Arizona

Shanahan Will Speak Again with 49ers This Week

Falcons offensive coordinator, on his way to Super Bowl, will have second interview with 49ers Saturday to fill job as head coach

With the Atlanta Falcons going to the Super Bowl, the 49ers won’t be able to officially hire Kyle Shanahan as the team’s next head coach until Feb. 6, the day after the game.

But it appears the Niners are totally zeroed in on Shanahan, the offensive coordinator of Atlanta’s high-powered offense.

Multiple reports indicate the 49ers will have a second interview with Shanahan this Saturday, a day before the Falcons depart for Super Bowl LI in Houston against the New England Patriots.

This week, Falcons head coach Dan Quinn praised Shanahan’s work and ability to stay focused through the NFC Championship Game – in which the Falcons beat the Green Bay Packers – while also juggling his future prospects with the 49ers, and the extra distractions that come with that. The Falcons piled up 493 total yards in a 44-21 win over the Packers.

“I’m really proud of him because it’s not easy to do, when there’s a lot of speculation and things going on outside your world, to stay dialed in,” Quinn told the media Monday. “I think it’s one that should be commended. Being on point and going for it, he totally nailed that, knowing how to attack and how we were going to go through. It gets more attention, obviously, the longer it goes on. We recognize that. The league does structures that there’s another opportunity for them to talk (Saturday), and I’m sure they’ll do that.”

In addition to speaking with Shanahan about being head coach, the 49ers contingent, led by CEO Jed York, also wants to get his input into the search for a new general manager.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports there is now competition for at least one of the men San Francisco is interested in at that position, Vikings assistant GM George Paton. Eric Branch of the Chronicle reports Paton is also being pursued by the Indianapolis Colts, who fired their GM over the weekend. The 49ers reportedly will interview Paton for a second time Friday. Arizona Cardinals vice president of player personnel Terry McDonough is the other 49ers’ candidate, according to Branch.

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