Immediately after the San Francisco 49ers lost in Super Bowl III, they fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilkes and are continuing to interview candidates to replace him.
They interviewed people who fans thought were bad choices, including former Los Angeles Chargers head coach Brandon Staley and current 49ers passing game specialist Nick Sorensen. According to Mike Garofolo, the team is also interviewing current Kansas City Chiefs defensive backs coach David Merritt.
Sources say the #49ers are interviewing #Chiefs defensive backs coach David Merritt for the defensive coordinator position. Merritt is a longtime and trusted assistant under Steve Spagnuolo and helped coach KC’s No. 4 pass defense this season.
The 49ers showed just how capable Merritt was in the Super Bowl when the Chiefs beat quarterback Brock Purdy on several key plays in crunch time and didn’t let him throw a potentially game-deciding touchdown. I learned. He was hired by the Chiefs just before the 2019 season and was a former defensive tackle with the New York Jets, New York Giants and Arizona Cardinals.
Kansas City has won in the past thanks to a high-powered offense and the magic wand of Patrick Mahomes, but they became a more defensive team in 2023, ranking second in points and total yards allowed. The 49ers were the best defensive team in the NFL heading into the 2022 season, but they had some issues under coach Wilks in 2023, and other teams could show that during the playoffs.
Wilkes was hired a year ago after DeMeco Ryans, San Francisco’s defensive coordinator in 2021 and 2022, left to become head coach of the Houston Texans.
Leave a Reply