Kyle Shanahan had hoped that Bill Belichick would join the 49ers coaching staff this offseason, but the two sides’ interests did not align.
The eight-time Super Bowl champion became a free agent earlier this offseason after parting ways by mutual consent with the New England Patriots after spending the past 24 seasons with them.
Belichick was considered a leading candidate to replace defensive coordinator Steve Wilks in San Francisco after the 49ers lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 55, but the team ultimately promoted Nick Sorensen from within and hired former Los Angeles Chargers head coach Brandon Staley as an assistant.
Shanahan appeared with The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami on the latest episode of “The TK Show” podcast, where he revealed that not only is the 49ers coach interested in hiring Belichick as defensive coordinator, he’s also open to hiring the Hall of Fame coach for other positions.
“I did. I left it all up to him,” Shanahan told Kawakami. “He loves football so much, he just doesn’t know what to do. I can’t believe he’s not the head coach of the team right now. It’s a shock because I know what I would do if I were the owner. I never want to disrespect a guy like Bill Belichick, but I know he just loves the ball so simply, I left it all up to him to do what he wanted to do.” [including defensive coordinator]I asked him, “Are you interested?” and he was very kind and grateful and politely declined.
“I’m sure next year he’ll be back in the league and I might end up playing against him. He might be in the NFC West. It would be terrible for him to come here and play against us, so you have to be careful with those kinds of things. But he’s great and I love talking to him.”
With the 2024 NFL season fast approaching, Belichick likely won’t be coaching in the league this year, but he has landed roles as a commentator on “The Pat McAfee Show” and “Inside the NFL” and occasionally helps his son, Steve, coach the Washington Huskies defense.
Had Belichick accepted Shanahan’s indefinite offer, the 49ers coaching staff would have received a major boost in the form of their greatest coach of all time.
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