San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan during an NFL game.
T
he 2026 NFL season is fast approaching. After the NFL Draft concludes later this month, the focus will shift towards minicamps and OTAs, where teams will get their first chance to see their 2026 rosters in action. For the San Francisco 49ers, the 2026 campaign is a big one– one that is about proving that they still have what it takes to be Super Bowl contenders. Dealing with a slew of injuries last season that prevented them from reaching their full potential, the 49ers want to stay healthy this season and turn the tables on their fortunes.
Led by 10th year head coach, Kyle Shanahan, the 49ers are ready to reach new heights and be the team they know they can be. Despite facing major adversity in 2025, Shanahan put together arguably his best season as a head coach, leading the 49ers to a 12-5 record and a return to the playoffs after a one year absence. Shanahan is a top coach in the NFL for reasons like that, and heading into the ’26 season, he is already getting a ton of respect from around the league– especially when it comes to where he sits in the NFL coach power rankings.
Shanahan’s Favorable Ranking
In an NBC Sports article, writer Patrick Daugherty did power rankings for all of the NFL head coaches ahead of the 2026 season, and ranked Shanahan at No. 3. While consistently a top coach in the NFL, Shanahan’s ranking is a shock considering how he is ahead of Super Bowl champion Mike MacDonald, but according to Daugherty, it is what Shanahan was able to do with so little in 2025 that catapulted him up the list.
“Shanahan’s teams always win at least 12 games except for all the times they don’t. Shanny has long since established himself as the king of variance. So is life when personnel takes a back seat to scheme and coaching. But has Shanahan finally discovered something he’s been accused of lacking: Resilience? 2025 had all the hallmarks of a lost 49ers campaign,” Daugherty wrote. “A biblical wave of injuries, including at quarterback. Acrimonious disputes with the No. 1 and 2 wideouts. Questionable to nonexistent returns from many key recent draft picks.”
“This would usually be the cue for Shanny to accept his 6-11 fate and start planning for next year’s Super Bowl loss. And yet, there his team was, playing for the NFC’s No. 1 seed in Week 18. Not even the dreary home loss to the Seahawks that ensued could obscure the fact this was a different kind of Shanahan squad, one that actually punched back after getting knocked down,” Daugherty added. “That was confirmed the following week when they upset the Eagles in the Wild Card Round. By that point, another rough loss to the Seahawks in the Divisional Round didn’t even matter. This is a Shanahan team that still has all of its old strengths, but with some new ones thrown in. If “Shanny Ball” can actually denote toughness moving forward, Shanahan will soon shed his moniker as the best active coach not to lift a Lombardi.”
Can the 49ers Bounce Back?
The 49ers clearly are not happy about how last season went, given how they wasted no time in adding top tier talent. Headlined by the addition of future Hall of Fame wide receiver, Mike Evans, the 49ers also added players such as linebacker Dre Greenlaw and defensive lineman Osa Odighizuwa, filling major needs. And while the 49ers still have work to do, and need to come to an agreement with left tackle Trent Williams, the team is in a much better position now than they were at this point last year.