San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is all too familiar with his coaching staff being plucked for talent over the years.
And it sounds like he's going to have to prepare for it again once the 2026 season is complete.
Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox recently compiled a list of top head-coaching candidates who'd likely be in strong consideration in 2027, and one of Shanahan's key assistants made the cut: offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak.
Kubiak, who started his NFL coaching career under Shanahan with the Niners in 2021 as a defensive quality control coach, has steadily risen through the ranks, being named Shanahan's offensive coordinator in 2025—a position he'll retain this season, too.
From Knox's breakdown, it sounds as if Shanahan is already trying his best to keep Kubiak around as long as possible:
After helping San Francisco field a top-10 offense—despite playing half the season with backup quarterback Mac Jones—Kubiak interviewed for multiple vacancies. However, he eventually withdrew his name from consideration to stay with the 49ers. Head coach Kyle Shanahan also blocked Kubiak from making a lateral move.
"He calls a lot of plays here," Shanahan said, per The Athletic's Jenna West and Matt Barrows. "He's our offensive coordinator, so I don't know, why would you let him be somebody else's offensive coordinator?"
While Kubiak has only been coaching in San Francisco since 2021, his rapid rise under Shanahan will likely land him more interviews in 2027—especially if the 49ers again have one of the league's top offenses.
Should San Francisco boast another upper-echelon offense this season, and it's reasonable to think it will after adding wide receiver Mike Evans, Kubiak would likely be a hot up-and-coming name to watch among teams with vacancies.
Klay Kubiak should be the next 49ers assistant to land a head-coaching gig
Knox also didn't hesitate to call out the 49ers coordinator's NFL bloodlines. Being the son of longtime head coach Gary Kubiak certainly helps, and it's impossible not to overlook Shanahan's own pedigree with regard to his father, Mike Shanahan.
Plus, Klay Kubiak's brother, Klint Kubiak, recently helped the Seattle Seahawks win a Super Bowl last February, and that translated into landing the Las Vegas Raiders' head-coaching job shortly thereafter.
It'd be hard to see the league passing up the opportunity to have two brothers coaching, not unlike Jim Harbaugh and John Harbaugh.
True, several of Kyle Shanahan's former assistants have failed in new coaching ventures, most recently Mike McDaniel with the Miami Dolphins, and even now-Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh's previous run as the New York Jets head coach didn't end well.
Others, however, have gone on and experienced success, such as Houston Texans head coach Demeco Ryans. And it's important to recall how Klint Kubiak was once on Shanahan's staff, too.
Perhaps Klay winds up being the next branch off the Shanahan coaching tree. And if Knox's prediction comes true, he will be.
Add us as a preferred source on Google