Where does San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan rank among the NFL's elite? Opinions vary, but few would argue he belongs outside the top tier.

NBC Sports analyst Patrick Daugherty released his annual NFL head coach rankings and placed Shanahan at No. 3 overall—behind only Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams and Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs.


It might take Shanahan finally getting over the Super Bowl hump to surpass his NFC West rival, McVay.

Still, Shanahan remains one of the most respected and innovative coaches in the league, and he's coming off one of his most impressive seasons. Despite significant adversity in 2025—including injuries to key contributors—the 49ers battled to a 12-5 record, secured a playoff berth, and earned a postseason victory before falling to the eventual Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.

Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald, meanwhile, landed at No. 4 on Daugherty's list—just behind Shanahan.

Shanahan's ranking marks a one-spot improvement from last year, an impressive rise considering Daugherty's commentary on the coach's inconsistent career results.

"Kyle Shanahan's teams always win at least 12 games except for all the times they don't," Daugherty wrote. "Shanny has long since established himself as the king of variance. So is life when personnel takes a back seat to scheme and coaching. But has Shanahan finally discovered something he's been accused of lacking: Resilience?"


In 2025, Shanahan navigated stretches without several stars, including Fred Warner, Nick Bosa, Brock Purdy, and George Kittle. Many expected the 49ers to fade, regroup, and look ahead to the following season. Instead, the team remained competitive deep into the year, even coming up just short of the No. 1 seed in the playoffs.

"This would usually be the cue for Shanny to accept his 6-11 fate and start planning for next year's Super Bowl loss," Daugherty added. "And yet, there his team was, playing for the NFC's No. 1 seed in Week 18. Not even the dreary home loss to the Seahawks that ensued could obscure the fact this was a different kind of Shanahan squad, one that actually punched back after getting knocked down. That was confirmed the following week when they upset the Eagles in the Wild Card Round."

San Francisco's postseason run ended in the Divisional Round with a lopsided loss to a division rival. Still, given the circumstances, many saw the season as a surprising success.

"This is a Shanahan team that still has all of its old strengths, but with some new ones thrown in," Daugherty added. "If 'Shanny Ball' can actually denote toughness moving forward, Shanahan will soon shed his moniker as the best active coach not to lift a Lombardi."

H/t to Peter Panacy of Niner Noise for the find.

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