Three new coordinators and other additions will escort Kyle Shanahan into his ninth season as 49ers coach

SANTA CLARA — Season No. 9 for 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan comes with his staff’s most significant overhaul.

New coordinators are in place: Robert Saleh returns to the defense after three-plus seasons as the New York Jets coach, Brant Boyer leaves his post with the Jets to oversee the 49ers’ troubled special teams, and Klay Kubiak gets promoted on offense, where plays still will be called by Shanahan.

In a surprise, Brian Griese has been replaced after three years as quarterbacks coach by Mick Lombardi, who returned to Shanahan’s staff a year ago as a senior offensive assistant.

Griese has been a staunch advocate and mentor of Brock Purdy since his 2022 arrival as the NFL Draft’s last pick. Shanahan also interviewed D.J. Williams for quarterbacks coach, a role he’s now in with the Atlanta Falcons.

With Shanahan absent from the NFL scouting combine for a fifth straight year, general manager John Lynch is expected to address Griese’s status and other changes when meeting with reporters Wednesday in Indianapolis. Lynch’s son, Jake, was hired onto Shanahan’s staff as a defensive quality control coach after spending last season as a Washington graduate assistant.

Gus Bradley, most recently the Indianapolis Colts’ defensive coordinator, will carry the title of assistant head coach/defense under Saleh. Chris Foerster will add the title of assistant head coach/offense to his duties as offensive line coach.

Other changes to the staff: Ray Brown (defensive backs/cornerbacks), Ronald Blair III (special teams quality control), Colt Anderson (special teams assistant), Joe Graves (offensive assistant/quarterbacks), Leonard Hankerson (wide receivers, plus pass-game specialist), Andrew Hayes-Stoker (offensive assistant/wide receivers), Greg Scruggs (assistant defensive line), Jacob Webster (offensive quality control) and Patrick Hagedorn (chief of staff, football).

Although Shanahan prematurely announced Kubiak’s promotion at his season wrapup press conference last month, the league’s minority-hiring guidelines were satisfied with Shanahan’s subsequent interviews with Noah Pauley of Iowa State and Junior Adams, a former Amador Valley High-Pleasanton product who’s since been hired as the Dallas Cowboys wide receivers coach.

Only three coaches in the NFL have held their job longer than Shanahan: Mike Tomlin (Pittsburgh Steelers, 18 years), John Harbaugh (Baltimore Ravens, 17 years), and Andy Reid (Kansas City Chiefs, 12 years).

Here is a list of coaching and front office moves around the NFL heading into next season, which culminates with Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium:

HEAD COACH

Seven teams hired a new head coach, including three on the 49ers’ 2025 schedule: the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Chicago Bears, and the New Orleans Saints. Those hires:

Chicago Bears: Ben Johnson

Dallas Cowboys: Brian Schottenheimer

Jacksonville Jaguars: Liam Coen

Las Vegas Raiders: Pete Carroll

New England Patriots: Mike Vrabel

New Orleans Saints: Kellen Moore

New York Jets: Aaron Glenn

OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR

For the first time since Mike McDaniel was in this role in 2021, Shanahan officially designated an offensive coordinator. In all, 14 teams changed offensive coordinators:

49ers: Klay Kubiak.

Chicago Bears: Declan Doyle

Cleveland Browns: Tommy Dorsey

Dallas Cowboys: Clayton Adams

Detroit Lions: John Morton

Houston Texans: Nick Caley

Jacksonville Jaguars: Grant Udisnki

Las Vegas Raiders: Chip Kelly

New Orleans Saints: Doug Nussmeier

New York Jets: Tanner Engstrand

New England Patriots: Josh McDaniels

Philadelphia Eagles: Kevin Patullo

Seattle Seahawks: Klint Kubiak

Tampa Bay Bucs: Josh Grizzard

DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR

For the fourth time in five years, Shanahan sought a new defensive coordinator, and he circled back to his original one from 2017-20: Saleh, who went on to coach the New York Jets up through five games this past season. The final defensive coordinator hired was the New Orleans Saints’ Brandon Staley, who spent last season as the 49ers’ assistant head coach who worked under then-defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen:

49ers: Robert Saleh

Atlanta Falcons: Jeff Ulbrich

Chicago Bears: Dennis Allen

Cincinnati Bengals: Al Golden

Dallas Cowboys: Matt Eberflus

Detroit Lions: Kelvin Sheppard

Indianapolis Colts: Lou Anarumo

Jacksonville Jaguars: Anthony Campanile

Las Vegas Raiders: Patrick Graham

New England Patriots: Terrell Williams

New Orleans Saints: Brandon Staley

New York Jets: Steve Wilks

SPECIAL TEAMS

Insisting at season’s end that he knows how important special teams are, Shanahan hired New York Jets long-time coordinator Brant Boyer to rectify widespread issues. Sorensen, the 49ers’ defensive coordinator last season, is now the Cowboys’ special teams coordinator. Those hired:

49ers: Brant Boyer

Buffalo Bills: Chris Tabor

Dallas Cowboys: Nick Sorensen

Denver Broncos: Darren Rizzi

Miami Dolphins: Craig Aukerman

New York Jets: Chris Banjo

New Orleans Saints: Phil Galiano

Tennessee Titans: John Fassel

GENERAL MANAGER

Jacksonville Jaguars: James Gladstone

New York Jets: Darren Mougey

Las Vegas Raiders: John Spytek

Tennessee Titans: Mike Borgonzi