49ers Extend Passing Game Coordinator Mike LaFleur
Mike LaFleur is coaching in the Super Bowl Sunday, and no matter what happens he’ll be back in San Francisco next year. The 49ers have extended their passing game coordinator, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
LaFleur had been on an expiring contract, and he won’t be hitting the open market now. He’s the younger brother of Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, and Schefter writes that his brother had wanted him to join his staff in Green Bay. He bested his brother in the NFC Championship game, and now the LaFleurs won’t be joining forces. The younger LaFleur was also apparently a candidate to become Cleveland’s offensive coordinator.
He got his coaching start in the college ranks, and then jumped to the NFL to serve under Kyle Shanahan in Atlanta before following him to San Francisco. Several Shanahan assistants drew interest from other teams this offseason, including LaFleur, running game coordinator Mike McDaniel, and defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. With all the success Shanahan has been having, he likely won’t be able to keep his staff together much longer.
49ers’ HC Kyle Shanahan, GM John Lynch In Line For Extensions
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and GM John Lynch both joined the team in 2017 and received matching six-year contracts. In year three of their partnership, they have guided San Francisco to the brink of their sixth Super Bowl championship, and they are about to be rewarded for it.
Sources tell Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL.com that both men are in line for new deals — which will surely include handsome raises — sometime this offseason. All sides are hoping that this will get done prior to the start of the 2020 regular season.
Shanahan told owner Jed York during his interview three years ago that he was inheriting a “horrible” roster, and York knew that the 2019 season would be the first season in which the team’s new power structure could be fairly judged. The fact that QB Jimmy Garoppolo tore his ACL in Week 3 of the 2018 campaign might have pushed back York’s timeline, but the team has largely managed to stay healthy this year and has lived up to Lynch’s vision of a team that is stout up front on both sides of the ball.
Rapoport and Garafolo offer a few more details on the interview process that convinced York that Lynch, who had no front office or coaching experience at the time, was the right man for the job, so the piece is worth a read for Niners fans. The relationship between the neophyte GM and head coach started in a good place and has only blossomed from there, and both men appear poised to lead the team for the foreseeable future.
It is fascinating to see how quickly things can change. In July, there were rumors that Lynch and DC Robert Saleh were on the hot seat. Months later, Saleh became a hot head coaching candidate and Lynch is staring down the barrel of a Super Bowl ring and a new contract.
49ers Interested In Oden For Secondary Coach
- We heard earlier today that the 49ers were considering former Seahawks defensive coordinator Kris Richard to fill the secondary coach role that is about to become vacant when Joe Woods officially becomes Cleveland’s next defensive coordinator. Richard apparently isn’t the only candidate though, and San Francisco is also considering former Miami secondary coach Tony Oden for the position, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link). Oden has also coached DBs for the Saints, Jaguars, Buccaneers, and Lions in recent years.
49ers Considering Kris Richard For Staff
A previous candidate for HC jobs, Kris Richard is unattached presently after the Cowboys revamped their coaching staff. However, the former Seahawks defensive coordinator looks to be on the 49ers’ radar.
The 49ers are expected to lose secondary coach Joe Woods to the Browns, with whom he’s agreed to become DC. But they are on track to consider Richard for that position, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (h/t 49ersWebZone.com).
Mike McCarthy hired Mike Nolan to replace Rod Marinelli as Dallas’ DC and did not retain Richard, who spent two seasons with the Cowboys. A 49ers landing would make sense for the 40-year-old assistant, however. San Francisco uses a version of the Seattle defense, and Richard spent eight seasons with the Seahawks. His final three Seattle slates came as their defensive coordinator.
Richard, 40, coached Richard Sherman in each of the All-Pro cornerback’s seven Seahawks seasons. Under Richard in Dallas, Byron Jones became one of the NFL’s better cornerbacks and is on track for a lucrative free agency payday. Richard interviewed for three jobs in 2019 — with the Buccaneers, Dolphins and Jets — and met with the Colts about their HC job in 2018. He interviewed for the Bills job in 2017.
Richard and 49ers DC Robert Saleh coached on Pete Carroll‘s staff for three seasons together, 2011-13, with the former being slightly higher on the totem pole at the time. Saleh served as a defensive quality control coach from 2011-13, when Richard was spending time as a position coach. A reunion in San Francisco would almost certainly mean Richard serving as one of Saleh’s defensive assistants.
George Kittle Will Not Get Surgery On Torn Labrum
At the tender age of 26, 49ers TE George Kittle has become arguably the best tight end in football. And his performance over the past several seasons is even more impressive in light of his recent revelation on a Pardon My Take podcast (h/t Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk).
Kittle said that he has played the past two seasons with a torn labrum, which he sustained in a 2018 preseason game. However, he has not gotten surgery on the injury and does not plan to.
“I can’t miss those workout days, man,” Kittle said, adding that there is “no chance,” he goes under the knife.
Assuming that he can tolerate the pain, there may be no reason for Kittle to get surgery, at least until his playing career is over. As Williams points out, Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence played through a labrum tear for two seasons, though he ultimately did have it surgically repaired. Kittle, meanwhile, will continue to wear a protective sleeve to combat the injury.
The Iowa product is eligible for an extension for the first time this offseason, and he may be the player to finally reset the tight end market. Jimmy Graham‘s $10MM AAV has paced the market for years, and Trey Burton and Jordan Reed are currently at the top of the heap in terms of total guarantees ($22MM). Kittle should exceed both of those figures, and San Francisco is expected to prioritize a new deal for him.
Of course, before that happens, the 49ers will vie for their sixth Super Bowl title. Kittle’s performance in this weekend’s title bout will likely play a major role in the outcome of that contest.
49ers Notes: Shanahan, Lynch, Garoppolo
The trade that sent Jimmy Garoppolo from New England to San Francisco has turned out to be one of the most important swaps in recent NFL history, with Tom Brady‘s former backup set to start in Super Bowl LIV. Despite other suitors believed to be in the mix for Garoppolo in 2017, Bill Belichick alerted Kyle Shanahan he was willing to part with the former second-round pick for a second-rounder. The 49ers quickly accepted but did so after initially being willing to offer the Patriots more for the then-fourth-year passer, Seth Wickersham of ESPN.com reports. But Belichick, despite previous refusals to trade Garoppolo, was not posturing when he indicated he would take a Round 2 pick for his contract-year quarterback.
It ended up costing the 49ers only the No. 43 overall selection in 2018 to land their starting quarterback. While this process was murkier on the Patriots’ end, it helped the 49ers construct a rebuild that has them in their seventh Super Bowl.
A week away from the 49ers’ Super Bowl matchup with the Chiefs, here is the latest out of San Francisco:
- Going back to when this rebuild began, Shanahan did not mince words about the state of the 49ers during his interview for their top coaching job. Early in the then-Falcons OC’s 2017 interview, he told team CEO Jed York the roster left over from the Trent Baalke era at that time was “horrible,” Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area notes. This led to a gradual rebuild that did not get far off the ground before this season, with the 49ers going 10-22. But York was on board with the process, viewing 2019 as the first real season on which the Shanahan-John Lynch regime could be judged, Maiocco adds. York gave the HC-GM duo six-year contracts because of the team going through three coaches in three years from 2014-16.
- Lynch’s hire came about because he cold-called Shanahan with an offer to pair with him in San Francisco, Wickersham adds. A recommendation from Mike Shanahan, who coached Lynch in Denver, helped seal the deal for his son. Lynch had spoken at length with Kyle Shanahan on the phone in preparation for games he would call as a broadcaster, per Wickersham, and hoped for a chance to return to football. Shanahan did not have much familiarity with the other finalists for the 49ers’ GM job — Vikings assistant GM George Paton and Cardinals VP of player personnel Terry McDonough — and the decision to hire a GM out of the broadcast booth has helped the 49ers return to the Super Bowl.
- Despite dealing with a dislocated shoulder that induced pain preventing him from walking off the field last weekend, Tevin Coleman has received good news about his status for Super Bowl LIV.
Latest On 49ers RB Tevin Coleman
Tevin Coleman suffered a dislocated shoulder during the NFC Championship Game, but with two weeks to recover, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan previously said that there’s a “good chance” the running back plays. Coleman himself provided an update on Thursday, telling NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco that he’ll absolutely play if he’s cleared.
“I feel good,” Coleman said. “Still working, still trying to get my range of motion back. Just listening to the doctors and trying to get back…It’s weak. I’m not all the way there.
“I’m still working with the doctors and see what they tell me, listening to them and see how I feel next week…I’m going to try my best to get out there and play. This is the Super Bowl. I don’t want to sit out for that.”
Coleman also provided some more details on the injury, noting that his shoulder was out of its socket for nearly 30 minutes. The 26-year-old said the pain was so intense that he couldn’t walk, requiring the use of a cart. The running back also noted that he’d prefer to play without any type of harness, as he predictably doesn’t want his movements to be restricted in anyway.
While Coleman is a major part of the 49ers offense, the team is lucky to have incredible depth at the position. While Raheem Mostert and Matt Breida out-gained Coleman on the ground this year, the former Falcon still rushed for 544 yards and six touchdowns.
49ers Making "Late Push" To Keep Joe Woods
- Joe Woods is the favorite to become the Browns defensive coordinator, but the 49ers won’t let that happen without a fight. Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune tweets that San Francisco is making a “late push” to retain their defensive backs coach/passing game coordinator. Woods has coached in the NFL since 2004, and he served as the Broncos defensive coordinator between 2017 and 2018.
49ers Hopeful For Tevin Coleman Super Bowl LIV Return
Tevin Coleman left the NFC championship game early, but the 49ers expect he will be ready to play in Super Bowl LIV.
Kyle Shanahan described the running back’s dislocated shoulder as being of the Lethal Weapon variety, with staffers able to pop Coleman’s ailing shoulder back into place (via Matt Barrows of The Athletic, on Twitter). While this process was quite painful for Lethal Weapon 2-era Martin Riggs without the threat of any tackling, Shanahan expects Coleman to have a “good chance” to suit up for his second Super Bowl.
“I don’t want to speculate too much, but usually a week to rest it and usually gets back in and I expect him to have a chance to play,” Shanahan said Monday. “Can’t hold me to that. We’ll find out more, but I expect him to have a good chance to play.”
The 49ers have thrived on the ground despite their highest-paid running back, Jerick McKinnon, missing a second straight season. While Raheem Mostert and Matt Breida out-gained Coleman on the ground this year, the former Falcon rushed for 544 yards and six touchdowns this season. He returned from a high ankle sprain earlier this season but missed much of the 49ers’ historically dominant rushing day Sunday.
Mostert’s 220 rushing yards rank second in NFL playoff history, and Breida averaged 5.1 yards per carry during the regular season. San Francisco’s second-ranked rush offense may have the option of all three backs facing the Chiefs, however. Coleman gained 35 scrimmage yards and caught a touchdown pass in Super Bowl LI.
Browns To Hire Joe Woods?
49ers defensive backs coach Joe Woods is on track to become the Browns’ next defensive coordinator, sources tell ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). All that remains, Schefter hears, is figuring out a contract. 
The Browns, reportedly, were down to Woods and incumbent Steve Wilks as of last week. Today, the Browns told Wilks that he’s out, as Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com tweets. Barring something unexpected, Woods will get the job.
Woods, 49, has history with new Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski – Woods was a Vikes assistant between 2006-2013. All in all, Woods comes with 16 years of NFL coaching experience for five different teams. Before he hooked on as the Niners’ LBs coach, he spent four years with the Broncos, including two as their DC.
While Woods’ two Broncos defenses were solid, the 49ers’ rise from 23rd to second in pass-defense DVOA has obviously been key to the NFC No. 1 seed’s success. The 49ers’ Richard Sherman-led secondary has become a much better unit compared to last season, when Sherman did not play at a Pro Bowl level. Woods also oversaw the Broncos’ dominant No-Fly Zone secondary that helped the team to a championship in 2015, working under Wade Phillips.