Kyle Shanahan, renowned for his offensive expertise and credited with leading the 49ers to three NFC Championship games in the past four years, has a secret strategy that has helped orchestrate big plays, according to star tight end George Kittle.
In a recent interview on the “Slow News Day” podcast, Kittle unveiled the surprising tactic employed by Shanahan, which challenges the perception of his ground-focused approach.
Kittle explained that Shanahan occasionally calls run plays that he knows will not be successful in order to set up play-action or bootleg-type passes.
“Kyle has this thing where, if he wants to set up a play-action or a bootleg-type pass, sometimes he’ll just call a run play that he knows is not gonna work,” Kittle revealed. “Like, we’re running a run play multiple times and it’s averaging 2 yards a carry, 2 yards a carry, 2 yards a carry. And then we throw a play-action behind it, and Deebo [Samuel] goes 75 yards.”
“And the whole thing is set up because it’s the exact same motion, the exact same alignment, it looks the exact same.”
George Kittle breaks down the secret to Kyle Shanahan’s explosive plays: “If he wants to set up a play action pass or bootleg, he will call a run play that he knows isn’t going to work…” George is so good at talking about this. pic.twitter.com/LIInE8ZKK8
— Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) June 14, 2023
Despite acknowledging the nature of the strategy, Kittle refrained from classifying it as “wasting plays,” although it essentially serves that purpose.
He clarified that Shanahan does not always view run calls as mere setups for greater pass plays, but it does confirm that “establishing the run” can be a means of establishing the pass.
Ultimately, the objective is to create openings in the defense that can be exploited for significant gains.
“Kyle Shanahan is, like, ‘If I can get my skill players involved with field – with space – in front of them, we’re all (gonna be) running for days,'” Kittle emphasized. “He can scheme us up open.”
Shanahan’s ability to create deceptive plays that exploit the defense’s vulnerabilities has contributed to his reputation as one of the best offensive minds in the NFL.
His innovative approach has been instrumental in the 49ers success, helping them become perennial contenders in the NFC.
As the 49ers gear up for the upcoming season, Shanahan’s strategic acumen and Kittle’s dynamic playmaking skills are poised to continue driving the team’s offensive prowess.