Coach Kyle Shanahan fired Steve Wilks, the 49ers’ defensive coordinator, as if there wasn’t already enough going on as the team recovers from Super Bowl 58 and gets ready for a busy offseason that includes holes to be filled on both the offensive and defensive lines and the presence of an apparently irate Brandon Aiyuk.
However, if they’re searching for a big-timer to succeed him, Pete Carroll, the recently fired coach of the Seahawks, is being mentioned as a plausible candidate. If he accepted the position, he would be returning to his hometown. When Carroll was the 49ers defensive coordinator in 1995 and 1996, San Francisco’s point differential was second and fourth, respectively.
Beat writer Matt Barrows at The Athletic brought up the prospect of a Carroll comeback, saying, “This makes too much sense.” Carroll, who was born in San Francisco, would get to play twice a year against his old team and take on Jim Harbaugh in the preseason. Furthermore, if Shanahan wants defense continuity? The 49ers’ recent offensive scheme, then, is modeled after Carroll’s aggressive defense scheme from 1995 to 1996 while he was San Francisco’s coordinator.
Steve Wilks Was Not the Correct Fit for the 49ers Defensive Coordinator Position
It is unclear exactly what Shanahan is searching for in a new coordinator, but we do know that he was not entirely satisfied with Wilks’ defensive decisions. To be fair to Wilks, taking over as an outsider to coach a gifted defense on a team that has prospered in recent years due to continuity was a nearly impossible task.
Wilks never really got the chance to play the style he may have desired to, and his players never gave him their full support.
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