An ill-timed zero blitz by defensive coordinator Steve Wilks may have been what ultimately doomed the 49ers in their 22-17 Week 7 loss to the Vikings. The blitz left cornerback Charvarius Ward on an island with wide receiver Jordan Addison, which allowed the receiver to go for a 60-yard touchdown after wrestling the ball away from the CB. It turned a 10-7 Vikings lead just before halftime into a 16-7 lead and swung momentum back toward the home team.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan after the game said he and Wilks would discuss the play call during the week. In his press conference Wednesday Shanahan was able to elaborate more on what happened on that play.
“Yeah he knows, you guys I think talk to him tomorrow, he knows he messed up on that call,” Shanahan said. “I have no problem with zero blitzes, especially when people need a lot of yards. If you need to get 20 yards to kick a field goal, I have no problem with a zero blitz. But I do when there’s 16 seconds left. That’s where he lost track. There was no necessary need for that just because of the time. I have no problem with that play call, but when it’s that time you can’t do that. That’s not an option.”
It’s pretty rare that Shanahan so strongly opposes a member of his coaching staff in a press conference.
While the play wasn’t the only thing that went wrong for the 49ers, the bigger issue at hand is that Wilks apparently lost track of the time.
Minnesota had no timeouts and 16 seconds left on a third-and-6 at their own 40 in a 10-7 game. All the 49ers likely had to do was tackle whoever had the ball in bounds and they would’ve entered the half down by three.
That Wilks didn’t know how much time was on the clock is a pretty massive problem that needs to be corrected immediately. It’s unclear whether that’s something the coach keeps track of or one of the numerous assistants in the booth with him, but regardless there has to be some kind of change that ensures that never happens again.
A bad play call is going to happen, but coaches losing track of the game clock when making their play calls is not a mistake that can be repeated.
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