Kyle Shanahan - Pro Football Rumors

NFC Notes: 49ers, Panthers, Cardinals

January 18th, 2017 at 9:48am CST by Connor J. Byrne

Packers director of football operations Eliot Wolf is among the general manager candidates the 49ers and soon-to-be head coach Kyle Shanahan will invite to Atlanta for an interview next week, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link). The team will also conduct second meetings with one of Wolf’s Packers colleagues, Brian Gutekunst, and Vikings assistant GM George Paton, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

More from San Francisco and a couple other NFC cities:

Falcons secondary coach Marquand Manuel could become the 49ers’ defensive coordinator under Shanahan, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com hears (Twitter link). The two are on the same staff now, of course, and Manuel garnered prior coaching experience in Seattle from 2012-15. The 37-year-old was an NFL safety from 2002-09.
The Panthers worked out free agent quarterback Aaron Murray on Tuesday, reports Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. Murray spent 2016 on the Eagles’ practice squad, but he has been available since they elected against signing him to a reserve/futures deal earlier this month. The 26-year-old was a star at Georgia, where he became the SEC’s all-time leader in passing yards, completions and touchdowns, but he hasn’t recorded an NFL statistic since the Chiefs took him in Round 5 of the 2014 draft. With Panthers QBs Cam Newton, Derek Anderson and Joe Webb under contract next year, there’s no clear fit for Murray in Carolina.
Cardinals defensive lineman Josh Mauro‘s recently signed two-year contract is worth just over $2MM total, per Mike Jurecki of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Mauro will make $750K next season and $1.3MM in 2018.

Kyle Shanahan Likely To Become 49ers’ HC

January 18th, 2017 at 8:10am CST by Connor J. Byrne

As of Tuesday evening, Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan wasn’t a lock to accept the 49ers’ forthcoming offer to become their head coach. However, Shanahan’s now “almost certain” to take the job, reports Mike Silver of NFL.com.

With Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable having withdrawn from the race this week, Shanahan is the last man standing among the eight candidates the 49ers have interviewed. The rest have accepted head coaching positions elsewhere. Thus, in the unlikely event Shanahan turns San Francisco down, it would send CEO Jed York and executive vice president of football operations Paraag Marathe scrambling to hit the reset button on their search to replace Chip Kelly.

The 49ers are also on the hunt for a new general manager, of course, and lost one candidate when Cable’s Seattle colleague, co-director of player personnel Trent Kirchner, took himself out of consideration Tuesday. Of the GM possibilities the Niners have considered, Kirchner, fellow Seahawks executive Scott Fitterer and Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard would have preferred to work with Cable, according to Silver. The Chiefs prevented Ballard from talking to the 49ers, though, and awarded him a pay raise as compensation, Silver writes.

Cable has another fan in defensive coordinator-to-be Gus Bradley, who would have gone to San Francisco had it hired Cable. Instead, after Cable dropped out of contention Tuesday, Bradley spurned the 49ers when they asked if he’d be interested in teaming with Shanahan. It appears, then, that Bradley will become the Chargers’ D-coordinator.

Shanahan is currently preparing for Sunday’s NFC championship game between the Falcons and Packers. If Atlanta advances to Super Bowl LI, the 49ers wouldn’t be able to hire him until after Feb. 5. Regardless, he’ll have a second interview with the Niners next week and will discuss GM choices with team brass. Packers director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst remains the favorite, relays Silver, who adds that Green Bay director of football operations Eliot Wolf and Vikings assistant GM George Paton are also strong contenders.

No Guarantee Shanahan Accepts 49ers Job?

January 17th, 2017 at 6:49pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Now that Tom Cable and Josh McDaniels have each dropped out of the 49ers’ head coaching search, Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan is the last man standing and is fully expected to be offered the position. However, Shanahan is not a lock to accept the job, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter links), who notes that an upcoming meeting between the two parties could play a key role in Shanahan’s decision.

Shanahan will reportedly discuss potential general manager candidates with San Francisco management during his second interview, and the 49ers are now narrowing down their list of executives, tweets Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com. Seahawks co-director of player personnel Trent Kirchner withdrew his name from the search earlier today, but four other candidates — Brian Gutekunst (Packers), Terry McDonough (Cardinals), George Paton (Vikings) and Eliot Wolf (Packers) — all had “strong” initial interviews, reports Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee.

According to Barrows, Kirchner believed that he and Cable were being used as something of pawns in order to drive Shanahan’s contract demands down. Shanahan does have tremendous leverage, as La Canfora adds (Twitter link), and would certainly be in high demand as a head coach in 2018. But the 49ers job is his last chance to land a head coaching gig during this hiring cycle, as every other vacancy has been filled.

If Shanahan does turn down the 49ers, San Francisco would truly return to square one. Outside of Cable and McDaniels, every other coaching candidate the club interviewed (or had planned to interview), including Doug Marrone, Vance Joseph, Sean McVay, Sean McDermott, and Anthony Lynn, has been hired elsewhere.

Kyle Shanahan In Lead For 49ers’ HC Job

January 17th, 2017 at 4:53pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

After Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels bowed out of the race to become the 49ers’ next head coach Monday, Falcons O-coordinator Kyle Shanahan and Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable became the finalists for the position. But it appears Cable’s chances are fading, as it’s now Shanahan’s “job to take,” according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). San Francisco plans to offer the role to Shanahan when Atlanta’s season ends, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.

The news that Cable has essentially lost all momentum comes on the heels of Seahawks co-director of player personnel Trent Kirchner withdrawing his candidacy for the Niners’ GM vacancy. While he and Seattle front office cohort Scott Fitterer have each been in the running for the role, it’s likely to go to Packers director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst. It seems that he and Shanahan could end up working together with the Niners, though it’s not a lock Shanahan will accept the club’s offer, reports Mike Silver of NFL.com (Twitter link).

For now, the 37-year-old Shanahan is preparing his top-ranked Atlanta offense for an NFC title game showdown with the Packers on Sunday. If the Falcons knock off Green Bay to advance to Super Bowl LI, their season won’t end until Feb. 5. Given that they’re the only team left without a head coach, the 49ers are content to wait a few more weeks for an answer from Shanahan. An Atlanta win this weekend would lead to the Niners meeting with Shanahan to vet GM candidates next week, per Rapoport (Twitter link). Should the Falcons lose, the 49ers would perhaps be in line to fill both positions immediately.

Latest On 49ers’ HC, GM Searches

January 16th, 2017 at 2:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

The 49ers have spent by far the most time interviewing high-level personnel this offseason, and now the team is entering its third week without a head coach or general manager. But some clarity could be coming on both fronts.

Falcons OC Kyle Shanahan and Packers director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst have emerged in front for the HC and GM jobs, respectively, as the team searches to fully move on from Chip Kelly and Trent Baalke. Gutekunst impressed the 49ers in his interview and is a frontrunner as of now, Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com tweets, before adding Shanahan could have a say in this matter.

Recent Packers promoted executives Gutekunst and Eliot Wolf were among the nine candidates to interview for the 49ers job, and Alex Marvez of the Sporting News confirms Breer’s report about positive buzz coming out of the Gutekunst-49ers summit (Twitter link). Marvez adds the 49ers are have pared this list down and bring in finalists for secondary interviews this week. It can be assumed the 43-year-old Gutekunst, an 18-year Packers employee, is one of the finalists. One of the candidates, Cardinals VP of player personnel Terry McDonough, preferred Shanahan throughout this process, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com notes (on Twitter).

As for Shanahan, he appears to have a relatively clear path to his first HC job. The 49ers do not plan to restart the interview process after highly touted candidate Josh McDaniels withdrew his name from consideration. The 37-year-old assistant is “by far” the 49ers’ top option, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports tweets, and although he cannot be hired until after the Falcons’ season concludes, he can be brought in for a second interview after the NFC championship game if Atlanta advances to Super Bowl LI. That could be to discuss the GM job if the 49ers hold off on making that decision this week. He’s viewed as the favorite over Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable, something the 49ers have recognized privately in recent days, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes.

Josh McDaniels Withdraws From 49ers’ HC Search

January 16th, 2017 at 10:10am CST by Sam Robinson

The 49ers’ search for a head coach looks set to feature one less name and potentially the one upon which the franchise was fixated. Josh McDaniels is set to bow out of the race to focus on the Patriots’ playoff run, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports also reports (on Twitter) it’s “very unlikely” McDaniels takes this job, with the 40-year-old coach set to remain with the Patriots for at least one more season. Tom Curran of CSNNE.com tweets McDaniels is indeed staying, so Tom Brady will have his OC back in the likely event he returns for his age-40 season in 2017.

McDaniels confirmed he will stay with the Patriots. “At this time, best for family and myself to remain here in New England,” he said, via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com (on Twitter).

This leaves Falcons OC Kyle Shanahan and Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable as the finalists, with the remaining candidates having accepted HC positions elsewhere.

Deep into his second stint as the Patriots’ offensive play-caller, McDaniels has reservations about moving his family across the country for a job that has obviously not been stable over the past few years, La Canfora tweets. The CBS reporter refers to this (Twitter link) as a personal decision for the OC, who interviewed with the 49ers, Rams and Jaguars only to see the latter two franchises go with coaches whose teams had been eliminated. McDaniels will have coached in five straight AFC championship games since resuming his Pats post, but the 49ers were interested and willing to wait.

The reporter adds (Twitter link) the franchise is “very high” on Shanahan, who would figure to have a prestige edge on Cable due to the disparate successes of the coaches’ units this season. San Francisco is “honing in” on Shanahan, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). And the team no longer has any competition for the Atlanta play-caller’s services. But Cable making it this far into an expansive search despite Seattle’s struggles up front — with rookie-deal players and patchwork veterans — points to the former Raiders HC having impressed during his interview.

McDaniels at one point during this process viewed the 49ers job as the top position on the market, even though the franchise has cycled through coaches at a historic pace. San Francisco will have a fourth coach in four years and has now interviewed five coaches for the position.

Latest On 49ers’ Head Coaching Vacancy

January 15th, 2017 at 8:46pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The 49ers are the final NFL club still searching for a new head coach, and they’ve likely narrowed their hunt down to three candidates: Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, and Seahawks OL/assistant head coach Tom Cable, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Cable will interview for the position today, while both Shanahan and McDaniels were already granted permission to meet with 49ers management given that their respective clubs had earned first-round playoff byes. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets, the key factor in San Francisco’s favor is time — because all the other head coaching jobs have been filled, the Niners have no incentive to rush to find their next coach.

Now that the Seahawks have been eliminated, Cable is free to interview at any time going forward, while Shanahan and McDaniels would each be allowed to interview during the week between the conference championship games and the Super Bowl. Of course, if either Atlanta or New England is eliminated next week, Shanahan and McDaniels could interview freely on their own schedule.

The 49ers, of course, are also the only NFL team looking for a new general manager after parting ways with Trent Baalke. San Francisco has interviewed a number of candidates, including ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, for the position. Riddick would likely come to the Bay Area as package deal with McDaniels, who was said to view the 49ers as his preferred destination.

However, McDaniels has expressed some reticence about leaving New England for the 49ers, sources tell Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. While McDaniels can likely have the San Francisco job if he wants it, and has reportedly already been identifying prospective staff members around the NFL, the Patriots OC is worried about moving his family across the country for what could turn out to be a short stay (given the 49ers’ recent track record of firing coaches).

Rams Unlikely To Interview Kyle Shanahan

January 12th, 2017 at 2:34pm CST by Zachary Links

The Rams probably will not be interviewing Kyle Shanahan, sources tell Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Nothing is finalized with Sean McVay yet, but this could be a sign that things are getting close between the two sides.

We learned this week that the powwow between Shanahan and the Rams was in limbo because Shanahan has his hands full with preparing for the Seahawks and that obviously hurts his availability. In theory, the Rams could wait for the Falcons’ season to end, but they might not be patient enough. Already, Los Angeles has moved on to the second interview stage with McVay and Bills interim coach Anthony Lynn.

In other Rams news, McVay is apparently looking to bring Wade Phillips in as DC if he’s hired. The Rams also recently received permission to interview Texans linebackers coach Mike Vrabel. For a full rundown of all head coaching searches, check out PFR’s 2017 Head Coaching Tracker.

Coaching Notes: Redskins, Rams, Ravens

January 11th, 2017 at 4:47pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Redskins announced that they interviewed Gus Bradley for the defensive coordinator position on Wednesday. The former Jaguars head coach is reportedly Washington’s prime target to take over for the fired Joe Barry. Bradley was a successful D-coordinator in Seattle from 2009-12, during which time he became familiar with then-Seahawks executive and now-Redskins general manager Scot McCloughan.

As is the case with their defensive staff, changes might be on the horizon for the Redskins’ offensive coaches. With coordinator Sean McVay emerging as a serious candidate to grab the reins as Los Angeles’ head coach, the Redskins could turn to ex-Chargers HC Mike McCoy as his replacement, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today. McCoy is also a candidate in Denver (where he served as an O-coordinator from 2010-12) and Buffalo, both of which named head coaches Wednesday.

More of the latest coaching-related info:

A potential head coaching interview between Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan and the Rams is “in limbo,” per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. With the Falcons preparing for a Saturday playoff game against the Seahawks, Shanahan might not have time to meet with the Rams this week, La Canfora adds (Twitter link).
Former Buffalo offensive coordinator Greg Roman will sign on with the Ravens‘ coaching staff, Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com tweets. The Ravens are sticking with Marty Mornhinweg as OC, so Roman will be there in some kind of assistant role. Cabot notes that the Browns were eying him for an assistant gig.
The Jets will hire Dennard Wilson to succeed the fired Joe Danna as their defensive backs coach, according to Kimberley A. Martin of Newsday. Wilson had been with the Rams since 2012, when they hired him as their defensive quality control coach. He became the team’s defensive backs coach in 2015.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

West Notes: 49ers, Rams, Joseph, Raiders

January 8th, 2017 at 9:22pm CST by Sam Robinson

The only team with GM and head coaching vacancies, the 49ers have several interviews on the east coast forthcoming in the next few days. On Monday, San Francisco’s brass will meet with Redskins OC Sean McVay for the HC job and conduct an interview with Panthers assistant general manager Brandon Beane for the GM position, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com reports.

Panthers DC Sean McDermott will follow Beane by meeting with the 49ers about their HC gig on Tuesday, and ESPN analyst Louis Riddick will interview for the GM position during the day as well. The 49ers may not be in a rush, being scheduled to interview Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable next Sunday. The following Monday, the team will meet with more GM candidates. Both of the Seahawks’ co-directors of player personnel, Scott Fitterer and Trent Kirchner, will interview then in what’s become quite the expansive search.

CEO Jed York and fellow high-ranking 49ers staffer Paraag Marathe are leading this search, one that may come down to whether or not the team is willing to wait on Patriots OC Josh McDaniels to conclude his 2016-season responsibilities. The 49ers have already interviewed three for the HC position and four execs for the GM job.

Here’s more from some of the Western-division franchises.

Vance Joseph‘s long-rumored Broncos interview will be on Tuesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). Joseph will follow Chiefs ST coordinator Dave Toub and Falcons OC Kyle Shanahan in interviewing for this position. The Colorado alum and current Miami DC has been most connected with the Denver job and was viewed as the favorite going into the weekend.
Despite deploying defensive player of the year candidate Khalil Mack and signing Bruce Irvin in free agency, the Raiders finished with a league-low 25 sacks. Jack Del Rio singled out the team’s inside pass-rushers as a culprit for this shortcoming. “Interior pass rush, it’s critical for us to get that going,” Del Rio said, via Jerry McDonald of the San Jose Mercury News. “I think Stacy McGee had 2.5 sacks, we got Mario Edwards Jr. back and he wasn’t a huge factor, and (Jihad Ward) wasn’t a huge factor. I didn’t feel we got that inside push.” The Raiders have several young players under contract here, including Denico Autry and full-time defensive tackles Dan Williams and Justin Ellis, but Mack and Irvin combined to record 18 of the team’s sacks.
Derek Carr, who said he would have played in the Super Bowl had the Raiders miraculously qualified without him, said he will be ready for the beginning of offseason workouts in April, Scott Bair of CSN Bay Area reports.
Teryl Austin has set up an interview time with the Chargers, with a Tuesday summit on tap. But the Rams‘ meeting the sides have been attached to remains in the to-be-determined category, ESPN.com’s Josina Anderson tweets. A Rams-Kyle Shanahan interview hasn’t been officially rescheduled, per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (Twitter link), after weather interrupted the team’s contingent after a McDaniels meeting in New England.