The 49ers underwent some offseason changes after finishing last season with the NFL’s top defense.
Defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans exited to take the head coaching job with the Texans. Key defensive linemen Samson Ebukam and Charles Omenihu left in free agency, as did veteran defensive backs Jimmie Ward and Emmanuel Moseley. Linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair also found a new home in free agency with the Titans.
San Francisco has to figure out starters at a couple spots on defense while also organizing their depth chart with so many quality depth pieces leaving for bigger roles elsewhere this offseason.
The good news is most of the starting defense will return, including all of their star-caliber players which limits the gravity of some of the teams questions on that side of the ball.
We went through and made a pre-training camp prediction for what the starting defense is going to look like, and unlike on the offensive side, there are some definite decisions the coaching staff will have to make with the starting group.
For clarity, we listed the base 4-3 defense with the nickel cornerback included. Here’s what it looks like before camp: