The bromance between Kyle Shanahan and Kirk Cousins is apparently deeper than anyone really knew.
It was 2017, shortly after Shanahan was named head coach of the 49ers, when Shanahan allegedly called the Washington Commanders to offer them the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft for Cousins.
According to Alec Lewis of The Athletic, who spoke to Shanahan’s father, legendary coach Mike Shanahan, Washington never returned the call.
That offseason, Kyle Shanahan, who had been named the head coach for the San Francisco 49ers after stops in Cleveland and Atlanta, tried to trade the No. 2 pick in the 2017 draft for Cousins, according to Mike Shanahan. “He knew Kirk knew his system, and he knew the type of guy Kirk was,” Mike Shanahan said. “But (Washington) wouldn’t even return the phone call.”
San Francisco wound up taking defensive tackle Solomon Thomas third overall after trading the second pick to the Bears, who used it to draft quarterback Mitch Trubisky.
Washington made Cousins play on the franchise tag in 2017 and then they lost him for nothing when he signed with the Vikings in free agency. Washington used the 17th pick in 2017 on defensive tackle Jonathan Allen.
The rumors linking Cousins with San Francisco have popped up from time to time over the past several offseason but no move has ever materialized. Cousins heads into the 2023 season playing out the final year of his deal with Minnesota.
Shanahan and the 49ers are betting their future, at least this season, on the last pick in the 2022 NFL draft, Brock Purdy, after trading former third overall pick Trey Lance to the Cowboys.
