Kyle Shanahan’s 49ers keep running into the same wall, and Colin Cowherd thinks the answer is staring right at them.
With San Francisco once again dealing with a fresh wave of injuries and sitting behind the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West, Cowherd argued that the problem is bigger than bad luck. In his view, Shanahan has not embraced the kind of cold-blooded roster thinking Sean McVay figured out years ago.
“Shanahan, to a fault, is very loyal to players. High IQ guys on both sides that are smart enough to get his schemes...
His dad was a coach... Sean McVay's grandfather was a general manager.
McVay thinks like more of a general manager. McVay is more of, "What will you do for me going forward?"
Shanahan is more, "What have you done for me?"”
That’s the heart of Cowherd’s case: McVay treats the roster like a constantly changing puzzle, while Shanahan tends to stick with players longer than most teams would. The Rams have shown they’re willing to cut bait on big names when the fit is gone, and Cowherd pointed to Todd Gurley, Jalen Ramsey, and Cooper Kupp as examples of players who once defined the franchise before being moved on from when they were no longer helping.
The 49ers, by contrast, were described by Cowherd as “old, expensive, and brittle.” He said that pattern showed up again this offseason, when San Francisco doubled back on familiar faces instead of making a hard break. That included bringing back linebacker Dre Greenlaw, who had spent one dismal season with the Broncos before getting cut, and former Bay Area favorite Deebo Samuel, who hasn’t had a 1,000 yard receiving season since 2021.
Cowherd’s larger point was that the Rams have built an edge by staying emotionally detached, while the 49ers seem stuck in a cycle of loyalty and familiarity. He framed Shanahan as someone reluctant to start over because it would mean re-teaching his playbook and trusting a younger, less familiar group.
That said, the 49ers are hardly out of chances to change the conversation. After the season, Shanahan and the front office will have decisions to make about a veteran core that includes Deebo, Christian McCaffrey, Mike Evans, and George Kittle, all of whom are at least 30 years old. In Cowherd’s telling, that puts San Francisco on a clock, especially if the goal is to contend for a Super Bowl in the Brock Purdy era.
For now, the contrast with the Rams is doing the damage. McVay keeps acting like a general manager. Shanahan, Cowherd believes, still trusts the past a little too much.
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Craigs rsum has always stood out for more than just winning. He was the first NFL player to reach 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards in the same season, a milestone only two others have matched since, and former teammates Steve Young and Ronnie Lott were quick to point to the work and commitment behind it. For a team built on iconic names, his enshrinement closes one of the more persistent gaps in the franchises history, even as the celebration of that era keeps expanding. [Read more 🡒]