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It was a little surprising that the San Francisco moved on from well-respected and consistently good defensive coordinator Steve Wilks. It’s easy to point the finger at Wilks for the frustrations of the Super Bowl and make him a scapegoat when really there was so much more that went into the loss, but that’s another discussion. The 49ers now find themselves with a pretty big hole in their defensive coaching staff, one that is latent with potential to field the best defensive unit in 2024. Could the greatest coach of all time perhaps fill the role and set himself up for one heck of a rebound?
Former New England Patriots head coach and future hall of famer Bill Belichick might just be the coach that can help put this Super Bowl-losing team on the other side of the aisle, the one that comes with rings and a fancy trophy. Given the enormous amount of talent that San Francisco boasts on the defensive side of the ball with stars littered across every position, and Bill Belichicks history as a defensive mastermind, this might be a match made in heaven.
One position Belichick has always been enamored with is versatile linebackers. From the likes of Jerod Mayo (his replacement in New England ironically enough), Dont’a Hightower, Tedy Bruschi, Jamie Collins, etc etc. it’s clear that he gets the most out of versatile linebackers. The 49ers boast the best linebacking duo in the league behind the force that is Fred Warner and Drew Greenlaw, who could be the rock of a Belichick lead defense. On the defensive line it’s easy to see Belichick getting the most of the likes of Nick Bosa, Chase Young, and Arik Armstead. It’s almost scary to think of the amount of weapons you would be handing to the best defensive coach of a generation should he land in San Francisco.
The big question might be could Belichick slow down the likes of Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, and the other super elite quarterbacks in the league. Though realistically there aren’t many defensive coaches who have been able to accomplish that outside of the defensive coordinator on the same team as Patrick Mahomes.
This is what Dont’a Hightower was doing as a rookie player.
Can’t wait to see what he does as a rookie coach. pic.twitter.com/neYs9RKr42
— Alex Barth (@RealAlexBarth) February 9, 2024
Nothing is certain when it comes to hirings but this seems like such a slam dunk hire and one that has to have crossed the minds of Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch. The only remaining question mark would be if Belichick himself would want to take the demotion and return to his roots as a defensive coordinator.