Kyle Shanahan wore No. 87 as a wide receiver at Duke and Texas because those were the same digits sported by his hero: Broncos wideout Ed McCaffrey.
With his dad, Mike, serving as Denver’s head coach, Shanahan ran routes and learned the intricacies of the position from McCaffrey when he was in high school.
Now, about two decades later, it’s Shanahan who will help tutor a McCaffrey: On Tuesday, the 49ers signed Ed’s son, wide receiver Max McCaffrey, off the Packers’ practice squad.
“Obviously, my dad played for (Shanahan’s) dad, so there’s a ton of ties there,” McCraffey said Wednesday before his first practice.