With Kyle Shanahan recovering from a car accident, San Francisco 49ers offensive line coach Chris Foerster will be interim head coach for the next few days, or even weeks, depending on Shanahan’s recovery. According to 49ers general manager John Lynch, at this stage of the season, it just might be a title in name only.
“The way Kyle’s thinking about it,” Lynch said. “And has communicated to me that he wants to see things done as that it’s a collective effort.”
It’s not like Shanahan is completely off
the field as he recovers. Lynch said the head coach would be seen on the field, but it’s a matter of “what he can tolerate.” The plan for training camp is already written, and installs are put together per Lynch. Now it’s just someone to handle a few things Shanahan would have. Lynch noted talking to the team and media as two things Shanahan isn’t ready to do.
That’s where Foerster comes in.
At first, seeing the offensive line coach become the front-man might appear a bit odd. Foerster has over thirty years of experience in coaching within the NFL, but he’s never gone beyond the position of offensive coordinator—something he last did with the Miami Dolphins in 2004.
So why Foerster? When you look at the coaching roster, it’s actually the only—and least-disruptive—decision to be made. That didn’t stop a question from coming up during Lynch’s press conference about what went into the decision.
“He’s been in the league for 34 seasons,” Lynch said. “He’s been around Kyle; he is our assistant head coach.”
Well put. A quick look at the 49ers coaching roster lists Foerster as the only assistant head coach. So, years of experience and the current job title. It is also important to note that Foerster has been on the staff since 2019 in some capacity. He has seen how Shanahan does things and is one of the longest-tenured assistants on his staff. That at least means (or at least we can hope) things can go as normal as possible in Shanahan’s absence.
It’s important to remember the 49ers don’t want to change anything at this point. They don’t need distractions or disruptions to the way Shanahan does things. Furthermore, it’s the beginning of a season without a practice, not the middle of a lost season with jobs on the line. This isn’t a person on a coaching staff picked to coach out the last two or three games after the head coach has been fired. As Lynch said, the 49ers need someone out front, but it’s going to be a collaborative effort, minus Shanahan.
But why the decision on the offensive line coach?
Well, they could go to defensive coordinator Raheem Morris. He just got off a stint as head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Whether that’s successful or not isn’t relevant; he at least can run meetings and hold down the fort in Shanahan’s absence, especially when this might just be a name on paper to talk to the media anyway.
The problem is, this is Morris’ first year as the defensive coordinator of the 49ers. Which means he needs to install his defense. While we have speculated the familiarity might be a simple transition, that doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy. Lynch said at his press conference that things would be a bit different. Not to mention we’ve gone from Steve Wilks to Nick Sorensen, to Robert Saleh, and now Morris. Four names in just as many seasons. Morris needs to focus on the defense, period. If this does wind up being a bit more involved, Morris doesn’t need more work on his plate.
Next there’s Klay Kubiak, the offensive coordinator. This would be Kubiak’s second season as offensive coordinator. Shanahan already is unavailable, and the offense lives and dies through him. To pull one of his right-hand men could stretch the offensive coaching staff even further.
Without Shanahan, Kubiak already has more work on his plate as it is. To make him do head coaching responsibilities, in only his second year, would be irresponsible.
Special teams coordinator Brant Boyer could be a decent option. But like Kubiak, he’s only been a coordinator on the 49ers for two years. Unlike Kubiak, he wasn’t on the 49ers before that, instead on the New York Jets. Two years isn’t a rookie, but given the complexities of any coaching staff, putting him at the helm is also a bit too soon. Compared to Foerster, Boyer has way less experience coaching in the NFL as well.
As we’re rattling off the top names, it should start to seem obvious why Foerster is assuming what we hope is a one- or two-week front position where all he’ll do is talk to the media and anchor a few meetings. Lynch was optimistic that Shanahan would make the Week 1 flight to Melbourne, Australia, but it’s not a guarantee.
Who else could do it? Matt Eberflus? He’s assistant head coach for the defense, and was head coach of the Chicago Bears a few years back. Again, Morris is going to be installing the defensive scheme, and the last thing anyone wants is dysfunction on that side of the ball. Putting any defensive coach over there with a new coordinator seems like an ill-advised move.
For now, it is the best decision given where the 49ers are. There’s nothing more to read from this.
