Niner GM and Harbaugh picked up the pieces in the wake of Singletary, shook the tree and made major changes to both the Niner culture and style of play, elevating SF to Top 5 territory in less than 2 years. (Who would have thought 3 years ago that the Niners would morph so quickly into a physical smashmouth team on both sides of the ball)? Part of this metamorphosis involved making bold moves (as in overhauling the OL and receiving corps).
Witness QB. Neither SF or AZ could consider this a position of strength, but Harbaugh made Alex Smith feel secure that his back was covered and limited the things Alex could do that might get him into trouble. By contrast, you don't get the feeling that Wiz and his staff are doing what's necessary to make his QB's secure and are putting either of them in positions where they can best succeed.
To be fair, Wiz seems to be more even-keeled whereas Harbaugh comes across as more of a Diva in dealing with the media, the refs and opposing NFL organizations.
I could be wrong (I'm not all that close to the situation) but that's how I see it.
No bigger Harbaugh fan than me on the board but you're crediting him for some things he didn't do.
He didn't draft any of Staley, Iupati, Davis, he didn't sign Boone, they did that the year before Harbaugh came. He did recognize and groom Boone to replace Snyder. He signed Goodwin, or he was the coach when Goodwin signed. So 4 of the 5 starting OL's were there when he got hired, 3 of them starters in the same position.
They were already a smashmouth offense, just incredibly predictable and very bad at it. Harbaugh uses formations and overloads etc to create mismatches. he was smart enough to recognize they had 2 good TE's and use them both, but Walker was actually a bigger part of the offense before harbaugh than after, he's just a better blocker now.
The main thing is harbaugh made them unpredictable, and he got Smith to stop killing the team with dumb turnovers(last year). He still takes too many sacks, but now he's not throwing the ball up for grabs(until recently).
They are very good at executing basic stuff, but they do it from many different formations and personnel groupings so they're not predictable.
