Across the league, the San Francisco 49ers are considered one of the healthiest and most successful franchises in the league. General Manager John Lynch has had overwhelming success finding contributors in the draft and head coach Kyle Shanahan is one of the best offensive innovators in the game.
Since being brought in together in 2017, the two have been very successful in returning the 49ers back to relevance (that is, when Jimmy Garoppolo is healthy.) They’ve qualified for the playoffs in both of the former New England Patriots backup’s full seasons and the 2019 campaign featured a close Super Bowl loss to an ascending Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid.
What’s very interesting in San Francisco is the dynamic regarding their roster, particularly in regard to the NFL draft. It is well documented that Shanahan is allowed to pound the table for his guys and his request is often granted. Shanahan even has control over the final 53-man roster each season.
With a heavy hand in the types of players needed to run his offense, the Shanahan influence presents a scattered record. Notoriously, 2018 second-round selection Dante Pettis and 2021 third-round selection Trey Sermon were put in the doghouse without much opportunity to improve within the scheme. Meanwhile, players like Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel have emerged as some of the best wideouts in the league behind Shanahan’s creativity.
We won’t know until 2022 whether or not Trey Lance justified the use of three first-round selections.
Regardless, the 49ers represent a healthy culture where the general manager takes into great consideration the desires of the coach. It’s not highly unusual for an NFL team but an example more well documented than others where a coach has both roster control and draft influence.
This leads us to the NFL’s most involved general manager Nick Caserio. Caserio has been given the keys to the franchise and has full confidence from chairman and CEO Cal McNair and executive vice president of football operations Jack Easterby. He has run with that in full stride, raising many eyebrows with his presence on the headset with former coach David Culley during the 2021 campaign.
The Texans are Caserio’s team and the firing of Culley after one season shows more than ever that he’s taking it upon himself to orchestrate one of the NFL’s trickiest rebuilding situations. We’ve already seen them cast a wide net when researching head coaching candidates, from standouts with experience like Brian Flores to former players like Hines Ward and soon Jerod Mayo.
Another name in that conversation that’s emerging is former Texans’ linebacker and current 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans. Ryans has been coaching under Shanahan since 2017 and played a huge part in orchestrating Sunday’s 23-16 playoff win over the favored Dallas Cowboys. Dallas was held to 307 yards and 17 points, a far cry from their averages of 407 yards per game and 31.2 points per game during the regular season.
San Francisco ranked third in the NFL during 2021 for yards per game and 10th in points per game, only allowing 310 yards and 21.5 points on average. No surprise, Ryan has quickly become one of the best young coordinators in football.
Demeco Ryan’s on Kyle Shanahan:
“Having one of the best offensive minds in the history the game, to have him on my side, I see it as an advantage.”
Iron sharpens iron. pic.twitter.com/Gqm1CtZNkt
— 49ers_Film (@49ers_Film) January 13, 2022
His familiarity with the Texans franchise and prowess as a coordinator are making Ryans a quick fan favorite to potentially serve as the next coach. He would bring both the youth, schematic knowledge, and energy that is needed to serve as the foundation for any rebuilding team.
The biggest question becomes: would he want to work with Caserio?
Watching Shanahan and Lynch work together and seeing Shanahan’s offensive input be taken into heavy consideration year after year would undoubtably create expectations for Ryan should he ever decide to become a coach. It would be more than fair to have expectations of a large input into player personnel, at least on his side of the football if not the full roster a la Shanahan. This would require a partnership far more even than we saw previously with Caserio and Culley. It would necessitate a stepping back by Caserio and acknowledgement of co-dependence should Houston want to succeed.
Does Caserio want to sacrifice his vice grip on personnel for a first-time head coach? Despite any amount of success in San Francisco, it would be a big gamble and risky agreement for Caserio to stake himself to. Meanwhile, would Ryans want to work in an environment where the coach has far less control than what he’s seen put forth in San Francisco?
It is certainly possible Ryans may prefer to stick to football with his relative lack of NFL coaching experience and let Caserio deal with the peskier side of roster construction. It’s also possible Ryans would want to wait for a healthier situation and a bigger role in a different franchise.
There could be constructional issues regarding the differences in San Francisco and Houston that prevent a Ryans reunion a decade after he was traded by the Texans to Philadelphia. The football acumen and youthful energy are certainly there, but the partnership could be forced.
Ryans will certainly be busy game planning for the Green Bay Packers and quarterback Aaron Rodgers, which may affect his availability to both interview and ultimately accept any jobs, but the situation is worth monitoring as Houston pursues the franchise’s fifth full-time coach.