The Associated Press is reporting that the 49ers made Ted Tollner their QB coach Wednesday, promoting the assistant who gave a boost to the club's offense late last season. Tollner's new title also includes a designation as "assistant to the head coach," Mike Nolan.

49ers' guard Larry Allen is expected to announce his retirement after 14 seasons, according to a report on the NFL Network on Thursday. One of the strongest lineman to ever play the game, the 6-3, 325-pound Allen has appeared in 11 Pro Bowls in his illustrious career. A virtual lock for the Hall of Fame, Allen played most of his career with the Cowboys after being selected out of Sonoma State in the second round of the 1994 draft.

The 49ers hired Mike Martz as their offensive coordinator Tuesday, landing one of the NFL's top offensive minds to fix a unit that floundered last season. Martz tormented the 49ers for six years during his greatest success with their NFC West rival Rams, but was fired by the Lions last week after two seasons as offensive coordinator. He replaces Jim Hostler, who also was fired last week after the 49ers matched a franchise low and finished last in the NFL with 219 points. San Francisco's offense was derided as bland and conservative -- something that shouldn't be a problem with Martz on board.

49ers' Coach Mike Nolan and his staff will lead the South team in the Senior Bowl for the third straight year. The NFL chooses the coaches each year for the game, an audition for top senior pro prospects. "I think coaching the Senior Bowl is a great opportunity and a blessing for the entire 49ers' organization," Nolan said Friday.

One NFL scout called linebacker Patrick Willis "a beast." And that was before Willis won The Associated Press 2007 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Willis' dominant performance could have been overlooked because his San Francisco 49ers went 5-11 in a mediocre division. Instead, his league-leading 174 tackles and presence all over the field made him a runaway winner and the fifth straight linebacker to take the honor. Willis earned 48 votes Friday from a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the NFL. Carolina linebacker Jon Beason received the remaining votes. "It's confirmation of what you've been doing as an individual," Willis said. "From an individual perspective, it would be good for people that doubted, or didn't know if you could be a No. 1 draft pick, or if you could come into the league and do well because of your size, or where you might have played ball at ... and show them that if you put your mind to it, you're capable of anything."

San Francisco 49ers' Coach Mike Nolan reversed course Thursday and revealed the names of three just-fired coaches who he says he's mulling for the team's offensive coordinator job, The San Francisco Chronicle reported. Nolan, on his weekly radio spot Thursday, said he's considering Cam Cameron, Mike Martz, and Brian Billick to replace the fired Jim Hostler, according to the report. Cameron was fired as the Miami Dolphins' coach Thursday, Martz was let go by the Detroit Lions Wednesday as offensive coordinator and Ravens' Coach Billick was fired Monday after nine seasons in Baltimore. Nolan this week avoided the same fate as the three candidates and will return to the 49ers next season despite going 16-32 in three years with the club. Scot McCloughan, San Francisco's top personnel executive, was formally announced as general manager Wednesday, getting a contract extension and a raise.

Mike Nolan will keep his job as the coach of the 49ers but will relinquish final say over personnel decisions, Yahoo! Sports has learned. After two days of deliberation, 49ers owners John and Denise DeBartolo York decided Tuesday to retain Nolan, who has two years left on the five-year contract he signed before the 2005 season. His 16-32 record over three seasons, including a 5-11 mark in '07, put his job in jeopardy, and he will likely make changes to his coaching staff. Nolan, who has also been the 49ers' de facto GM since joining the franchise, agreed to give up front-office control as a condition of his return. The franchise will hire a GM to assume those duties, and the leading contender is believed to be current vice president of player personnel Scott McCloughan.

The future of 49ers' Coach Mike Nolan is in limbo after the team postponed a press conference Monday, according to a report in the Contra Costa Times. Nolan, who is in the third year of a five-year deal, had a lengthy meeting with team owner John York on Monday afternoon. As the talks dragged on, the team pushed back a scheduled 2 P.M. press conference to 4 P.M. local time before cancelling it altogether.