A contract extension for San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was expected. While the news came out of nowhere after everything seemingly fell into place on Monday, the deal had reportedly been "hashed out" for nearly two months.
Talk about keeping things under wraps: Hearing that Kyle Shanahan's new deal was hashed out nearly two months ago. Shanahan does not have an agent, which might explain the lack o' leak. #49ers.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) June 15, 2020
"Shanahan's contract extension was quickly and easily hashed out between Shanahan and York before the NFL Draft in April, and news of it didn't leak until this month," wrote Matt Barrows of The Athletic.
49ers CEO Jed York in January discussed the desire to lock up Shanahan and his team-building partner, general manager John Lynch, for the foreseeable future.
"I want those guys here for a long time," York told Bay Area News Group. "If they want to do something, I'd be happy to do it."
One down. One to go.
It's reasonable to assume that with Shanahan secured, the 49ers are shifting their focus to Lynch. Barrows believes that to be the case. As does Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area. Both believe the team wants to sign Lynch to a contract extension with a length mirroring the head coach's new deal.
So why didn't the deals happen together? Both beat writers pointed out that Shanahan's previous annual salary, believed to be about $5 million, fell far behind the NFL's top-paid coaches. Adam Schefter of ESPN reported that Shanahan's new deal thrusts him into the exclusive club of the league's five highest-paid coaches.
Lynch's current deal, on the other hand, reportedly compares well to his peers across the league. Coach and general manager salaries, unlike those of players, are not made public. Lynch's deal is believed to be in the top quarter when it comes to general manager salaries, though.
While there is no rush to get a deal done with Lynch, it might make financial sense to finalize things sooner rather than later.
"There's also a sense that Lynch might be waiting to see whether new contracts for Seattle's John Schneider and New Orleans' Mickey Loomis reset the market among general managers," writes Barrows.
Then you have to wonder about other factors — such as VP of player personnel Adam Peters. Many expect him to become a hot name when it comes to future general manager openings, and the 49ers would like to keep him. But how do they do that without making him a general manager?
Barrows on Monday speculated on that topic when asked via Twitter about a potential new deal for Lynch. The tweet has been deleted, but the beat writer said there were thoughts that Lynch could receive the title of "team president" while Peters is promoted to general manager.
That's interesting. Could Lynch and Peters each see promotions, allowing the 49ers to retain both? Barrows certainly seems to believe the possibility exists ... or did.
Either way, something will likely happen with Lynch in the near future. The 49ers could be a dynasty in the making, and securing the team's top decision-makers responsible for that only makes sense.