San Francisco 49ers have to replace 5 Coaches after Epic Super Bowl Collapse
On Wednesday (Feb. 14th) Steve Wilks was notified via conference call that he would not be back for the San Francisco 49ers. This is now the 5th coach that Kyle Shanahan will have to replace after a disappointing overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 58.
Kyle Shanahan, head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, stated earlier in the week that he didn’t expect many changes in the staff. “When asked about the past performance and future employment of defensive coordinator Steve Wilks with the San Francisco 49ers on Tuesday, head coach Kyle Shanahan gave a blanket statement about his coaching staff.
“I haven’t talked to anybody yet,” he said when asked a follow-up question on Wilks’ future after an unclear first response. “So yeah, I expect all our coaches to be back.”
That presumably includes Wilks, although Shanahan declined to go into specifics about any assistant coach in particular.” This is according to NFL.com’s Eric Edholm.
The next day Wilks was notified of his departure.
San Francisco’s Defense
This is now the 3rd Defensive Coordinator that Kyle Shanahan will have to replace since the 2020 Super Bowl appearance. Robert Saleh and DeMeco Ryans left to take on head coaching jobs, while Steve Wilks was let go.
During Shanahan’s tenure as the head coach the defense has always been in the top ranks in points against, so one would assume that it’s his “system” that Defensive Coordinators are implementing. This year was no different. Steve Wilks led the 49ers to the 3rd ranked defense in points allowed.
Coach Percentage
An average NFL Staff has roughly 12 individuals at various positions. Shanahan will have to replace 41.6% of its staff after stating he “expects all our coaches back.”
Back in 2022, an article was written about the turnover within the 49ers coaching staff. “In 2021, though, defensive coordinator Robert Saleh departed to become the head coach of the New York Jets, taking a handful of Niners assistants with him. The Niners had 13 coaches who were either new or carried a different title than in 2020. That theme carried into this offseason when the Niners’ coaching staff went through its largest makeover since Shanahan took over, with 14 coaches who are either new or have different responsibilities than last season.”
Now add 5 more major staff members to that list of having to replace 14 coaches since 2021. Shanahan has had to replace roughly 53% of his staff since the 2021 season.
What’s Next?
Most may look inward at the 49ers organization and see how successful they have been. Most may look at that success as why coaches have moved on to bigger roles on other teams. Many reasons can be “guessed” as to why. Having to replace over 50% of your staff in the past 3 seasons is not sustainable though.
Shanahan now has to find his 4th Defensive Coordinator in 3 years. Who will be next to take on the role? Will he go with a veteran such as Bill Belichick, Mike Vrabel, or Brandon Staley? Will he hire someone currently on staff like Johnny Holland (36 years of NFL Experience) or Daniel Bullocks (17 years of NFL Experience)?
With the hiring cycle complete for all teams that did not make the Super Bowl it will be interesting to see how the 49ers operate. This is also on the heels where their opponent, the Super Bowl Champ Kansas City Chiefs, just re-signed their Defensive Coordinator (Steve Spagnola) to a contract extension.
Read More:
Houston Texans Head Coach DeMeco Ryans Devastating Coach of the Year Loss
Super Bowl 58: Massive Coaching Matchup in Andy Reid vs. Kyle Shanahan
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