Rich Scangarello

Broncos To Interview Rich Scangarello

The Broncos’ interview with Rich Scangarello is back on. After being rebuffed initially, the 49ers have reversed course to allow the Broncos to talk with their quarterbacks coach (via Mike Klis of 9News).

With that, the Broncos and Scangarello will discuss Denver’s offensive coordinator vacancy on Monday afternoon. The 46-year-old is one of a few known candidates for the job that was accepted, then rejected, by Gary Kubiak last week.

Scangarello has just four years of NFL assistant coaching experience, but he did spent four years as a college OC between Northern Arizona and Wagner. Scangarello patterned his passing game after Kyle Shanahan, which is why he accepted a low-paying assistant job to join his Falcons staff in 2015 and followed him to San Francisco.

As shown in PFR’s Offensive Coordinator Tracker, Scangarello is the first known candidate to interview for the job since the Kubiak hire went bust.

Latest On Broncos’ OC Search

The Broncos continue to search for a new offensive coordinator, but it sounds like a front-runner has yet to emerge.

For starters, three candidates have already been connected to the opening: former head coach Gary Kubiak, 49ers quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello, and Steelers offensive line coach Mike Munchak. There was some optimism that the organization would hire Kubiak, but the two sides ultimately decided to go in different directions. The Broncos were denied their request to interview Scangarello, but Troy Renck of Denver7 (via Twitter) notes that the team is still pushing to interview the San Francisco quarterbacks coach.

When it comes to Munchak, it sounds like the long-time coach may not even be a candidate for the offensive coordinator opening. Renck says the Broncos are hoping to hire the 58-year-old as their offensive line coach, a position Munchak has held with the Steelers since 2014. Munchak’s contract with the Steelers has (or will soon) expire, so the Steelers wouldn’t truly have the means to block him from taking a different gig. We learned yesterday that Munchak was set to meet with the organization.

Ultimately, the final decision will come down to new head coach Vic Fangio. Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic tweets that “the hire will be completely Vic Fangio’s call.”

49ers Deny Broncos Request To Interview Rich Scangarello

It was reported the Broncos were set to interview 49ers quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello for their offensive coordinator job on Monday, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). However, the team had its request for an interview denied by San Francisco, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets.

Scangarello has been a key assistant under Kyle Shanahan since their days together in Atlanta, and the 49ers head coach appears to value him immensely by denying the request.

As Pelissero notes, Scangarello had a big role getting Nick Mullens ready for action in 2018. Mullens was promoted to the active roster right after Jimmy Garoppolo went down with his season-ending injury in September and wound up starting on November 1. His debut was stellar – he completed 16 of 22 pass attempts for 262 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions, as the 49ers blew out the Raiders 34–3 on Thursday Night Football. There were still roadblocks for Mullens and the Niners (particularly due to their injuries), but the team went 3-5 during his second half stretch.

The Broncos thought they had their OC in Gary Kubiak, but that deal went south on Friday. With Scangarello now also out of the picture, the team will continue its search. Mike Munchak may be a candidate for the post.

West Rumors: 49ers, Cards, Hawks, Raiders

With Week 17 practices beginning Wednesday, here is the latest from the league’s two West divisions:

  • Teams with coaching vacancies have been heavily connected to offensively oriented candidates. With a supply-and-demand issue potentially arising, certain teams will have to pivot to consolation prizes or defensive coaches. For a team eyeing a possible up-and-comer for the future as an offensive coordinator, Matt Barrows of The Athletic (subscription required) mentions an under-the-radar possibility in 49ers quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello. Kyle Shanahan‘s QBs coach in his two 49ers seasons, Scangarello was a quality control coach with the Falcons in 2015 and Wagner’s OC in 2016. Rampant injuries have affected an already-limited offense, and Scangarello has helped UDFA Nick Mullens (18th in QBR) to some decent performances.
  • The Seahawks franchise is expected to be sold, but for the time being, Paul Allen‘s sister, Jody, is running the team. Allen confidant Bert Kolde is taking an expanded role during this time, Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times notes, adding that the status quo appears to be working at this point. Pete Carroll said Monday he was excited about the team’s current ownership situation, and Condotta adds indications point to Jody Allen continuing to serve as the team’s chairperson for a while.
  • The Cardinals have the inside track on the 2019 No. 1 pick, but one player believes (via the Arizona Republic’s Bob McManamon) the team has too many needs not to trade down. As of now, no quarterback is looking like a surefire top-five pick. Such a scenario has not unfolded since 2013. But as Baker Mayfield, Patrick Mahomes and Carson Wentz have shown, the pre-draft process can see some fast-rising prospects. If a member of this class gets to that point, the Cardinals could auction their pick off to a QB-needy team like the Jaguars, Giants or Broncos, McManamon offers. Entering the offseason, the Cardinals hold seven picks in the ’19 draft, their own seven.
  • Although the Raiders have discussed playing at the San Francisco Giants’ AT&T Stadium next season, the team has not picked a 2019 home yet. Listing possibilities, NBC Sports Bay Area suggests Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto, Calif. The Cardinal’s home field seats just more than 50,000 and is located a bit south of the 49ers’ Levi’s Stadium. This has not been mentioned as a consideration, and many cities have emerged as such thus far. The NFL wants the Raiders to decide on their 2019 home by Super Bowl LIII.

49ers Won’t Hire Offensive Coordinator

New 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan will likely call the offensive plays in San Francisco, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Additionally, Shanahan is expected to hire former Falcons assistant Mike McDaniel as a run game coordinator and Wagner College offensive coordinator (and former Falcons staffer) Rich Scangarello as quarterbacks coach, per Rapoport. Ex-Atlanta running backs coach Bobby Turner is also headed to San Francisco, tweets Gil Brandt of NFL.com.Kyle Shanahan (Vertical)

[RELATED: 49ers Could Have Interest In Jay Cutler]

Given that the 49ers aren’t expected to hire a formal offensive coordinator, San Francisco will head into the 2017 campaign with inexperience infecting many areas of the club’s structure. New general manger John Lynch has never worked in an NFL front office, while Shanahan is not only a first-time head coach, but will act as his own OC and lean on a QBs coach in Scangarello whose most recent coaching experience comes at an FCS school. In addition, Shanahan will oversee some of the club’s personnel aspects, as he’ll exert control over the 49ers’ 53-man roster.

As for the rest of San Francisco’s coaching staff, Shanahan is reportedly interested in hiring co-defensive coordinators, with Atlanta passing game coordinator Jerome Henderson and former Jaguars linebackers coach Robert Saleh emerging as the most likely candidates for the positions. On offense, the 49ers still want to keep former RBs coach Tom Rathman on staff in some capacity even after adding Turner, tweets Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.