HOUSTON -- As the Atlanta Falcons arrived in Houston for Super Bowl LI, the biggest NFL news of the day had little to do with their matchup against the New England Patriots.
It had everything to do with a key component of the Falcons' success.
Offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan moved yet another step closer to becoming the head coach in San Francisco as the 49ers announced former NFL safety and Fox analyst John Lynch as the new general manager. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Lynch, with no front-office experience, called Shanahan, volunteered for the job, and now has a six-year contract to show for it. Lynch played for Shanahan's father, Mike, in Denver.
The younger Shanahan is set for a six-year deal, too -- and plenty of power -- as soon as the Super Bowl concludes. He went through a second interview with the 49ers this past weekend.
Throughout the process, Shanahan and Falcons coach Dan Quinn have insisted Shanahan's head-coaching developments would not be a distraction to the team's playoff goals. Such has been the case through the first two postseason games, as Shanahan's offense put up 36 and 44 points, respectively, in a divisional playoff win over Seattle and an NFC Championship Game victory over Green Bay.
There will be plenty of talk this week regarding Shanahan's imminent departure and his potential replacements, so the topic of it being a distraction is sure to resurface. Plus, Shanahan himself shouldered a heavier burden when he spoke about the challenge that awaits Sunday against the New England Patriots, who boasted the league's top scoring defense in allowing just 15.6 points per game. The Falcons had the league's highest-scoring offense at 33.8 points per contest.
"It's the best defense that we've seen in the NFL this year," Shanahan said last week. "The numbers show it. And watch the film and you see exactly why their numbers are the way they are. They are extremely tough to score against. That's why they're No. 1 in the NFL. I believe only one game this year someone scored 30 points [against them].
"They have very good players all around, players that are interchangeable that can be pass-rushers, that can be linebackers, that can be corners, that can be safeties. And they have an extremely good scheme. So, it's by far the biggest challenge we've had this year."
The Falcons have shown the ability to score on anyone, hitting the 40-point mark six times, including the playoffs. Shanahan's playcalling helped paved the way for an MVP season for quarterback Matt Ryan. And Ryan's establishing an NFL first by completing touchdown passes to 13 different receivers proved how difficult Shanahan's offense is to defend.
Now it's up to Shanahan to come up with a masterful way to move the ball down the field against the Patriots. He has kept his focus on that up to this point.