San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator is in the midst of two battles: interviewing for head coaching positions, while game planning for this weekend's game against the Dallas Cowboys.
Ryans, who has been in the mix for head coaching interviews for a second straight offseason, chose to remain with the 49ers in 2022, electing to bypass a second interview with the Minnesota Vikings last spring, who ended up hiring Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O'Connell.
However, there's a clear difference between this cycle and the last cycle, which may ultimately decide Ryans's fate in 2023: his desire to become a head coach.
Now, that desire was certainly there in 2022, but Ryans willingly removed his name from the mix to be the Minnesota Vikings head coach, with ESPN's Nick Wagoner reporting that the timing wasn't right for the then-first-time defensive coordinator.
"Looking back, Ryans says he didn't believe the timing was right for him and his family to make the move. This time, Ryans makes it clear he's not going to jump at an opportunity just because it's out there. He wants a head-coaching job to be the right match geographically and a fit with ownership and organizational philosophy for him and his family."
However, in 2023, that's not the case for Ryans, who stated that he is ready to accept that opportunity when it comes, which seems likely this offseason with the number of requests he has received from teams looking to fill the vacancy.
"For me, with the head-coaching thing it's like, 'Are you ready man?'" Ryans said. "Yeah, I'm ready to go do it. ... It'll be the first time. But I figured out everything else. I'm pretty sure I'll figure that out, too."
Ryans is scheduled to have interviews with the Denver Broncos and Houston Texans this week, and will presumably schedule interviews with the Arizona Cardinals, Carolina Panthers, and Indianapolis Colts soon.
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