The San Fransisco 49ers have announced they're interviewing Iowa State receivers coach and passing game coordinator Noah Pauley for their "vacant" offensive coordinator position.
But there is criticism in this sense: It's a curious announcement that is clearly only meant to satisfy the NFL's Rooney Rule that requires a team interview at least two minority candidates outside of the organization.
Last week, coach Kyle Shanahan said the team intends to name the team's offensive passing game coordinator Klay Kubiak to the position of offensive coordinator.
Doing that ... without conducting interviews? That's not just strange. It's dishonest. It's against NFL law.
So now the 49ers are retro-fitting the "search.'' ... and critics are rightfully ripping them for it.
It's an unfortunate situation for Pauley, who is probably well deserving of a real shot at an NFL job. But he won't get it in San Francisco.
And it's not a "Purdy thing" as Pauley arrived at Iowa State in 2023 after Purdy was gone.
Technically, Shanahan broke the Rooney Rule by announcing Kubiak before the process of interviews was complete. And now the ensuing interviews just make the team look ridiculous.
And it's even more curious when we realize that Kubiak will only be offensive coordinator by title. It's still Shanahan's unit, and he'll still call plays.
There's no word from the league about any punishment forthcoming ... at least not yet. But that is possible. The NFL takes the Rooney Rule seriously, even if the rest of the league doesn't.
