It’s no secret that San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is the son of legendary former Denver Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan. Yet at just 44 years old, Kyle has quickly established himself as one of the top head coaches in the NFL today.
Before beginning his coaching career in the NFL, Shanahan played wide receiver for three seasons at Texas. While he only hauled in 14 receptions for 127 yards in his collegiate career, his experience on offense has helped him become a successful coach in the NFL.
Although Shanahan is considered one of the best offensive minds in the NFL today, his coaching journey began over 20 years ago as a graduate assistant at UCLA in 2003.
Which Teams Has Kyle Shanahan Coached So Far?
Following his playing days at Texas, Shanahan accepted a graduate assistant position at UCLA in 2003, allowing him to coach future NFL players such as Maurice Jones-Drew and Marcedes Lewis.
Shanahan spent one season as a graduate assistant before making the leap to the NFL in 2004. Shanahan joined Jon Gruden’s coaching staff with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an offensive quality control coach.
While working under Gruden, Shanahan fell in love with drawing up plays while using a classic computer graphics program called SuperPaint. Shanahan credits his time using the program as what helped him learn many of the plays used in the NFL.
After working under Gruden for two years, Shanahan joined Gary Kubiak’s staff as wide receivers coach of the Houston Texans in 2006. Shanahan became the youngest position coach in the NFL at that time and quickly earned his way up the coaching ranks in Houston.
Shanahan became Houston’s quarterbacks coach in 2007 and was then promoted to be the Texans’ offensive coordinator in 2008. Once again, Shanahan broke another record as he became the youngest coordinator in the NFL at that time.
After two seasons as Houston’s offensive coordinator, he accepted the same role on his father’s coaching staff with Washington in 2010. While many questioned if he earned the role simply due to his family ties, Kyle and his father were eventually fired in 2013, following four relatively disappointing seasons in Washington.
Following his dismissal from Washington, Shanahan interviewed for offensive coordinator vacancies with the Cleveland Browns, Miami Dolphins, and Baltimore Ravens in 2014. Shanahan joined Mike Pettine’s coaching staff as Cleveland’s offensive coordinator, but their relationship quickly soured, and he resigned after just one season with the Browns.
With a Kyle Shanahan v Mike Pettine battle on Sunday, what a great clip. This one has it all:
✅ Mike Pettine tries to tell Kyle Shanahan what to call
✅ Kyle stare down
✅ Kyle calls the opposite for a TD
✅ Johnny Manziel pretends he’s the best play caller alive pic.twitter.com/OhfJZjaxzt— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) January 17, 2020
Shanahan landed another offensive coordinator job on Dan Quinn’s coaching staff with the Atlanta Falcons. Shanahan excelled in his role and helped the Falcons become one of the most potent offenses in the NFL.
However, Shanahan’s tenure in Atlanta is overshadowed by the team’s infamous blown 28-3 lead in Super Bowl 51. Despite many questioning Shanahan’s aggressiveness in the big game, his success in Atlanta landed him his first opportunity to be a head coach in the NFL.
The 49ers hired Shanahan as the team’s head coach on Feb. 6, 2017, one day after Atlanta’s notorious choke job in Super Bowl 51. Since arriving in San Francisco, Shanahan has established himself as one of the top head coaches in the NFL.
Shanahan’s Career Accomplishments
Along his NFL coaching journey over the last two decades, Shanahan has several notable accomplishments. In nine seasons as an offensive coordinator in the NFL, Shanahan’s offenses ranked in the top 10 in total yards in six of those seasons.
Shanahan’s final season as an offensive coordinator in 2016 with the Falcons was his most impressive performance in that title. Atlanta’s offense was downright dominant, as they were second in total yards and first in total points scored, which they showcased by scoring 44 points against the Green Bay Packers in the 2016 NFC Championship Game.
Reminiscing on the 2016 NFC Championship 😌
NFL+ pic.twitter.com/LRjBSYyWZB
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 14, 2023
Atlanta’s offensive success led to Shanahan being named the AP NFL Assistant Coach of the Year in 2016. Despite becoming a head coach in 2017, Shanahan continued to field one of the best offenses in the NFL and earn more accomplishments.
In eight seasons as the head coach of the 49ers, Shanahan’s offense has ranked in the top 10 in total yards in five of those seasons. The lowest that the 49ers have ranked in total yards since Shanahan arrived was 16th in 2018.
While Shanahan’s offensive success in San Francisco is certainly impressive, the 49ers’ postseason success since his arrival is astonishing. Since 2017, the 49ers have reached the NFC Championship Game four times. San Francisco has won and advanced to the Super Bowl twice during Shanahan’s tenure as head coach.
Shanahan’s Super Bowl Record
Shanahan has appeared in the Super Bowl three times as a coordinator or head coach in the NFL. Despite reaching the big game multiple times, Shanahan is winless.
He is just the fifth coordinator or head coach in NFL history to start their career 0-3 in the Super Bowl. None of the other four coaches ever won a Super Bowl in their NFL careers.
The most discouraging part about Shanahan’s failures in the Super Bowl is that his teams have held a significant lead in all three games. As offensive coordinator of the Falcons, Atlanta held a 28-3 lead over the New England Patriots and lost.
In Super Bowl 54, the 49ers held a 20-10 lead over the Kansas City Chiefs heading into the fourth quarter. Yet, the Chiefs outscored the 49ers 21-0 in the fourth quarter, eventually winning by a final score of 31-20.
Then in Super Bowl 58, San Francisco held a 10-0 lead over Kansas City midway through the second quarter. The Chiefs battled back in a tightly contested, defensive battle and won in overtime to hand Shanahan his third consecutive loss in the Super Bowl.
MAHOMES TO MECOLE HARDMAN FOR THE LOMBARDI 😱🤯
(via @NFL)
pic.twitter.com/lPVwGBasQj— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 12, 2024
Shanahan’s Impressive Coaching Tree
Similar to his father, Shanahan has grown quite a coaching tree in the NFL. Three of Shanahan’s former assistant coaches have earned head coaching jobs in the NFL thus far.
While Robert Saleh was recently fired by the New York Jets, Mike McDaniel is the head coach of the Dolphins and DeMeco Ryans is the head coach of the Texans. Despite Saleh’s questionable dismissal, McDaniel and Ryans have shown promise as NFL head coaches.
As his coaching tree continues to grow new branches, there are several future head coach candidates who have spent time working under Shanahan in San Francisco.
Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik is regarded as one of the best young offensive minds in the NFL. Slowik spent six seasons on Shanahan’s staff with the 49ers, serving multiple roles including offensive passing game coordinator in 2022.
Similar to Slowik, Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur is also regarded as one of the bright young offensive minds in the NFL. LaFleur is the younger brother of Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur and spent four seasons on Shanahan’s staff in San Francisco. LaFleur was also with Shanahan in both Cleveland and Atlanta as well.
New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and 49ers offensive passing game specialist Klay Kubiak are the children of Gary Kubiak, who gave Shanahan his first opportunity as an offensive coordinator in the NFL back in 2008.
Two of Kubiak’s three sons have spent time learning on Shanahan’s coaching staff and are ascending offensive-minded coaches to watch for in the future. It’s clear that Shanahan’s coaching tree is only continuing to grow with each passing season.