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ESPN Daily

Can Kyle Shanahan Get Over the Hump?

ESPN Daily

ESPN

Sports

4.63.9K Ratings

🗓️ 7 February 2024

⏱️ 29 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is one of the best and brightest minds in the NFL. He’s overseen great success in the past five years, leading the 49ers to four NFC Championship Games, three divisional titles, and two Super Bowl appearances, one in 2019 in Super Bowl LIV and this year's Super Bowl LVIII.  But as he prepares to face a familiar foe on Sunday, the same Kansas City Chiefs team that beat him in Super Bowl LIV, the question is can he close out the game and finally claim a Super Bowl victory?  ESPN Senior writer, Seth Wickersham joins the show to explain how Shanahan’s mind is one that many in the league are inspired by, how he’s able to connect to his players, and how his offense took over the league. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Seth Wickersham, when you compare these two Super Bowl head coaches, Kyle

0:05.2

Shanahan and Andy Reed, what stands out to you, sir?

0:08.8

Well, what makes it interesting to me is that it wasn't long ago that Reed was viewed

0:13.8

like Shanahan is now and all of us were wondering what was that thing that

0:17.3

was missing after all of those playoff losses why were these coaches who were so good and so influential around the league

0:25.6

struggling to close in big games? And if you look at Kyle Shanahan's career,

0:30.8

I mean he's had a lot of success few people are as dangerous

0:35.8

calling plays as he is he's had four championship game appearances this will be

0:41.2

his second Super Bowl appearance but he hasn't won that big game yet.

0:45.9

And just four years ago, the first time these two teams met in the Super Bowl down in Miami,

0:50.5

Andy Reed was basically in the same place, leaving us to wonder, like, can he close, can he get

0:56.8

over that final hump? The first time they met in the Super Bowl, the 49ers were up 10 in the fourth quarter.

1:09.0

And then the chiefs got hot.

1:11.0

First in goal, pass open, touchdown.

1:13.6

Kelsey chiefs are back in it.

1:16.7

And it became a really tight game.

1:19.4

And Andy Reed dialed up calls that open space for his wide receivers and Patrick Mahomes hit them.

1:24.6

Mahomes throws, pass, caught, Williams, touchdown. Kansas City jumps on top.

1:34.0

And that changed lives and legacies and perceptions.

1:38.0

Kyle Shanahan, meanwhile, also dialed up calls that got receivers open and got them in open space.

1:46.6

But his quarterback Jimmy Garopolo missed them.

1:49.8

Third down, Garopolo throws not there. and right now that's the difference.

...

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