49ers HC Kyle Shanahan Says He was at Fault in his Car Crash

Last night, I reported that Kyle Shanahan was holding a cell phone during his car crash on July 14, but that he was not at fault. I got this information from a public government website.

On Tuesday, Shanahan called the 49ers' beat writers into his office in Santa Clara to set the record straight. The website got it wrong, Shanahan said. There was a clerical error. He was at fault for the crash, not the other driver. He said this through tears.

"I was driving," Shanahan said. "I was going 20 miles per hour. I was not on my phone, but I dropped my phone, and it was stuck in my seats. It was on my lap, and it slid off. I went down to look for it. I took my eyes off the road for two seconds, and as I was coming up, the airbags hit me in my face. It broke my nose, and they said the visor really gashed me."

Shanahan passed around a picture of his face when he was in the hospital to all the beat writers. In person, he looked handsome with a few scars. In the picture, he looked completely unrecognizable.

"I hit her," he said. "I took my eyes off the road to look at my phone, and my car veered into someone. It's one of those roads where there's no forgiveness. The impact was so violent. I'll never forget it."

As Shanahan spoke, he closed his eyes and shook his head. He seemed traumatized and in pain, particularly from the concussion he suffered during the crash.

In retrospect, the 49ers probably should have been transparent sooner. Clearly, Shanahan didn't want the other driver to get blamed or identified, and for two weeks, no one was blamed. But when the government website misreported who was at fault, Shanahan's conscience compelled him to set the record straight.

I respect Shanahan for calling us into his office and telling us face to face what really happened. That took character and vulnerability. I've never seen him be so humble and human because I don't have a relationship with him. I see the side of himself that he projects to the world. The tough coach who has all the answers.

Today, he showed a side of himself I've never seen. I have a feeling this crash has changed him forever, and maybe for the better. A near-death experience can have that effect.

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