2024 Off-Season

[wco81]

Defense played well through 2.5 to 3 full quarters.

Last drive of regulation and in OT, it didn’t hold up.

But Bosa threw him under the bus saying they weren’t prepared for Mahomes running.

Really? All game long they rushed contain and Mahomes wasn’t running for big gains or extending plays until that OT drive, maybe the last drive of regulation.

Bosa had 10 pass pressures which was great but he also lost contain on 4th and 1when he tried to crash down on what he thought was a handoff to Pacheco up the middle.

Did Wilks told him to crash down? Well it was 4th down so did Wilks tell him or a teammate via helmet radio to crash in?

[Pattersonca65]

Defense played well through 2.5 to 3 full quarters.

Last drive of regulation and in OT, it didn’t hold up.

But Bosa threw him under the bus saying they weren’t prepared for Mahomes running.

Really? All game long they rushed contain and Mahomes wasn’t running for big gains or extending plays until that OT drive, maybe the last drive of regulation.

Bosa had 10 pass pressures which was great but he also lost contain on 4th and 1when he tried to crash down on what he thought was a handoff to Pacheco up the middle.

Did Wilks told him to crash down? Well it was 4th down so did Wilks tell him or a teammate via helmet radio to crash in?

Defense played well for over half the game but I think too much of this is being made of the Super Bowl performance and that is what prompted this decision. If you listen to Shanahan's interview, it is much deeper than that and is based on what has occured through out the season.

[49er4life1979]

Defense played well through 2.5 to 3 full quarters.

Last drive of regulation and in OT, it didn’t hold up.

But Bosa threw him under the bus saying they weren’t prepared for Mahomes running.

Really? All game long they rushed contain and Mahomes wasn’t running for big gains or extending plays until that OT drive, maybe the last drive of regulation.

Bosa had 10 pass pressures which was great but he also lost contain on 4th and 1when he tried to crash down on what he thought was a handoff to Pacheco up the middle.

Did Wilks told him to crash down? Well it was 4th down so did Wilks tell him or a teammate via helmet radio to crash in?

Defense played well for over half the game but I think too much of this is being made of the Super Bowl performance and that is what prompted this decision. If you listen to Shanahan's interview, it is much deeper than that and is based on what has occured through out the season.

It was a season long issue for sure not just one game towards the end. Wilks and Shanahan just rarely saw eye to eye. Shanahan stated that Wilks background affected the way Warner and Greenlaw play their positions. Also, that Wilks can get very aggressive sometimes which Shanahan doesnt like - blitzing in particular. It badly backfired against the Vikings right before the half. And I guess in the Super Bowl Shanahan called time out to overrule Wilks call for a blitz late in the game. Other things included the inconsistent run defense which badly rearered its ugly head in the playoffs. And the lack of effort in the NFC Title Game - Wilks did not have his unit ready to play until second half. Schematically just not a good fit either its seemed like.

[CrimsonCrew]

Defense played well through 2.5 to 3 full quarters.

Last drive of regulation and in OT, it didn’t hold up.

But Bosa threw him under the bus saying they weren’t prepared for Mahomes running.

Really? All game long they rushed contain and Mahomes wasn’t running for big gains or extending plays until that OT drive, maybe the last drive of regulation.

Bosa had 10 pass pressures which was great but he also lost contain on 4th and 1when he tried to crash down on what he thought was a handoff to Pacheco up the middle.

Did Wilks told him to crash down? Well it was 4th down so did Wilks tell him or a teammate via helmet radio to crash in?

Bosa's comments were pretty self-serving. He was arguably the most responsible defensive player in the two biggest (bad) plays of the game. He blew contain and let Mahomes get outside on the 4th and 1 read option, and then he let Mahomes get outside and deliver the ball on the TD. On the latter play, Hardman was so wide open that Mahomes almost certainly makes that throw regardless, but twice in that drive Bosa blew his edge responsibility.

[Samurai]

Wilks fired

Read on Twitter

Can't say I'm disappointed. Just seemed that our defense regressed this year, particularly in the playoffs, compared to the year before with many of our key guys still there. I actually thought our run defense would have taken a step forward adding Hargrave but that didn't happen. And with Wilks' reputation as a secondary guru I expected to see noticeable gains from Ambry Thomas and a positive impact from Oliver. With stars at every level of the defense, it would seem reasonable to think that the right DC should be able to unlock our guys and be better than they were this season.

[Harry Palmer]

Wilks fired

Read on Twitter

Can't say I'm disappointed. Just seemed that our defense regressed this year, particularly in the playoffs, compared to the year before with many of our key guys still there. I actually thought our run defense would have taken a step forward adding Hargrave but that didn't happen. And with Wilks' reputation as a secondary guru I expected to see noticeable gains from Ambry Thomas and a positive impact from Oliver. With stars at every level of the defense, it would seem reasonable to think that the right DC should be able to unlock our guys and be better than they were this season.

I thought he was at his best in some of the biggest games we had…to me the Philly win is more down to him than anyone, and the first half of the SB and overall their best defensive game in a while despite Greenlaw, and Ward and the db’s generally played better this year when healthy, but in general it just never felt like he and Kyle were right for each other. When Kyle made him come down from the booth…that was awkward. In their defense they seemed to get past it more than I expected, but it left me feeling like the shoe didn’t quite fit.

[Harry Palmer]

Also, fairly or unfairly, with the pitchforks out for Kyle I’m expecting to hear a lot about his making Wilks the scapegoat.

[CrimsonCrew]

Also, fairly or unfairly, with the pitchforks out for Kyle I’m expecting to hear a lot about his making Wilks the scapegoat.

I mean, between the offense and the defense, I'd say the offense is more responsible for this loss. Granted the KC defense was much better than the KC offense this year. But, you know, Mahomes.

[Harry Palmer]

Also, fairly or unfairly, with the pitchforks out for Kyle I’m expecting to hear a lot about his making Wilks the scapegoat.

I mean, between the offense and the defense, I'd say the offense is more responsible for this loss. Granted the KC defense was much better than the KC offense this year. But, you know, Mahomes.

Yeah, I don’t feel confident calling it either fair or unfair. Like I think I agree with the decision, but I don’t know that Kyle’s ego isn’t involved.

[CrimsonCrew]

Well obviously he can't fire himself. And he shouldn't lose his job over this. He's a hell of a coach, and the team had a hell of a season. They lost in OT to a legit dynasty with a HOF coach, QB, and TE. But Kyle has always struggled with true introspection. He's stubborn, he's arrogant. That's what makes his who he is, and that's a damn good coach, but if he isn't willing to look at his shortcomings, he's not likely to address them.

I'd love to see some more humility out of him. Perhaps his third SB loss in a game he really should have won will supply it, but I'm not holding my breath.

[Samurai]

Also, fairly or unfairly, with the pitchforks out for Kyle I’m expecting to hear a lot about his making Wilks the scapegoat.

I mean, between the offense and the defense, I'd say the offense is more responsible for this loss. Granted the KC defense was much better than the KC offense this year. But, you know, Mahomes.

If we are looking at one single game, I'd agree. But over the course of the season, I had a little more confidence in our offense than our defense (maybe 60/40?). But I had more faith in both our offense and defense than our special teams; I would think/hope that there will be another coordinator heading for the unemployment line soon.

[CrimsonCrew]

Also, fairly or unfairly, with the pitchforks out for Kyle I’m expecting to hear a lot about his making Wilks the scapegoat.

I mean, between the offense and the defense, I'd say the offense is more responsible for this loss. Granted the KC defense was much better than the KC offense this year. But, you know, Mahomes.

If we are looking at one single game, I'd agree. But over the course of the season, I had a little more confidence in our offense than our defense (maybe 60/40?). But I had more faith in both our offense and defense than our special teams; I would think/hope that there will be another coordinator heading for the unemployment line soon.

Definitely. Our STs have been garbage as long as Shanahan has been here.

[arich35]

I think it is pretty simple, Wilks just didn't mesh well with what we had been doing and. He isn't a bad coach but situational stuff he was just not great at IMO. Just watching him on the sideline of the last drive of the Superbowl he looked lost. It will be interesting on what Kyle does now to fill that spot. Mike Vrabel would obviously be a top choice but I doubt Kyle wants to bring in another outsider that he doesn't have ties to that will be kind of stubborn with how they want to do it

[Samurai]

Feels weird to even type this, but how about Pete Carroll as our new DC? Born in SF, was our DC nearly 30(!) years ago, seems 'kinda' familiar with the Seahawks, and our current defensive scheme has been based off of the aggressive Cover-3 Legion of Boom teams that Saleh learned in Seattle and implemented here when he was DC. Would he be willing to leave his executive position in Seattle to come back to the Bay?

[arich35]

Feels weird to even type this, but how about Pete Carroll as our new DC? Born in SF, was our DC nearly 30(!) years ago, seems 'kinda' familiar with the Seahawks, and our current defensive scheme has been based off of the aggressive Cover-3 Legion of Boom teams that Saleh learned in Seattle and implemented here when he was DC. Would he be willing to leave his executive position in Seattle to come back to the Bay?

I don't know if I can handle seeing his face on our sideline.
I feel like Kyle wants a younger who is up and coming

[49er4life1979]

Feels weird to even type this, but how about Pete Carroll as our new DC? Born in SF, was our DC nearly 30(!) years ago, seems 'kinda' familiar with the Seahawks, and our current defensive scheme has been based off of the aggressive Cover-3 Legion of Boom teams that Saleh learned in Seattle and implemented here when he was DC. Would he be willing to leave his executive position in Seattle to come back to the Bay?

I don't know if I can handle seeing his face on our sideline.
I feel like Kyle wants a younger who is up and coming

As much as I like Mike Vrabel, I dont see Kyle (hie ego) going that direction. It will in all likelihood be a Seattle Cover 3 guy like Saleh and Ryans. It be nice if they can get Gus Bradley to live Indy and become our DC. Lets see!

[Samurai]

Feels weird to even type this, but how about Pete Carroll as our new DC? Born in SF, was our DC nearly 30(!) years ago, seems 'kinda' familiar with the Seahawks, and our current defensive scheme has been based off of the aggressive Cover-3 Legion of Boom teams that Saleh learned in Seattle and implemented here when he was DC. Would he be willing to leave his executive position in Seattle to come back to the Bay?

I don't know if I can handle seeing his face on our sideline.
I feel like Kyle wants a younger who is up and coming

If he wants someone younger, maybe Marquand Manuel might fit the bill. He learned Carroll's defensive scheme as a secondaries coach in Seattle, worked with Shanahan in Atlanta, has experience as a DC in Atlanta, and spent the past few seasons as a defensive backs coach under Robert Saleh (our former DC and another Pete Carroll protege). At 44, he's the same age as Shanahan.

[thesack12]

I'm a little surprised that Wilks got canned, but not shocked.

Despite being more talented than last season the defense took a clear step back, the run defense especially crumbled. Despite having probably the most talented DL in the NFL, the pass rush was non-existent for LONG stretches. The DL consistently struggled to set edges in the run game, and to contain mobile QB's

There were far too many times when the defense was just flat out bad. The 3 game losing streak, they were straight up terrible which included getting worked over by a PJ Walker led Browns offense. The first half of the Packers and Lions game is as bad as you will ever see a defense play in a playoff game, and they did it in back to back games.

The defense consistently struggled to get off the field on 3rd down. There were more than a handful of games where it got deep into the 3rd quarter even the 4th and we are wondering if/when the first punt will happen. And my god were they absolutely DEPLORABLE in 3rd & Long situations.

The super soft coverage was downright infuriating at times, and made things far too easy for the offense. The most glaring examples of this were in the Super Bowl on the 2nd and 13 play late in Overtime before the snap Romo mentioned and drew on the screen to highlight the soft ass zone look, and sure enough MVS sat down right in that wide open zone and got an easy 7 yards, making it a manageable 3rd down, which they inevitably converted. Secondly, that first Rams game was soft ass zone coverage the entire game that Puka and Stafford picked apart the entire game.

There were some positives from Wilks' defense. The DB's had a good year. Ward had an all pro year, Lenoir was a very solid #2 CB, and Wilks made Ambry Thomas look like a passable NFL player like 25% of the time, and Tig Brown was solid stepping in for Hufanga. The coverage overall held up pretty well this season, especially considering the DB's were consistently forced to hold coverage for extended periods because the pass rush couldn't get pressure on the QB.

Wilks made some fantastic 2nd half adjustements numerous times this season. Which is great, however that also reflects on the poor game plans he had going into games.

Probably the most damning thing for Wilks, is not being able to get a Super Bowl winning stop despite having 2 cracks at it. The failure in overtime was especially bad. Giving up a TD was LITERALLY the only thing the defense couldn't do. Any other result to that possession would have sufficed. A turnover or stop = 49ers Super Bowl Champs, a FG = Offense gets the ball back in a sudden death first score wins situation. Yet, the defense gaggs the game away allowing the 1 thing that they couldn't do.

At the end of the day, under Wilks the defense was more talented and enjoyed better health than the defenses of the last few seasons. Despite that, the defense regressed.

Wilks seems like a good dude, and he'll land on his feet. That said, I don't think he will be missed much, although at some point not having any continuity with defensive bosses for the past several seasons might start taking a toll in a negative way.

[thesack12]

Read on Twitter

Ugh, it was a full tear.

With the advancements of today's med tech and sport medicine, a torn achilles isn't nearly as ominous as it was just 5-10 years ago.

While we will probably see Greenlaw on the field at some point next season, he may not be fully right and look like his normal self until the 2025 season.

Get well soon Dre, and good luck on that arduous rehab road you have ahead of you.

[Pattersonca65]

49er sites and some fans keep pushing Belicheck and Carroll as DC candidates. That talk just needs to end. Maybe Carroll is slightly more believable but I've been watching football for 45 years. Successful head coaches that have won super bowl(s) and have been successful coaching over a decade just do not go back to being coordinators. Belicheck and Carroll are both over 70 years old. They no longer need to prove themselves as coaches and are not going to go back to calling plays. George Seifert was younger than both and after leaving SF never considered becoming a coordinator again even though he easily could have became one.