Shearer had hinted during the week he would consider staying on as manager regardless of what division the Toon were in. And, given his cult status on Tyneside, the club's unpopular owner Mike Ashley could not afford to turn him down.
But for now, publically at least, Shearer is not looking too far ahead.
"I'll go away and speak to the owner and the chairman and give my opinion, then it's up to them as to which way they go. It needs total rebuilding," he said.
"Newcastle United in the Championship will be a big scalp next season. We're all raw, bitter and hurting and now isn't the time to speak about my future.
"There's hurt, a bit of anger too. It's a sad day for the football club, but let's be honest, we haven't be good enough all year. That's the fact - we deserve to go down, the bottom three all do."
Middlesbrough will also drop from the top tier of English football this summer, they lost 2-1 at West Ham United when only a win could have kept them up.
Boro's chairman Steve Gibson has earned a lot of praise for sticking by the manager Gareth Southgate - he seems unlikely to lose his job unless he stands down - and bringing players through the ranks.
"It's a low for our club, our supporters, our players and staff," said Southgate.
"It's a painful blow for the club but we have to take the pain today and move forward tomorrow."
Sunderland and Hull City survived in the Premier League thanks to Newcastle and Middlesbrough's defeats.
But while the Hull manager Phil Brown sang over the tannoy at the KC Stadium and was mobbed by Tigers supporters, the Sunderland boss Ricky Sbragia announced he was to step down.