Some pairings in life are just destined to be. Sonny and Cher, Donny and Marie, Jay-Z and Beyonce and now the McCaffrey and Shanahan family.
The San Francisco 49ers qualified for their second Super Bowl in five seasons this week, with both a member of the McCaffrey and Shanahan families a part of the journey.
Way back in the 1994 NFL season, Mike Shanahan was the offensive coordinator for SF while Ed McCaffrey was a wide receiver on the team. Together, the pair won three Super Bowls together, including two with the Denver Broncos with Shanahan under center.
Nearly 30 years after today, Kyle Shanahan and Christian McCaffrey have a chance to continue that legacy.
The McCaffreys and Shanahans have been intertwined since the 90s in San Francisco. Once Mike moved to Denver to be the head coach of the Broncos, Ed went with him for another nine seasons.
Additionally, Kyle served as his dad’s assistant at the age of 18, a part of the Super Bowl XXXIII team.
Christian wasn’t a part of the picture yet, celebrating his third birthday in 1999. But fate has a funny way of working sometimes, with “CMC” taking his talents to Stanford before being traded back to the Bay Area almost six years later.
Now following in his father’s footsteps, Christian McCaffrey has a chance to become only the second father-son duo to win a Super Bowl as a member of the same organization. On top of that, Kyle Shanahan has a chance to win his first ring as HC with the first organization his dad won at as well.
Christian McCaffrey has a chance to do something really cool.
Of course, there’s still a game to be played. Regardless, the gods of football have shown us that somethings are just meant to be. Here’s hoping Christian McCaffrey and Kyle Shanahan can continue the journey their fathers started three decades ago.
