The San Francisco 49ers have already fired head strength and conditioning coach Ray Wright and lost defensive backs coach Jeff Hafley, who left for Ohio State to serve as the football program's co-defensive coordinator.
Could the 49ers be preparing to lose another assistant coach?
Multiple teams are expressing interest in 49ers run-game coordinator Mike McDaniel, according to a report from former NFL wide receiver Andrew Hawkins, who played for McDaniel for one season with the Cleveland Browns.
Hearing multiple teams have inquired about 49ers Run-Game Coordinator Mike McDaniel for OC.
I played one season under Mike, & if they want an "offensive guru", Id bet ever dollar in my account that no other candidate understands offensive football the way he does. EVERY. DOLLAR.
— Andrew Hawkins (@Hawk) January 10, 2019
Hawkins currently serves as a host for SportsCenter on Snapchat.
Update: Matt Barrows of The Athletic reports that the Arizona Cardinals were among the teams which asked permission to interview McDaniel. They were, however, denied by the 49ers, which would indicate that other interested teams might be denied as well.
Source: Arizona Cardinals asked, but were denied, permission to interview #49ers run game coord. Mike McDaniel for their OC position. McDaniel is one of Kyle Shanahan's right-hand guys, especially in game planning. Shows how valuable he is to the offense.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) January 10, 2019
McDaniel, who finished his second season with San Francisco and works with running backs coach Bobby Turner, served as the 49ers' run game specialist in 2017 and run game coordinator in 2018. He came from Atlanta, where he worked two years with then-offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan as an offensive assistant. Before then, McDaniel served as the wide receivers coach for both the Browns and Washington Redskins.
The 49ers rushed for a combined 1,902 yards in 2018, which ranked No. 13 in the NFL.
