49ers fans watch Super Bowl LI with all eyes on Kyle Shanahan’s offense

Feb 5, 2017 at 10:09 AM1


Prior to the NFL Honors ceremony on Saturday, San Francisco 49ers CEO Jed York revealed that he would be unsurprisingly rooting for the Atlanta Falcons during Super Bowl LI. So will a lot of 49ers fans. After all, it's one thing to say that your new head coach was part of a Super Bowl. It's another thing to say that he has won one – and against a team that has a lot of Super Bowl experience like the New England Patriots.

The Atlanta Falcons offense, under offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, has been very impressive this season. They ranked first in scoring, second in total yards, third in passing yards and fifth in rushing yards this season. In 2015, the Falcons led the league in time of possession (32:19). It was enough to earn Shanahan the Assistant Coach of the Year award on Saturday.

The Falcons' 540 points scored this season tied them with the 2000 St. Louis Rams for the seventh-most in NFL history. How impressive was their 2016 campaign compared to the rest of the league? Their points scored were 71 more than any other team this season and 176 points above the league average.

The Falcons scored 30-plus points 11 times this season – the third-most ever by an NFL team. They also scored 40-plus points fives times, including a 41-13 December 8 beatdown of the 49ers, which is the third-most in NFL history.

RELATED Report: Matt Schaub could follow Shanahan to 49ers

Shanahan was able to add to the historical season by dismantling two postseason powerhouses on his way to Houston, where Super Bowl LI will be played. The first was a familiar foe to 49ers fans – the Seattle Seahawks. Shanahan's offense dismantled the Seahawks defense in a 36-20 home victory. Then they routed the red-hot visiting Green Bay Packers 44-21 in the NFC Championship Game.

The Falcons offense is good. Historically good. This season of statistical domination was engineered by Shanahan, who is widely expected to be named the new head coach of the 49ers as early as Monday. His quarterback, NFL MVP Matt Ryan, passed for a franchise record 4,944 yards, 38 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He had the league's best passer rating at 117.1.

Shanahan won't have a Matt Ryan in San Francisco. In fact, he may not have anyone at all and will likely be starting from a clean slate at the quarterback position. The Colin Kaepernick era in San Francisco is likely over. The quarterback will reportedly opt out of his contract and become a free agent in March. The 49ers do not have another quarterback under contract. One of the first duties of Shanahan and new 49ers general manager John Lynch will be to identify a target to be the team's quarterback of the future or, at the worst, identify a quarterback who can be a placeholder until the team acquires their quarterback of the future. Falcons backup quarterback Matt Schaub, a 13-year veteran scheduled to become a free agent, has already been linked to the 49ers and Shanahan.

There is no doubt that once Shanahan has his quarterback of the future and other key players in place, the 49ers offense will be successful. The offensive coordinator has done a lot with less than Matt Ryan. Over his nine seasons as an offensive coordinator in the NFL, Shanahan's offenses have ranked ninth or better in all but three seasons. They have ranked in the top eight in passing five times and have been a top five rushing unit three times.

There is a lot to be excited about with a great football mind like Shanahan's coming into town. Patience will be key for fans. The transformation will not happen overnight. It will take years to build something that remotely resembles what Shanahan had to work with in his best years. Shanahan may be focused on the New England Patriots defense right now, but following Sunday's game, win or lose, that focus will shift to the future of the 49ers.

Still, the 49ers should be more interesting to watch over the next few years, as fans observe what will hopefully be steady growth within the new regime. For now, fans will get one final glimpse of what a Shanahan offense looks like when all the pieces have been put into place before the work begins in San Francisco.

Below are the rankings of Shanahan's offenses during his nine years as an offensive coordinator.

Total Offense Season Rank
Houston Texans 2008 3
Houston Texans 2009 4
Washington Redskins 2010 18
Washington Redskins 2011 16
Washington Redskins 2012 5
Washington Redskins 2013 9
Cleveland Browns 2014 23
Atlanta Falcons 2015 7
Atlanta Falcons 2016 2

Points Scored Season Rank
Houston Texans 2008 17
Houston Texans 2009 10
Washington Redskins 2010 25
Washington Redskins 2011 26
Washington Redskins 2012 4
Washington Redskins 2013 23
Cleveland Browns 2014 27
Atlanta Falcons 2015 21
Atlanta Falcons 2016 1

Passing Offense Season Rank
Houston Texans 2008 4
Houston Texans 2009 1
Washington Redskins 2010 8
Washington Redskins 2011 14
Washington Redskins 2012 20
Washington Redskins 2013 16
Cleveland Browns 2014 20
Atlanta Falcons 2015 6
Atlanta Falcons 2016 3

Rushing Offense Season Rank
Houston Texans 2008 13
Houston Texans 2009 30
Washington Redskins 2010 30
Washington Redskins 2011 25
Washington Redskins 2012 1
Washington Redskins 2013 5
Cleveland Browns 2014 17
Atlanta Falcons 2015 19
Atlanta Falcons 2016 5
The opinions within this article are those of the writer and, while just as important, are not necessarily those of the site as a whole.


1 Comment

  • 50yearformerfaithful
    Nice hire Jed. Hope he flushes the joke niners down the toilet like he did the super bowl. A spoiled idiot hires a choker. Worst play calling in a second half, EVER. Get ready for more losing seasons. ROTFLMAO
    Feb 6, 2017 at 6:26 AM
    0

Facebook Comments



More San Francisco 49ers News



49ers' Levi's Stadium, Bay Area officially awarded Super Bowl LX in 2026

By David Bonilla
May 22

The NFL has awarded the Bay Area Super Bowl LX (60). The NFL title game will be played in February of 2026 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, home of the San Francisco 49ers. NBC will televise the event. News that the Bay Area was expected to host the Super Bowl in 2026 was first reported last week by Ben Fischer of the Sports Business Journal. In March, 49ers CEO Jed York expressed confidence that the team could lure the NFL back for a Super Bowl. Levi's Stadium hosted Super Bowl 50 on February 7, 2016, a matchup between the Denver Broncos and the Carolina



Report: Levi's Stadium expected to host Super Bowl LX in 2026

By David Bonilla
May 18

According to the Sports Business Journal, the NFL is expected to award Super Bowl LX (60) to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, home of the San Francisco 49ers. News: NFL owners are expected to award the 2026 Super Bowl to @LevisStadium at next week's meeting.— Ben Fischer (@BenFischerSBJ) May 18, 2023 The news isn't



49ers OTAs: Brock Purdy may start throwing next week, Kyle Shanahan "pretty optimistic" about Week 1 return

By David Bonilla
May 23

On Tuesday, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan provided an update on Brock Purdy. The second-year quarterback underwent surgery on March 10 to repair the tear of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow, an injury he suffered in the NFC Championship Game in January. Purdy is recovering well. There have been no setbacks as the quarterback works his way to increasing his workload. "He's doing good," Shanahan said of his quarterback's recovery. "Still staying the same. [He's] on schedule." The 49ers always believed that Purdy would be able to start throwing a football again sometime in early June. That's next week. The good news is that nothing about that timeline has changed. "I think he's allowed to throw sometime



Everything Kyle Shanahan, Brock Purdy, Trey Lance, and Sam Darnold said at 49ers OTAs

By Site Staff
May 23

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and quarterbacks Brock Purdy, Trey Lance, and Sam Darnold spoke with reporters after Tuesday's practice, the second of organized team activities (OTAs). Here is everything they had to say. Transcript provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff. Head Coach Kyle Shanahan WR Jauan Jennings was working on the side field, did he have any issues? "He just had a little tightness. We're being safe with him. Same with [WR Brandon Aiyuk] B. A., both of them, same boat." What's the thought process behind that last drill that you guys do? 11-on-11, no helmets. "Just try to ease them into that. It's something that I never


Featured

More by David Bonilla

More Articles

Share 49ersWebzone