Colin Cowherd wants Kyle Shanahan to have less power on personnel decisions at 49ers

Colin Cowherd suggested the 49ers to take some power off HC Kyle Shanahan’s hands to ensure the roster is developed with a long-term plan.


Colin Cowherd wants Kyle Shanahan to have less power on personnel decisions at 49ers

Colin Cowherd and Kyle Shanahan (Via 12th Main Rising/Imago)

After the success of last season, when the San Francisco 49ers advanced to the Super Bowl while dominating the entire NFC, expectations for this season were through the roof. However, with just five weeks remaining in the season, the Niners find themselves struggling with only five wins out of 12 games, casting doubts on their playoff hopes, let alone the Super Bowl hopes. 

While they have been without their key offensive weapons for most of the season, head coach Kyle Shanahan has come under intense scrutiny. Arguing that the 49ers have been unprepared for long-term success, Colin Cowherd asked the franchise to take some power off Shanahan’s hands to ensure the roster is equipped with a long-term plan rather than drafting or acquiring who seems right for the moment. 

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When these coaches get into these power situations, they get a lot of personnel say. I think Kyle is drafting players for the moment. They’ve neglected their O-line and their D-line. I like Kyle Shanahan, but I look at their drafts and it feels like the coach has a little too much power.

Colin Cowherd said on his The Herd podcast

Cowherd isn’t the only analyst who has voiced concerns regarding Shanahan’s leadership in San Francisco. LeSean McCoy made quite a similar observation of sensing arrogance from the 49ers head coach Shanahan and General Manager John Lynch

Kyle Shanahan urges 49ers to focus on finishing strong

Amid the ongoing criticism and speculations of him being on the hot seat, Shanahan acknowledged the disappointment of this season and the mistakes they made since February this season. However, during this tough time, he still sees a ray of hoping in the remaining five weeks aiming for a comeback of the 49ers.

San Francisco 49ers' HC Kyle Shanahan
San Francisco 49ers’ HC Kyle Shanahan (Via Imago)

I’m not going to say that this team is the same as last year and we’re just not fighting as hard, we’ve been trying to find our way from the beginning. We haven’t found it yet, there’s still a lot of season left and we hope to play better. But I’m not going to say that our team doesn’t have fight.

Kyle Shanahan said, via KNBR

Instead of spiraling over how things went sideways, the 49ers are focusing on improving their performance better in the coming five weeks of the NFL to conclude the season with a winning record and clinch the playoff berth if there’s still hope.

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