George Paton Would Compliment Kyle Shanahan Well With 49ers
By Erik Lambert
The San Francisco 49ers are holding out hope that Minnesota Vikings assistant GM George Paton will mesh with future head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Not only is he a highly experienced executive whose had success at multiple stops around the NFL, but in many ways he’s exactly what the young coach will need. Everybody knows that Shanahan is considered one of the top offensive gurus in the NFL. His father was a two-time Super Bowl winning head coach and before that a Super Bowl-winning offensive coordinator. Now the son has his shot at the big dance.
Kyle has carved his own path of success though, producing some top offenses around the league. His most successful to date coming in Atlanta. Historically the 49ers have had their greatest successes in team building when they have a young, sharp offensive mind as head coach. They tend to know what they need to have success on that side of the ball.
So what makes Paton such a good compliment? Mostly because the bulk of his success is centered around the opposite side of the field. Dating back to his time spent as a scout and personnel director in Miami and Chicago, Paton has helped draft or sign a host of quality defensive players. Here is a short list of names that were acquired during his watch.
- Brian Urlacher
- Mike Brown
- Brian Robison
- Letroy Guion
- Everson Griffen
- Harrison Smith
- Xavier Rhodes
- Anthony Barr
- Eric Kendricks
- Daniel Hunter
Not a bad list to have a hand in. Paton is young, experienced and has patiently waited his turn. A chance to meld his defensive prowess with Shanahan’s offensive reputation gives the 49ers the best possible odds to rebuild a complete roster in a short span of time. Of course getting the quarterback position will be key for both of them.