San Francisco 49ers: 3 assistants who could become head coaches
By Peter Panacy
No. 2: 49ers Passing Game Coordinator Mike LaFleur
The current NFL trend leans towards offensive-minded head coaches, which helps explain why former assistants like Zac Taylor and Matt LaFleur were considered for their jobs over other veteran coaches.
LaFleur’s brother, Mike, is going to be a name to watch in coming years, too.
Mike LaFleur is one of the assistants often mentioned when thinking about that new rule preventing teams from blocking their coaches from being interviewed for coordinator roles. And while LaFleur still has a ways to go before being considered for a head coach, his stock could be on the rise here soon.
Especially considering San Francisco’s innovative offense.
The 49ers could potentially solve another team from purging LaFleur by simply promoting him to an offensive coordinator role. Currently, Kyle Shanahan holds that job down but uses assistants like LaFleur and running game coordinator Mike McDaniel to help with the offensive play design.
With the league focusing more on pass-first offenses, LaFleur’s stock could see a rise even if the Niners try retaining him in some sort of promotional coordinator role behind Shanahan.
And that could ultimately lead to another team calling LaFleur’s name as a head coaching candidate.