The San Francisco 49ers announcement that Kyle Shanahan is their new head coach is setting off some dominos around the NFL and college football. In a bit of a surprise, the Atlanta Falcons are set to hire Alabama offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian as their own offensive coordinator, according to Huffington Post reporter Jordan Schulz.
Former 49ers head coach Chip Kelly had been mentioned in connection with the job, but nothing seems to have developed from that. Kelly could elect to take the year off and re-assess things later this fall, but there is one possibility that could be interesting.
If Sarkisian goes to the Falcons, Nick Saban will be without an offensive coordinator. A year ago, Kelly spent some time in Tuscaloosa with Saban’s coaching staff leading up to the national title game. This doesn’t mean he will become the Tide’s next OC, but it is certainly something that is a possibility. At the very least, maybe he joins as an offensive consultant in a short term role before moving on to another head coach job.