Kyle Shanahan

 ( 1979 Births ) 

Conflict over how to manage the offense for star rookie quarterback, Robert Griffin III, dominated Shanahan's tenure with Washington. In the 2012 NFL Draft, Washington courted controversy by selecting two players at the quarterback position: Robert Griffin III in the first round and Kirk Cousins in the fourth round. Shanahan catered the offense to Griffin III, creating a playbook based on what he was used to at Baylor. However, in the Week 14 game against the Baltimore Ravens on December 9, Griffin III was injured when defensive end Haloti Ngata hit Griffin directly at his right knee, twisting it in the process. Kirk Cousins then came into the game and led the team to a 31–28 overtime victory. This injury forced the team to start Cousins in the team's week 15 game. ESPN has reported that team owner Daniel Snyder assured Griffin III that no matter how well Cousin played, he would not get the starting spot. This incident led to a confrontation between Shanahan's father, head coach Mike Shanahan, and Snyder and created tension between the Shanahans and ownership for the rest of their tenure.

In 2012, Shanahan was fined $25,000 for insulting the replacement officials and confronting one after a loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

In early December 2013, ESPN reported that Mike Shanahan was frustrated with the special treatment that he believed that Robert Griffin III received from Snyder. This led Shanahan to preemptively clean out his office ahead of the start of the 2012–13 NFL playoffs. On December 30, 2013, Kyle, along with his father and some of the coaching staff, were fired from the Redskins.

In May 2014, at the NFL Draft the Browns traded up to select the star college quarterback, Johnny Manziel. According to ESPN, the Browns front office's eagerness to replace starting quarterback Brian Hoyer with Manziel led to conflict with Browns coaches, including Shanahan. Manziel replaced Hoyer in the week 13 game against the Buffalo Bills and was given the starting job two weeks later in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals. However, he struggled to execute Shanahan's scheme and played poorly, throwing two interceptions in the game and posting a quarterback rating of 1.0.

In January 2015, Shanahan compiled a 32-page document for the Browns explaining why it would be best for him to be released from the two remaining years of his contract. On January 8, 2015, the Browns accepted Shanahan's resignation from his offensive coordinator position, with ESPN reporting that the team and Shanahan were at odds over Johnny Manziel .

During Super Bowl LI, the Falcons held a 28–3 lead over the Patriots in the third quarter, in part thanks to Shanahan's play-calling and the Falcons' execution of those plays. However, Shanahan was criticized for being too aggressive by not using a ball-control running attack late in the game, a decision considered by many to have contributed to the Falcons losing their 25-point lead, as they eventually lost the game in overtime by a score of 34–28.

In 2018, the 49ers won only four games. The team was impacted by an early season-ending torn ACL to starting quarterback Garoppolo. Garoppolo's injury was immediately viewed as ruining the 49ers' hopes for the season, despite Shanahan's optimistic outlook on Garoppolo's replacement, C. J. Beathard.

The 49ers won their first eight games of the 2019 season, making Shanahan only the third coach, along with Tom Landry and Marvin Lewis to begin 8–0 after an earlier 0–8 season start. The 49ers finished the regular season with a 13–3 record, winning the NFC West division title and securing the top seed in the NFC, giving the team home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The 49ers defeated the Minnesota Vikings 27–10 during the and advanced to the , where they defeated the Green Bay Packers 37–20 to advance to Super Bowl LIV. Despite taking a 20–10 lead in the second half, the 49ers lost to the Kansas City Chiefs by a score of 31–20. For his part, Shanahan won the Sporting News NFL Coach of the Year award and was the runner-up for the AP NFL Coach of the Year, losing to John Harbaugh.

On June 15, 2020, the 49ers signed Shanahan to a new six-year contract extension through the 2025 season. Shanahan was fined $100,000 by the NFL for not properly wearing a face mask, as required for coaches during the COVID-19 pandemic, during a Week 2 game in the 2020 NFL season on September 21, 2020. The 49ers suffered multiple injuries to key starters throughout the season and missed the playoffs, finishing with a 6–10 record.

Shanahan was fined $50,000 by the NFL on July 1, 2021, for violating practice rules during organized team activities. After starting the season 3–5, the 49ers won seven of their last nine games to finish 10–7 and enter the postseason as a wild card team with the #6-seed. They defeated the Dallas Cowboys on the road 23–17 in the and defeated the Green Bay Packers on the road 13–10 during the , before losing on the road 20–17 in the to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Los Angeles Rams.

In 2022, Shanahan led the 49ers to a 13–4 regular season mark, which earned the team the NFC West title and the #2-seed in the NFC for the postseason. The 49ers accomplished their regular season success despite injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo. The emergence of rookie Brock Purdy as the team's starting quarterback in the latter part of the season contributed to the team's success, as well as providing a terrific narrative, as Purdy had been the last player drafted that year, earning that year's tongue-in-cheek title of Mr. Irrelevant. Shanahan helped lead the 49ers to a third NFC Championship Game appearance in four seasons following victories over the Seattle Seahawks during the and the Dallas Cowboys in the . During the against the Philadelphia Eagles, the 49ers were forced to substitute Josh Johnson in for an injured Purdy. Johnson suffered a concussion and was forced to leave the game as well. Purdy then returned to finish the game, but was ineffective due to his injury, virtually unable to throw. The 49ers lost on the road 31–7. For the season, Shanahan came in second place in voting for the AP Coach of the year award, this time behind Brian Daboll of the Giants.

Prior to the 2023 season, Shanahan signed a contract extension through 2027. In 2023, he led the 49ers to a 12–5 record, winning the NFC West for the second straight season and being named a finalist for the AP Coach of the Year award. He led the team to victories over the Green Bay Packers in the and the Detroit Lions in the , where they stormed back from a 24–7 halftime deficit against Detroit, en route to Super Bowl LVIII, where San Francisco faced the Kansas City Chiefs in a rematch of Super Bowl LIV.

Like the initial matchup between the two teams four years earlier, the 49ers opened up a 10-point lead before Kansas City rallied and eventually emerged victorious yet again, this time by a score of 25–22 in overtime. It was just the second overtime game in Super Bowl history, the first being Super Bowl LI in which Shanahan had served as offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons. He received backlash for electing to receive possession first in overtime after winning the coin toss, rather than let Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense see the field first, which would have allowed the 49ers to gameplan based on the result of Kansas City's drive, since both offenses would get an opportunity in the extra period, regardless of whether or not a touchdown was scored in the first drive, after new postseason overtime rules were implemented following the 2021–22 NFL playoffs. Shanahan was also criticized after some 49ers players claimed that they were not aware of the updated overtime rules.

In a 2024 season marred by injuries, Shanahan led the team to a 6–11 record.

• Karl Dorrell, UCLA (2003)
• Jon Gruden, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2004–2005)
• Gary Kubiak, Houston Texans (2006–2009)
• Mike Shanahan, Washington Redskins (2010–2013)
• Mike Pettine, Cleveland Browns (2014)
• Dan Quinn, Atlanta Falcons (2015–2016)

Four of Shanahan's assistants have been hired as head coaches in the NFL or NCAA:

• Jeff Hafley, Boston College (2020–2023)
• Robert Saleh, New York Jets (2021–2024)
• Mike McDaniel, Miami Dolphins (2022–present)
• DeMeco Ryans, Houston Texans (2023–present)

• San Francisco 49ers profile
• Coaching statistics at Pro Football Reference