The leader of the league's No. 1-ranked defense is among the leading coaching candidates for the next hiring cycle, according to multiple sources around the NFL.
It's hard to imagine a 2023 NFL season where DeMeco Ryans is not the head coach of a team. The 49ers defense ranks No. 1 in points and yards allowed through four games as San Francisco comes off a 24-9 dismantling of the reigning Super Bowl champion Rams.
The 49ers (2-2) haven't allowed more than 19 points in a game so far as they face a Panthers team that averages a league-low 262.3 yards per game.
Ryans played linebacker for 10 seasons with the Texans and Eagles, earning the 2006 Defensive Rookie of the Year and a first-team All-Pro a year later.
He's been with the Niners since Kyle Shanahan got to town in 2017, first as a defensive quality control coach, then the insider linebackers before earning the defensive coordinator role in 2021 following Robert Saleh's departure to the Jets.
"DeMeco sees it differently," said one personnel executive who identified Ryans as his top pick if he had to hire a head coach. "There's something different when a middle linebacker is calling the defense. He has to know what's going on in front of him and behind him. The structure of the scheme was already in place, but he took some of the nuance out of it so guys could just line up and play."
An advantage Ryans has had — along with incredible defensive personnel in San Francisco — is the ability to grow his relationship with middle linebacker Fred Warner. He served as Warner's position coach for his first three years in the league, and Warner is an extension of Ryans on the field.
Ryans interviewed for the Vikings head-coaching position last offseason but declined a second interview. He was in line for an interview with the Raiders before they ultimately went with Josh McDaniels.