It sounds as though the San Francisco 49ers have made a big addition to their offensive coaching staff. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the 49ers are set to hire Anthony Lynn as an Assistant Head Coach.
Anthony Lynn is being hired as the Assistant Head Coach of the San Francisco 49ers, per league sources. Lynn – who had other NFL and college offers – is expected to now be a key cog in the 49ers’ offense and run game.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 5, 2022
Lynn is no stranger to the 49ers organization, having spent the 1995-96 seasons on their roster as a running back before playing three seasons with the Denver Broncos under Mike Shanahan, the father of current San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan.
During his time in Denver, Lynn played under and coached with current 49ers running backs coach Bobby Turner.
Lynn spent time as running backs coach for Jacksonville (2003-04), Dallas (2005-06), and Cleveland (2007-08), and New York Jets (2009-12). Lynn had the title of Assistant head coach added with New York (2013-14) and carried that on to the Buffalo Bills (2015-16) where he also served as offensive coordinator, replacing Greg Roman who was fired after the second game of the season.
Under Lynn, the Bills rushing attack took off, averaging 177 yards per game over the last 14 weeks of the season. Lynn would be promoted to interim head coach after the firing of Rex Ryan prior to the final game of the season.
Following his time in Buffalo, Lynn was as the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers from 2017-2020. During his four seasons in Los Angeles, Lynn led the Chargers to an overall record of 34-32.
In 2021 Lynn served as offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions.
Best known for his ability to coach the running game, Lynn developed quarterback Justin Herbert into the NFL rookie of the year in 2020. This could be one of the reasons for San Francisco making this hire, as the 49ers look towards making the transition at quarterback from Jimmy Garoppolo to Trey Lance.
A lot of people really love the Lynn hire. I’m just not so sure. I guess it’s still Kyle’s offense but I’ve never really liked Lynn’s offenses. Not sure how he will fit. My impression is there is a bit of a Coach O vibe to Anthony Lynn. Recipient of great rosters and his biggest accomplishment was that he didn’t screw it up.
Also, I see that Richard Hightower signed to be the Bears ST Coordinator. In my opinion thats a huge addition by subtraction for the 49ers. The fake punt TD by the Seahawks was unforgivable to me. That was straight up Hightowers fault for a ridiculously poor punt return alignment. Special Teams has been poor under Hightower. Hopefully Kyle can attract a much better Special Teams coach to make that unit a strength instead of a weakness.
Patriot,
If McDaniel does not get a HC job I think Lynn ends up being Asst. HC and special teams coordinator.
Really? Has Lynn ever been a ST Coach?
His expertise is the run game so why wouldn’t he be the run game coordinator?
McDaniel is a Dolphin now and Lynn will probably contribute but not significantly change the 49er offensive philosophy. Why worry about Lynn when there other issues to deal with for a better 2022,
Who said they’re worried about Anthony Lynn? I think it’s a good hire. I just don’t think it’s a blockbuster win like some people are portraying it.
Who dat?
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