San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan joined general manager John Lynch to speak with the media on Tuesday. The staff that was put together to work for Shanahan in his first season as a head coach turned out to be impressive. After starting the season 0-9, the 49ers won six of their final seven games, including the last five of the season with Jimmy Garoppolo as the starting quarterback.
Despite losing their first nine games of the season, the staff kept the team together and positive throughout the adversity. Shanahan has been pleased with his staff's efforts this season and told reporters he does not envision any drastic changes.
"I don't imagine any changes," he said. "It's still early. I haven't talked to everybody. I know we've got a few guys, especially right now, some colleges are interested in and stuff. We'll see how that plays out, but I'm hoping there's not changes."
Robert Saleh has completed his first season as a defensive coordinator after spending three seasons as the linebackers coach with the Jacksonville Jaguars. His unit finished the season ranked 25th in points allowed, 24th in yards allowed, 22nd against the pass, and 22nd against the run. Despite those numbers, the 49ers defense appeared to improve as the year progressed, especially once the number of weekly injuries reduced.
"I worked with him earlier in my career," Shanahan said of Saleh. "He was a quality control [specialist with the Houston Texans] and I always really respected how he worked, and I thought he was always a very smart guy. I've kept in touch with him over the years and played against him a number of times, so I felt really good about it when I sat and interviewed him right after the Super Bowl and talking to him over the phone and doing things like that through it all.
"I knew he had, for the lack of a better word, the type of brain that I was looking for just to be able to handle it all just in the way he worked with people and stuff. I also knew he had a scheme that I really liked that I thought he could add to and change a little bit.
"Going through the year with him, he was everything I hoped for. He put in a very good scheme, adjusted it throughout the year to try to fit the players, still made adjustments, but also didn't just give up on everything when it didn't work. He had a foundation, what he believed in and he stuck to a number of things, and I think that's one thing that allowed us to get better throughout the year."