DE Bryce Huff is a Match Made in Heaven With 49ers DL Coach

Newly acquired 49ers defensive end Bryce Huff is ready to put 2024 behind him, and defensive line coach Kris Kocurek is just the guy to help.

Jun 11, 2025; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers defensive end Bryce Huff (47) participates in a pass rush drill during a team OTA at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

The 2024 season is one that newly acquired San Francisco 49ers defensive end Bryce Huff cannot remove from his mind fast enough.

Despite becoming a Super Bowl champion with the Philadelphia Eagles, Huff was a shell of himself. He didn't come close to the impact and stats he had in 2023 with the New York Jets.

Injuries played a role in Huff's decline, but so did the fit. Huff isn't a great fit at all for Vic Fangio's defense, which is more of the Eagles' fault than his.

Even though 2024 was a faltering one for Huff, he isn't dwelling on it. He is flipping the page and using that year as a source to help him grow with the 49ers.

"I learned a lot about myself throughout that experience, but it just didn't work out at the end of the day," Huff said. "You live and you learn. All I focus on is what I'm doing right now, and that's being a 49er and doing everything I can to help this team win."

Huff is now primed to have a bounce-back season in 2025 now that he is reunited with defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. However, he also gets to work closely with 49ers defensive line coach Kris Kocurek.

He is a coach who is going to help Huff get back to the player he was in 2023. Kocurek knows 2024 wasn't due to Huff's lack of talent.

"If you're born into a hand-in-the-ground defense, it's an adjustment period to turn yourself into a standup outside linebacker role and vice versa," Kocurek said.

"It's not snap your fingers and hey, go to a different scheme. And now you've primarily been successful throughout your career with your hand in the dirt going vertical and now you're standing up. It's a difference."

Being with the 49ers will allow Huff the prime opportunity to excel and be himself again. That will only be expedited with the match made in heaven with Kocurek.

Huff is extremely motivated and wants to put 2024 behind him. Kocurek brings a highly motivated and energetic vibe every time he steps into the 49ers' facility.

Pairing that up with Huff, along with getting him comfortable playing his natural position, is what makes this a grand match with Kocurek. Huff is already noticing it in the short span he's been there.

"My biggest takeaway from being with him is that he loves the game," said Huff on Kocurek. "And you can hear it in his voice every morning for meetings, whether it's watching cutups of somebody else, watching ourselves doing corrections, you can just hear his passion for the game and everything he does."

Huff and Kocurek still have a long way to go with each other, but it shouldn't be shocking if Kocurek can help him round out and fit instantly with the 49ers.