Klay Kubiak is in his first season as the offensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers, and his name is already drawing attention around the league. While head coach Kyle Shanahan continues to handle play-calling duties on game days, Kubiak plays a key role in constructing weekly game plans and shaping the offense's overall approach.

That role has previously served as a springboard within Shanahan's coaching tree. Mike McDaniel followed a similar path during the 2021 season before being hired as the Miami Dolphins' head coach in 2022.


While 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh is expected to be linked to several head coaching vacancies during the current hiring cycle, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler believes Kubiak could emerge as a prominent candidate in the next round of openings.

"From the one-year-from-now file, offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak is poised to be a hot head coaching candidate in the 2026-27 cycle," Fowler wrote. "Kyle Shanahan is very high on him, and he has the right temperament for the job. He's considered someone from this tree who could make some noise next carousel."

The good news is that San Francisco is likely to retain Kubiak for at least one more season, avoiding the potential distraction of multiple coordinators drawing outside interest during the same postseason. Had both Saleh and Kubiak been candidates this year, it could have impacted the team's playoff focus.

Instead, Shanahan and Kubiak are locked in on the immediate task at hand: preparing the 49ers for a potential upset of the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wild Card round this weekend.

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