If you can’t beat him, hire him.
The 49ers explored the possibility of making a run at Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo to fill their vacancy, according to multiple reports.
Spagnuolo has won two of his four Super Bowl rings at the expense of the 49ers, helping the Chiefs defense stifle head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense at the end of the 2019 and 2023 seasons.
Spagnuolo’s contract was set to expire after the season but the Chiefs moved quickly to extend head coach Andy Reid’s longtime right-hand man.
The new contract will pay Spagnuolo about $5 million per year, according to ESPN.
The 49ers pivoted to interviewing Spagnuolo understudy Dave Merritt, who is the Chiefs defensive backs coach.
Merritt held that same position with the Giants during Spagnuolo’s two stints as defensive coordinator in East Rutherford.
Ultimately, however, the 49ers reportedly are expected to promote pass-game specialist Nick Sorensen to defensive coordinator as well as hire former Chargers head coach and Rams defensive coordinator Brandon Staley as assistant head coach.
Spagnuolo is the only coach in NFL history to win four Super Bowls as either an offensive or defensive coordinator.
He won the first with the Giants in 2007 and has won three with the Chiefs, whose players rallied around his genius this season with “In Spags We Trust” t-shirts.
The 49ers fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilks after one season that ended in the Super Bowl LVIII loss to Spagnuolo’s Chiefs.
The Reid and Shanahan coaching trees are the most fruitful in the NFL right now and Spagnuolo crossing over would have been a wild card.