49ers' Owner Jed York Advocates For Kyle Shanahan To Win NFL Award

Jed York sticks up for Kyle Shanahan.

Feb 2, 2026; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers chief executive officer Jed York speaks during the Bay Area host committee press conference at the Super Bowl LX media center at the Moscone Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

SAN FRANCISCO -- It cannot be overstated how tremendous a job Kyle Shanahan did with the San Francisco 49ers in 2025.

To lead the 49ers to 12 wins and one playoff victory is nothing short of stellar. Most coaches, if not all of them, would've failed in the same situation as Shanahan.

That is why Shanahan deserves to win the NFL Coach of the Year award. He's practically undeniable, and 49ers owner Jed York echoes that sentiment.

Jed York sticks up for Kyle Shanahan

Sep 28, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan during the second quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

"I think Kyle deserves to win Coach of the Year," said York to Kay Adams on The Up and Adams Show. "I think that's a no-brainer. We had so many things come up that we were able to overcome, and I think a testament to Kyle."

No other team in the NFL had more money tied up on the Injured Reserve list than the 49ers. It's indicative of the amount of star power they had missing.

As much as scheme matters, winning football games is about the Jimmys and the Joes. Without the talent, it's insanely difficult to win games, let alone 12 and a playoff game.

Yet, Shanahan did that with the 49ers depleted.

"This reminds me of the old school 49ers where it really was the next man up philosophy," York said. "If you lost somebody, the next man had to step up and that's something Bill Walsh really instilled into the organization, into the locker room. I don't know if you see that as much today as you did in the 80's and 90's, but I'm proud of our guys for stepping up. We'll keep fighting. I have every expectation that we'll be back."

Dec 22, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan leaves the field after the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Unfortunately, it doesn't matter if York is advocating. It's great to see him stick up for Shanahan and give him his vote of confidence. It's another point to refer to Shanahan's job being safe.

But the reality is, the NFL Honors voters will most likely give it to either Ben Johnson, Mike Vrabel, or Mike MacDonald. All of three of these coaches did incredible jobs this year.

However, in comparison to Shanahan with what he had to work with, it's a no-brainer that he should win it. None of those coaches would've done better with how little Shanahan had to work with.

Shanahan is the most deserving for the Coach of the Year award, but it's not going to happen. Prepare for him to get snubbed as he did in 2019.

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