The San Francisco 49ers (6-7) waxed the Chicago Bears (4-9) on Sunday, 38-13, for their first win since Week 10, nearly one month ago. Kyle Shanahan’s squad led from start to finish as Brock Purdy threw for 325 yards and a pair of touchdowns and George Kittle exploded for a season-high 151 yards on six catches.
After the game, the 49ers head coach was asked about recent trade speculation suggesting that a team — namely the Bears, who fired Matt Eberflus last week — could attempt to trade for his services in the offseason.
The rumor appeared to originate from Pro Football Talk’s NFL insider Mike Florio, who raised the idea on “The Rich Eisen Show” on Wednesday.
“I feel like Shanahan and the 49ers are getting close to the point where they would benefit mutually from a fresh start,” Florio suggested. “If you can get Shanahan and join him at the hip with Caleb Williams, are you kidding me?”
San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Mark Konezny-Imagn Images
The 44-year-old Shanahan sent a clear message on the idea after Sunday’s dominant win.
“I don’t know why they come out, but I don’t want to be any place in the world more than here,” Shanahan told reporters. “My family feels just as strong, if not a lot stronger. So I hope (he’s) gonna have to kick me out of here.”
The highly speculative trade fodder also reached the desk of 49ers general manager John Lynch, who was asked about it during a radio appearance on Friday.
“I sit back, and I try to be focused, but I’ve found the whole discussion on Kyle and some of the stuff rather comical,” Lynch told KNBR’s “Murph & Markus” show. “We have won four of the last five division championships. We’ve been in two Super Bowls.
“Look, the standard here is to win championships, and we’ve fallen short of that. I understand. But we have an excellent head coach. And the fact people are talking about stuff like that, I do find it comical.”
Now in his eighth season at the helm in San Francisco, Shanahan has guided the iconic club to a 70-58 regular season record, plus an 8-4 mark in the postseason. He signed a six-year contract extension in 2020 that runs through the end of next season.
