The NFL at midseason: Are Kyle Shanahan, Robert Saleh in line for AP recognition at season’s end?

SANTA CLARA — The only thing the 49ers have going for them is their record.

They’re 6-3, having equalled their entire victory output in which they collapsed down the stretch in 2024 to finish 6-11.

Considering their list of wounded, which includes Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, Mykel Williams, Brandon Aiyuk, Ricky Pearsall Jr. and Brock Purdy, plus George Kittle for a five-game stretch, it’s hard not to come to the conclusion that coach Kyle Shanahan and defensive coordinator Robert Saleh are doing some of their best work.

Has anyone done more with less? At the closest thing to a midseason in a 17-game schedule, you’d have to consider both men to be strong contenders for the Associated Press end-of-season awards Coach of the Year and Assistant Coach of the Year.

Shanahan has his offense running despite the injuries, turning Mac Jones back in to the first-round draft pick he probably should have made in 2021 when they selected Trey Lance instead at No. 3. Tackle Penii Sewell, who went to Detroit at No. 7, would have also been a winner, but I digress.

To have the 49ers at 6-3 is some of Shanahan’s best work. He’s never won the award before, finishing second to Baltimore’s John Harbaugh in 2019. It usually goes to someone who’s turned a team around, and since the 49ers lost 11 games last year, Shanahan’s on the way to doing that. Combined with keeping things together and producing something better than the sum of its parts, it says here Shanahan’s name should be at the top of the list.

But it’s a crowded field, with Mike Vrabel (New England), Ben Johnson (Chicago) and Shane Steichen (Indianapolis) also in the running depending on how the season plays out.

As for Saleh, he lost two of the NFL’s premiere defenders in Bosa and Warner and even though the 49ers can’t rush the passer (11 sacks in nine games) or make plays on balls in the air (one interception), they’ve been stout against run and are 10th in scoring defense. Three of the 49ers’ six wins were closed out by big defensive stands, strip sacks by Bosa and Bryce Huff and a forced goal line fumble and recovery by Alfred Collins.

It’s hard to know where the voting panel will stand on assistants, but Seattle OC Klint Kubiak — brother of 49ers’ Klay Kubiak — has got to get some consideration.

Here’s a look at the top 49ers in the AP Awards categories as well as the potential leaders league-wide midway through the season:

Most Valuable Player

49ers: Christian McCaffrey. He’s in rarified air as a runner-receiver, on track for his best year as a receiver (61 receptions for 626 yards, 4 TDs) and picking up steam as a runner (168 rushes, 596 yards, 4 TDs). Quarterback Mac Jones is a close second.

Whether he wins any NFL postseason awards or not, backup QB Mac Jones has kept the 49ers afloat in the first half of the season. Getty Images

NFL: It will remain a quarterback award, and there are four very good candidates so far — New England’s Drake Maye, the Rams’ Matthew Stafford, Seattle’s Sam Darnold and Tampa Bay’s Baker Mayfield. Carolina had Darnold and Mayfield at the same time and took a pass. They must be so proud.

Offensive Player of the Year

49ers: Got to give Jones the nod on this one if he’s not the 49ers’ MVP. He’s been an excellent game manager, and that’s a good thing, not a bad thing. Whether you consider win-loss as a quarterback stat or not, Jones stepped in for Purdy and is 5-2.

NFL: Have to think it’s running back Jonathan Taylor of Indianapolis (895 yards rushing, 12 TDs) ahead of Ja’Marr Chase of Cincinnati (76 receptions, 831 yards, 5 TDs) or Jaxon Smith-Njigba of Seattle (58 receptions, 948 yards, 4 TDs) but it’s pretty wide open.

Defensive Player of the Year

49ers: Whatever consternation there was about losing Dre Greenlaw has dissipated. Dee Winters leads the 49ers with 59 tackles, four for loss, and has played every game. Greenlaw started the season for Denver on injured reserve and was ejected from the first game upon his return.

NFL: Micah Parsons, with 6 1/2 sacks in eight games, has given no cause for Green Bay to regret the blockbuster trade to Dallas.

Offensive Rookie of the Year

49ers: Now that Spencer Burford is back and Ben Bartch could be as well, it should spell the end of the rookie starting run for seventh-round draft pick Connor Colby. Colby started out well and then had some difficulties but he had more playing time in six starts than the 49ers ever expected.

NFL: Tampa Bay’s Emeka Ebuka has 34 receptions for 592 yards and 5 TDs, stepping up when Mike Evans was injured. The Giants’ Cam Scattebo was the leader until he was lost to a broken ankle.

Defensive Rookie of the Year

49ers: Through nine games it was Williams, who didn’t light it up with the pass rush but was abusing tight ends and tackles in the run game. The other rookie who has gotten considerable time is second-round pick Collins, has gotten the most snaps of rookies after safety Marques Sigle was de-emphasized in favor of Ji’Ayir Brown and Malik Mustapha.

NFL: Wide open. Carson Schwesinger, a zero-star walk on at UCLA ascended to a second-round draft pick by Cleveland, leads the Browns with 64 tackles is the leader in the clubhouse while No. 3 overall pick Abdul Carter of the Giants tries to improve his sack numbers in the second half.

Coach of the Year

49ers: This has been some of Shanahan’s best work with the 49ers.

NFL: New England’s Mike Vrabel, should the Patriots win the division, would probably be the landslide winner with voters wondering how he ever got fired in Tennessee. Keep an eye on Steichen if Indianapolis thrives.

Assistant Coach of the Year

49ers: Saleh, of course, but let’s not forget Brant Boyer, who has his unit doing more than simply holding its own of late. DeMeco Ryans won the award in 2022 before moving on to Houston, and Shanahan won in 2016 as Atlanta’s offensive coordinator.

NFL: Saleh is the leader, but Buffalo offensive coordinator Joe Brady has built an offense around Josh Allen without a lot of stars and maximized his skills. As mentioned earlier, Klint Kubiak of Seattle merits mention.

Comeback Player of the Year

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49ers: McCaffrey’s injury-riddled 2024 season should make him a factor. But Jones at quarterback has been struggling to find himself since his rookie season in 2021. The more games he plays, and the more the 49ers win, the better his chances.

NFL: It could be a Jones, all right, but Daniel and not Mac. Daniel Jones has been so good the Colts traded away first-round draft picks, apparently feeling he’s the quarterback of the future. Had five picks in his last game but like others before him (Darnold, Mayfield) has demonstrated all he needed was a decent system. Mac Jones figures in if Purdy doesn’t return.