Former San Francisco offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel was recently hired as the next head coach of the Miami Dolphins following the firing of Brian Flores earlier this season.
McDaniel, who was promoted to offensive coordinator after spending two years as the run-game coordinator and two years as a run-game specialist in San Francisco, was very high on his new quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who ran a similar San Francisco-style offense under then-Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian during college.
"We're going to have an extensive professional relationship, my man," McDaniel told Tagovailoa. "One thing I know about you is you have the ambition to be great. My job is to coach you, to get all that greatness out of you. And it's going to be fun, man. It's going to be work, but I know you're not afraid of that. So this is an awesome day for me and I'm damn sure going to make sure that when you look back on this day, you're going to be like, 'Damn, that was one of the best days of my career,' too. OK? But I'll earn that from you. You got me?"
Head coach Kyle Shanahan had such an extensive trust in his right-hand man McDaniel that he allowed McDaniel to formulate the run gameplan on Mondays and Tuesdays, while Shanahan worked on the passing game, per Albert Breer.
With McDaniel gone, how can you expect the 49ers to replace his role as offensive coordinator?
Well, interestingly enough, 2021 was the first year in the Shanahan era that the 49ers had an offensive coordinator, which is sensible given that Shanahan has been the playcaller.
Looking at potential names for the offensive coordinator position, Bobby Slowik, the passing-game coordinator, seems to be the prime candidate, although he may go with McDaniel to Miami.
In addition, the 49ers recently hired former Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn—whose specialty is the run game—as an assistant head coach. Coincidentally, Lynn was hired on the same day that McDaniel had his second interview with the Dolphins, perhaps as a preemptive move with the likelihood that San Francisco would lose their offensive coordinator.
A potential name was Houston Texans coach Pep Hamilton, who helped develop Justin Herbert last season and played a role in Davis Mills's development this season. However, with the hiring of Lovie Smith as their new head coach, the Texans promoted Hamilton to offensive coordinator, taking that option away.
It's very plausible that the 49ers go with their original formula, keeping everyone in their respective roles, and going into 2022 without an offensive coordinator in order to provide themselves the leeway to give an offensive assistant a promotion should another team attempt to poach them away.
That was the case when the 49ers promoted McDaniel in 2020 when the Miami Dolphins wanted him as their offensive coordinator, prompting San Francisco to make the move themselves.
The 49ers have recently become a hot coaching opportunity as many coaches have gotten higher positions following their stints with San Francisco. McDaniel was recently hired as a head coach. Robert Saleh landed the New York Jets job last offseason. Butch Barry landed Denver's offensive line coaching spot this offseason. DeMeco Ryans received a head-coaching interview, although he declined a second one. The list goes on and on.
I wouldn't be surprised if that continues next offseason, but for now, I'd expect Bobby Slowik to take over as offensive coordinator, or the position to remain vacant in 2022, with the latter being the likelier option, especially if Slowik follows McDaniel to Miami.
