The San Francisco 49ers sit at 9-4 entering their bye week and they still have a legitimate shot to be the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
Despite this, head coach Kyle Shanahan continues to be disrespected.
The latest odds came out for NFL Coach of the Year candidates, and Shanahan is not even close to being one of the top candidates. Instead, the candidates with the best odds for Coach of the Year are names like Mike Vrabel of the New England Patriots and Ben Johnson of the Chicago Bears.
This makes sense because the award often goes to a coach who has turned things around for a team after a rough season or two. Vrabel is in his first year as head coach with New England and has the Pats looking like a No. 1 seed in the AFC, which is impressive after the last few seasons there have been a far cry from the glory years under franchise legends, head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady.
Similarly, Johnson has turned things around in Chicago after the Bears have been a laughingstock for many years and struggled mightily in 2024 with their new quarterback, Caleb Williams. Now in year two under Williams and year one under Johnson, the Bears currently hold the No. 1 seed in the NFC, although that could change.
Still, Shanahan deserves more recognition for the work he and his entire coaching staff have done this season.
The fact that the Niners are 9-4 on the season and look to have a very good chance to make the playoffs reflects very positively on Shanahan especially considering all of the adversity the team has had to deal with.
Why is Kyle Shanahan continuing to fall in Coach of the Year consideration?
The Niners lost both Fred Warner and Nick Bosa on defense, two essential players who were seen as linchpins on an otherwise young and inexperienced unit. Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh deserves a ton of credit for getting the most out of San Francisco's banged up defense, which is why he figures to get a lot of head-coaching buzz this offseason.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Niners were without quarterback Brock Purdy for much of the year as he dealt with a turf-toe injury and were also without star tight end George Kittle for several weeks. The wide receiving corps has been banged up, and the offensive line has seen some shuffling at key positions, yet San Francisco continued to win games.
Like Kittle said recently, if people said the 49ers would be where they are, currently, with all of the injuries and setbacks, many would have laughed. It's a testament to Shanahan and his staff the 49ers have a chance to make yet another postseason run.
Despite this, Shanahan seemingly does not get the respect he deserves.
The AP Coach of the Year Award is decided on by a panel of journalists, so perhaps if the award was voted on by players or NFL coaches, then Shanahan would have gotten his due by this point because he certainly has earned it.
With everything he has done in his Niners tenure, he has proven he is one of the best coaches in the NFL. The only thing he has yet to do is win a Super Bowl, which he has come oh so close to doing on two separate occasions.
Nick Wagoner of ESPN noted that 2019 was Shanahan’s best chance to win the award since it was the first season of success he had had with San Francisco after two lackluster year prior. He deserved it for leading the Niners to a 13-3 record and the No. 1 seed but got beaten out by Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh.
However, Shanahan surely does not care about a Coach of the Year Award as he'd likely give his left hand for a Super Bowl title, which he still has a chance at this season thanks to his great coaching job.