Report: 49ers Expected To Promote Jim Tomsula To Head Coach

Update:

Citing sources, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the 49ers are expected to announce D-line coach Jim Tomsula as their next Head Coach.

 

49ers set to promote DL coach Jim Tomsula to head coach, per sources. Still ironing out details, but Tomsula expected to be 49ers next HC.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 14, 2015

It should be noted that Schefter is quick to point out that details are still being worked on.

Earlier today, Jason Cole reported that “all signs point to” the 49ers hiring Broncos OC Adam Gase as their next head coach.

While Tomsula’s name frequently came up as the most logical in-house option, it did appear that it was Gase’s job to lose.

Tomsula has been the defensive line coach since 2007 for San Francisco.  He also had a brief stint as their interim Head Coach.

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According to Cole, the 49ers haven’t discussed the idea of Seahawks DC Dan Quinn for days now.

Earlier in the day, there was a report that Gase had agreed to become the next head coach of the 49ers, but Pro Football Talk has spoken to a source that said nothing has been agreed to as of now.

• PFT adds that Gase could still get the job.

Meanwhile, Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area reports that San Francisco has been “preparing for possibility they lose DC Vic Fangio.”

Maiocco mentions that the 49ers have discussed defensive coaches during interviews with head-coaching candidates.

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Jeff Darlington reports that the Broncos should be worried that the 49ers will close the deal with offensive coordinator Adam Gase before they get an opportunity to interview him.

• Sources tell Darlington that the 49ers are “serious” about hiring Gase and know a meeting with Broncos president/GM John Elway is on deck.

Pro Football Talk wonders if the Broncos are actually hoping for the 49ers to hire Gase so that they don’t have to pass on him as their head coach.

Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area reports that 49ers DC Vic Fangio could request a release from his contract if San Francisco goes in a different direction when it comes to filling their head-coaching vacancy.

The full list of candidates for the 49ers’ job includes:

• 49ers DL Jim Tomsula
• 49ers DC Vic Fangio (interviewed)
• Former Redskins HC Mike Shanahan (interviewed)
• Cardinals DC Todd Bowles (interviewed)
• Patriots OC Josh McDaniels (interviewed)
• Seahawks DC Dan Quinn (interviewed)
• Lions DC Teryl Austin (interviewed)
• Ravens OC Gary Kubiak
• Former Jets HC Rex Ryan (interviewed)
• Browns OC Kyle Shanahan
• Broncos OC Adam Gase (interviewed)
• UCLA Jim Mora 

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Jeff Darlington reports that the 49ers are currently meeting with Broncos OC Adam Gase in Denver regarding their head-coaching vacancy.

However, Darlington adds that the Broncos are prepared to interview Gase once his meeting with the 49ers has concluded.

Source tell Darlington that Denver is confident they will get an opportunity to make a pitch to Gase, but there is “no sense” within the Broncos organization which way Gase is likely to lean.

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Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the 49ers are expected to meet with and make a final push to hire Broncos OC Adam Gase Tuesday night.

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Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area mentions that some around the league believe defensive line coach Jim Tomsula is the front-runner for the 49ers’ job.

This is despite the fact that there have been no reports of a formal interview for Tomsula.

Mike Garafolo reports that the 49ers have yet to conduct any follow up interviews with potential candidates as of now. According to Garafolo, they have been telling candidates that they are “backchecking.”

Garafolo mentions that Seahawks DC Dan Quinn, Patriots OC Josh McDaniels, Cardinals DC Todd Bowles, and  Broncos OC Adam Gase are all in play for the position.

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Cam Inman mentions that now that Rex Ryan is going to Buffalo, he could see the 49ers promote DC Vic Fangio to head coach.

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Jason La Canfora reports that the 49ers will bring in Cardinals DC Todd Bowles for a second interview.

• According to La Canfora, the Falcons and Bears are still in play for Bowles as well.

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Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the 49ers are “very high” on Patriots OC Josh McDaniels for their head-coaching job.

• Rapoport mentions that San Francisco could still be a “dark-horse candidate” for Seahawks DC Dan Quinn.

Both McDaniels and Quinn are still in the playoffs, which means the 49ers would have to wait until they were available to officially hire either of them as their next head coach.

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Jason La Canfora reports that Lions DC Teryl Austin made a “strong impression” on the 49ers during his Thursday interview.

• According to La Canfora, Bills GM Doug Whaley has a long history with Austin and thinks “very highly” of him.
• Austin will meet with the Bears and Bills in the coming days.

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Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area reports that in the event the 49ers hire DC Vic Fangio as their next head coach, he is expected to target Kyle Shanahan as his offensive coordinator and Ed Donatell to run their defensive.

The Browns parted ways with Shanahan on Thursday, and reports have said that he’s likely to find interest from teams in need of an offensive coordinator.

Shanahan helped Robert Griffin III win the Rookie of the Year award a few years back, and even did a decent job with Brian Hoyer for at least a portion of the 2014 season, so there is a chance he could help get Colin Kaepernick back on track.

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Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle is “hearing” that former Jets HC Rex Ryan’s first choice would be the San Francisco 49ers job.

However, it remains to be seen who San Francisco has at the top of their list of potential candidates for the job.

• According to Branch, the Falcons are believed to be his No. 2 option.

Matt Barrows reports that Cardinals DC Todd Bowles will meet with the 49ers in Santa Clara on Friday and Lions DC Teryl Austin today.

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Jason La Canfora reports that Lions DC Teryl Austin will interview with the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday.

• La Canfora adds that Austin is taking his first head-coaching interview with the Atlanta Falcons on Wednesday.

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According to Jason Cole of the Bleacher Report, the San Francisco 49ers main focus right now is determine if they want to make a “big hire” such as former Redskins HC Mike Shanahan or bring in a younger coach to develop like Seahawks DC Dan Quinn or Broncos OC Adam Gase.

• A source tells Cole that 49ers CEO Jed York informed him that Shanahan is “high” on his list of head-coaching candidates.
• Ian Rapoport adds that Shanahan is “at least a serious option” for the 49ers.
• Pro Football Talk believes Shanahan could make sense for San Francisco given that he’ll be much easier to deal with than Jim Harbaugh was.

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Ian Rapoport reports that the 49ers are expected to show interest in Ravens OC Gary Kubiak once the Ravens are out of the playoffs.

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Jason La Canfora reports that Vic Fangio’s interview with the 49ers lasted in excess of six hours and he was reportedly “very impressive.”

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Mark Maske has confirmed that the 49ers have requested permission to interview Browns OC Kyle Shanahan for their head-coaching job, but no interview has been scheduled yet.

• Eric Branch clarifies that he isn’t sure if the 49ers have requested permission to speak with Browns OC Kyle Shanahan regarding their head-coaching position.

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Eric Branch reports that the 49ers have requested permission to speak with Browns OC Kyle Shanahan regarding their head-coaching position.

• Branch adds that the two sides have yet to schedule an interview.

Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer previously reported that Shanahan was on the 49ers list of head coaching candidates.

San Francisco is expected to interview Kyle’s father, Mike Shanahan, on Friday as well.

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Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reported Friday that the 49ers are expected to interview former Redskins HC Mike Shanahan this weekend.

San Francisco officials already planned to be in Denver this weekend to interview Broncos OC Adam Gase, so it looks like they won’t pass on an opportunity to interview Shanahan.

• Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area first reported 49ers GM Trent Baalke spoke to Shanahan on Tuesday.
• Maiocco adds that it’s not known whether Shanahan will get a formal interview for the job, but his son, Kyle Shanahan, is reportedly on the team’s list of coaching candidates.

Shanahan is looking to return to the NFL and has come up as potential option for the Chicago Bears.

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Albert Breer reports that Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels will interview with the San Francisco 49ers for their head-coaching vacancy on Saturday.

• McDaniels is interviewing with the Falcons‘ head-coaching job today.

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Jason La Canfora reports that the 49ers and Falcons have requested permission to interview Lions DC Teryl Austin for the head-coaching vacancy.

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ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Broncos OC Adam Gase is scheduled to interview with the 49ers, Falcons and Bears later in the week.

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Brian Costello reports that the former Jets HC Rex Ryan is interviewing with the Falcons and 49ers for the head-coaching vacancies.

• Jason La Canfora confirms that the Falcons are interviewing Ryan and adds that they are “very intrigued” by the possibility of him coaching the Falcons.

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Jason La Canfora reports that Patriots OC Josh McDaniels has agreed to interview with the 49ers this week in New England.

• La Canfora adds that McDaniels would have been the 49ers first choice back in 2011 had they not hired Jim Harbaugh.

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Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports reports that the 49ers are interviewing Seahawks DC Dan Quinn for the head-coaching vacancy Tuesday night in Seattle.

• Matt Barrows reports that the 49ers interviewed DC Vic Fangio Tuesday morning.

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Ben Volin of the Boston Globe reports that although the 49ers have requested interviews with candidates like Patriots OC Josh McDaniels, Seahawks DC Dan Quinn and Cardinals DC Todd Bowles, they could end up promoting from within.

Volin writes that DL coach Jim Tomsula is “generating a lot of buzz,” but he’s heard that DC Vic Fangio is the likelier internal candidate for the 49ers.

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Jason La Canfora reports that defensive coordinator Vic Fangio will be a factor in 49ers head coaching search.

• La Canfora mentions that Fangio has strong player support and they won’t need to talk to him right away seeing as they are more than familiar with him.

49ers ILB NaVorro Bowman said he wants Fangio to remain with the team either as their head coach or defensive coordinator next year.

“I would like to see Vic Fangio here, whether that’s head coach or DC, I’d like to see him here,” Bowman said, per Cam Inman. “We’ve built so much. There’s a lot of chemistry there with the guys who’ve been here three or four years with him, and we don’t want to lose that.”

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San Francisco has joined the list of teams seeking permission to interview Patriots OC Josh McDaniels, Ian Rapoport reports.

The 49ers are not wasting time identifying candidates, joining Atlanta as the two teams seemingly seeking out the highest profile candidates.

McDaniels was reportedly a candidate for the vacant 49ers job before Harbaugh was hired.

He could be an intriguing option to partner with QB Colin Kaepernick.

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Jason La Canfora reports that the 49ers will interview current defensive line coach Jim Tomsula.

Tomsula has long been considered the most likely in-house candidate for the San Francisco job.

Tomsula has been with the team since 2007, and served as the interim head coach when Mike Singletary was fired before Jim Harbaugh‘s arrival.

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49ers Owner Jed York held a press conference Monday stating that he will be looking for a “teacher” to be the next Head Coach of the team, in the mold of Bill Walsh.

York also mentioned that he doesn’t want it to be a “short list of candidates“, via Mike Garafolo.

Garafalo adds that he has heard that the 49ers search will likely be a lengthy, exhaustive process.

York’s wishes should come as no surprise.  The 49ers coach search is unique in that the team really did not want to part ways with Jim Harbaugh, as much as they felt it was necessary.  Accordingly, the front office will certainly be keen to find someone that will fit with the front office.

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Josina Anderson reports that the 49ers have requested permission to speak with Cardinals DC Todd Bowles and Seahawks DC Dan Quinn.

• Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reported that the 49ers have already requested permission to speak with Broncos OC Adam Gase.

It appears as though the 49ers are working quickly to get their list of candidates lined up for future interviews.

For what it’s worth, Quinn and Gase can interview this week seeing as they are both on bye, while Bowles is preparing for the Cardinals Wildcard game.

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Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the 49ers head coaching search is expected to be “lengthy and methodical.”

• According to Rapoport, San Francisco is in no hurry to hire their next coach.

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ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the San Francisco 49ers are expected to have interest in Patriots OC Josh McDaniels, Seahawks DC Dan Quinn, and Broncos OC Adam Gase amongst others.

• Schefter adds that each of these coordinators are expected to be busy in the coming days and among the most sought after head-coaching options.

Both Quinn and Gase have ties to the 49ers, as they’ve previously served as quality control coaches for San Francisco.

If the 49ers were to look at in-house candidates to replace Jim Harbaugh, defensive line coach Jim Tomsula would be the top candidate.

Previous reports said that the 49ers could target an offensive-minded coach, but you would have to think Quinn and Tomsula would get strong consideration for the job as well.

We’ll have updates regarding the 49ers next head coach as the news is available.