The Philadelphia Eagles did something similar last season with Vic Fangio
Kyle Shanahan held a conference call on Monday afternoon, and there were two injuries to report from the NFC Championship game. Tight end George Kittle has a toe injury. Cornerback Ambry Thomas has an ankle injury. Both players are considered day-to-day.
Shanahan says he hasn’t considered bringing in a defensive consultant/advisor for the Super Bowl like other teams have. The Philadelphia Eagles did the same with Vic Fangio last year, and now he’s their defensive coordinator.
The question comes on the heels of a lackluster first-half performance by the defense. It was fair to ask. Kyle didn’t sound too pleased about the Lions’ running game in the first half. He said the defense had the worst pursuit all season, and the common theme was how poorly the Niners executed on each carry.
Shanahan had high praise for Brandon Aiyuk. He said the San Francisco 49ers wouldn’t have been in the NFC Championship if not for a pair of third-down catches on low throws last week against the Green Bay Packers.
On Aiyuk’s 51-yard catch: “One of the best catches that I’ve ever seen in one of the biggest moments that we will all be hugely grateful for for our entire lives.”
Still, this is a team with confidence and one that expects to play in the final game each year. That’s what Shanahan said on the call: “We felt like we’ve had a chance, really every year since ‘19. We would’ve been disappointed if we didn’t get to this point. And we’re gonna be disappointed if we don’t finish the job in 2 weeks.”