Sean McVay Asked Whether Kyle Shanahan Is 'in Your Head'

Two of the NFL’s top coaches will square off in the NFC Championship on Sunday night.

Sean McVay has been one of the NFL’s top coaches since taking over the Rams in 2017, though there is one coach who McVay can't seem to crack: Kyle Shanahan. 

The 49ers coach is 6–0 against McVay in the pair’s last six matchups, with 2018 marking the last time since Shanahan lost to his fellow offensive innovator. So is Shanahan in McVay’s head before the two square off in the NFC Championship? Los Angeles’s coach doesn't exactly buy the theory. 

“No,” McVay said Wednesday when asked if Shanahan is in his head.  “What I do have is respect for these guys. They've done a great job. You look at it, you've got to play well in that three-and-a-half hour window that we're allotted. You look at the last time we played them, [we] didn't finish the game.

“But this is a really good football team. We have a lot of respect for them, but we're competing and preparing to the best of our ability to see if we can advance. But this is a really good team. Kyle's an excellent coach. He's got great players, great coaches, good schemes, so that's why they're in the NFC Championship.”

Both McVay and Shanahan enter Sunday seeking their second Super Bowl appearance as head coaches. Kickoff from SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles is slated for 6:30 p.m. ET. 

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