Kyle Shanahan’s Job Wouldn’t be at Risk Even if 49ers Miss the Playoffs, According to Richard Sherman

Former 49ers CB Richard Sherman remains confident that Kyle Shanahan's job as the club's head coach is secured.

Kyle Shanahan’s Job Wouldn’t be at Risk Even if 49ers Miss the Playoffs, According to Richard Sherman

Kyle Shanahan and Richard Sherman inside the circle (Image via IMAGO/X)

In Short
  • Kyle Shanahan's job security remains strong, even if the 49ers miss the playoffs this season.
  • Richard Sherman asserts that Shanahan would not be on the hot seat, citing his competitive record.
  • 9ers owner Jed York expresses a desire for Shanahan to remain with the team long-term.

Kyle Shanahan is among the few long-serving head coaches in the NFL, right up there with Andy Reid (the Kansas City Chiefs) and Sean McVay (Los Angeles Rams). The San Francisco 49ers hired Shanahan ahead of the 2017 season.

Shanahan, since then, has posted an 82-67 record, four NFC Championship wins, and two trips to the Super Bowl. However, he was on the losing end on both occasions.

There’s chatter around the league that the 49ers might part ways with Shanahan if he fails to deliver the Super Bowl in 2026. However, former 49ers corner Richard Sherman is adamant that Shanahan’s job is safe.

Sherman said on his podcast in April:

I don’t know who asked this question, but we [have] got to check what’s in their cup. If Kyle Shanahan misses the playoffs this year, would he be on the hot seat? Absolutely not, absolutely not. He wouldn’t even be close. He’d be on the iceberg; he’d still be on the absolute iceberg. And if he somehow was on the hot seat, then there’d be 20 seats in the NFL getting hotter as his gets hotter, because if he ever got fired, so would they.

RELATED
Jason Kelce Feels League’s New Windows Are Slowly Weakening NFL Sundays

Kyle Shanahan is not going anywhere

Sherman argued that if Shanahan’s position with the 49ers is in jeopardy, then more than twenty coaches across the league will be in a similar situation. But that’s not the case.

Kyle Shanahan's Job Wouldn't be at Risk Even if 49ers Miss the Playoffs, According to Richard Sherman
Kyle Shanahan (Image via IMAGO)

Shanahan has done an incredible job keeping the Niners competitive each year. So much so that the 49ers owner, Jed York, doesn’t want the 46-year-old to leave the club anytime soon. York said in March via Vic Tafur of The Athletic:

I want Kyle to be here for a long time. He’s been here for a long time, and I want him to be here even longer. want John [Lynch, general manager] to be here for a long time.

In a recent conversation with Tom Tolbert on his show, Shanahan admitted that his goal is winning the big game, but he also wants to build solid rosters to stay competitive every year. Shanahan told Tolbert:

Since you said one scenario was having a Super Bowl, I haven’t heard one word since you said since… So, that’s how we think, that’s how we live out life, but when you put it into perspective and the fans and stuff, it’s just I have seen teams fortunately win a Super Bowl in a random year and go through six different coaches over the next nine years, and no one really cares about this random year…

Kyle Shanahan reveals how he will handle the Christian McCaffrey situation

Running back Christian McCaffrey is one of the best players in the league. The four-time All-Pro rusher led the league in scrimmage with 413 all-purpose touches, 2126 scrimmage yards, and scored 17 total touchdowns. That’s a massive workload for someone who just a year earlier struggled to move freely due to knee injuries in both legs.

Given the number of players the Niners missed last year due to injuries, it was a small miracle that McCaffrey managed to play every game and make a massive impact. He’s expected to play a similar role in 2026, but Shanahan will use him cautiously. Shanahan said:

I want him to have more juice. To be more fresher. He doesn’t have to take that beating when it’s unnecessary. I’m hoping we can have some other guys step up more this year. So you don’t feel like you need him on the field every play.

Keeping that in mind, the Niners drafted former Indiana RB Kaelon Black in the third round and Oregon’s Jordan James in the fifth round. They also have Isaac Guerendo on the team.

Also Read: