With the San Francisco 49ers left as the only team with a head coaching vacancy, most are trying to guess what Jed York and company are going to do. Will they hire one of the favorites for the job in New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels or Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan? They have to wait until their current teams are no longer in playoff contention.
Will they go with a dark horse candidate like Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien as Mike Silver of NFL Media speculated could be a remote possibility? The 49ers have an interview coming up with Seattle Seahawks assistant head coach and offensive line coach Tom Cable. Of course, that potential hiring could result in a revolt by fans since McDaniels and Shanahan are available and the clear favorites among the Faithful.
Since the 49ers are taking their time, rumors are running rampant – as expected. After all, there is nothing to report until there is something to report. One rumor that York would allow a new head coach to select the general manager, much like the team did in 2005 when newly hired Mike Nolan brought in Scot McCloughan, was kicked off by Jason Cole of Bleacher Report. Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area shot that down fast on his Facebook page.
"That is not accurate," Maiocco said within a comment. Given Cole's track record, it's amazing that one gained any traction.
Then you had a rumor that assistant general manager Tom Gamble was still in the running for the job. "Jed York was very clear that they're going outside the organization to hire the next GM and head coach," Maiocco responded via Twitter. So unless a head coaching candidate changed York's mind, that one seemed rather odd.
Gamble may not even be part of the 49ers once a general manager is selected. Sure, he is signing punters right now, but it was made very clear that no one's job was safe. "The new general manager and the new head coach are going to make the final decisions on who's here and who's not," said York while addressing the media earlier this month.
We're going to have a lot of guess work going on until the 49ers finally make a decision. Of course, that will not happen until their primary target, whoever that may be, is available. 49ers fans may be waiting until after the Super Bowl for an official announcement. Until then, all we have is speculation. It's interesting and sometimes fun, but don't believe everything you hear.