All board! The Matthew Stafford lovefest continues in the NFC West. And the latest hop aboard the train is Kyle Shannan. 

During an appearance on the “Flying Coach” podcast with Sean McVay and Peter Schrager, the 49ers head coach expressed his disdain over the trade. While ironically visiting Cabo like McVay and Stafford, Shanahan caught wind of trade negotiations between the Rams and the Lions. However, he was under the assumption that both teams wouldn’t agree on a deal until the next day. He thought he’d have time to sleep on what type of pitch he could make to the Lions. 

Unfortunately for him, that didn’t turn out to be true. 

The Lions and Rams agreed on a deal that sent Stafford to Los Angeles in exchange for Jared Goff, two first-round draft picks (2022 and 2023), and a third-rounder (2021). And according to Shanahan, the deal ruined his Saturday night.

“You don’t want to get me started. It was frustrating,” replied Shanahan after division rival head McVay asked how he felt once the Rams made the trade.

“I was in Cabo. I was watching it all.”

Kyle Shanahan on the possibility of trading for Matthew Stafford once rumors started to spread that the #Lions would be willing to trade their QB.

Reports are that the #49ers never made an official offer. #NFL #NFLTwitter #footballindex #fantasyfootball pic.twitter.com/JIGYIaZaER

— Woodward Sports Network (@woodwardsports) July 7, 2021

Kyle Shanahan was “big mad”.

As Kyle Shanahan continued to speak, his playful jealousy poured over.

“I remember looking through it because everybody was telling me it was a possibility and Stafford’s the man,” said Shanahan.

“I studied him hard coming out of college and always played against him, so you know how good he is, but to know he might be available and to spend two weeks really watching him, Sean, he’s better than I had realized. He was the man, and he’s actually underrated to me. So I know how good of a guy you got. I know how good he is at play action. I know how smart he is. Not only does he have a big arm, but he’s got touch. He knows where to go with the ball, so I was trying to get involved in it.”

“Someone who had knowledge of the situation – I remember I was talking to (Tom) Condon, everyone to find out when it was happening, and I remember Saturday I was so stressed out, and finally we talked to someone. It was like seven at night, and they’re like, ‘No, nothing’s happening. At the earliest, tomorrow.”

“So you can finish your night.’ So I’m like, alright, I’m done. Put my phone down, [and I] talked to Mandy. I’m like, ‘Alright, let’s go out to dinner, let’s have some drinks.’ Half an hour later, my buddy calls me and is like, ‘I’m just telling ya, if you want Stafford, you need to get a hold of him right now.’ I’m like, ‘What do you mean? No, we just talked to people. I can sleep on this. We’ll talk to him tomorrow.’ ‘I’m just telling you, you need to talk to him right now.’ And it totally, it was all over. What fun.”

Like McVay, Shanahan was looking to upgrade the 49ers quarterback situation. And for a good reason too. Their current quarterback situation was a dumpster fire. Jimmy Garoppolo didn’t live up to expectations. So the team needed a reset. 

As the podcast continued, both coaches traded jokes regarding the situation.

“If it makes you feel any better, it came together faster than I thought, too, Kyle,” said McVay.

And that’s when Shanahan fired one last salvo.

“The fact I was in Cabo, man, I would have been there, and I would have made it really awkward on you two to enjoy it,” Shanahan fired back. 

“You would have had to tell me to leave.”

Are the 49ers better off not landing Stafford?

Although Kyle Shanahan didn’t land Matthew Stafford, he did land a promising young quarterback in Trey Lance. The 49ers selected Lance with the third overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Matthew Stafford is an incredible quarterback talent.

As a Detroit Lion, his numbers were off the chart. However, with all of his achievements, he failed to lead the Lions to one important thing. And that’s a playoff. Stafford is 0-3 in the postseason. Along with that’s he hasn’t had postseason touchdown in seven straight quarters.

Is that something Shanahan should be salty over? Who knows. With the 49ers rebuilding, one would think they’d rather have a young talent like Lance. However, maybe the 49ers coach is feeling some heat from upper management. Maybe, just maybe the 49ers are in a “win-now” mode. It’s hard to say on the outside looking in.

Nevertheless, one thing is certain.

When the NFL season reaches the midway mark, we’ll if Kyle Shanahan still feels the same way about the trade.

Follow Kory Woods on Twitter at KoryEWoods