A day after Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels took himself out of the running for the 49ers’ head coaching vacancy, Seahawks co-director of player personnel Trent Kirchner has withdrawn from their general manager search, reports Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link). Kirchner interviewed with the Niners on Monday, but he’s content to remain with NFC West rival Seattle and continue working under GM John Schneider.
Kirchner is one of nine candidates the 49ers have spoken with regarding their GM position. Scott Fitterer, Kirchner’s fellow director of player personnel with the Seahawks, has also met with San Francisco brass. Packers director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst is reportedly the front-runner for the position, however, so it appears Seattle will keep its front office intact. That could bode poorly for Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable‘s chances of landing the Niners’ head coaching job, for which he and Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan are the finalists.
Niners CEO Jed York and executive vice president of football operations Paraag Marathe have admitted during head coaching interviews that their roster is “in shambles,” but both that gig and the franchise’s GM role carry appeal. York and Marathe have promised to exercise patience and spend money to improve the roster, and the 49ers are set to enter the offseason with an NFC-high $77MM-plus in cap space. They’re also armed with the second overall pick in the draft. We now know that Kirchner won’t be the one making that selection.
I would like to remove myself from consideration for the Santa Clara 49’ers General Manager position. I will remain in my current duties.
If this keeps Cable away from us that makes me happy.
If the niners were smart, they’d hire the GM first then that GM hire his own coach… it’s how a lot of successful teams operate, packers, Steelers, Giants just to name a few.
raiders