Kyle Shanahan on Why the 49ers Need Nick Sorensen and Brandon Staley

"Nick knows who the defensive coordinator is, and Brandon does."

Mar 26, 2024; Orlando, FL, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan speaks to the media during the NFL annual league meetings at the JW Marriott. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

SANTA CLARA -- Kyle Shanahan was asked recently how defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen and assistant head coach/defense Brandon Staley will work together this year. Here's what Shanahan said, courtesy of the 49ers P.R. department.

Q: Sorensen told us that he hadn't talked to you that much before he got this new promotion. Did you know him very well? Did you have to get to know him before you elevated him? What did you know about him even through the years, even when he was on staff?

SHANAHAN: “I mean I think I got to know him real well in these two years together, before this year. Before that, it was more from people I know real well who had worked with him. Guys that had worked with him in Seattle, guys in Jacksonville, guys that  knew him as a player and stuff. So guys who could explain to me the type of guy he was, things like that, know the type of guys that we like. Then his first year here, he was a candidate. I mean I talked to him a lot about possibly being a coordinator, he’d just been here one year and everything and I didn't think that he was quite ready for that. Then I could quickly see in year two, just dealing with him more and watching him take the second year in our defense, just how ready he was. It's been better than even expected so far.”

Q: Bringing in Brandon Staley, do you kind of arrange how that relationship is going to work? Or are Nick and Brandon kind of figuring it out?

SHANAHAN: “I'd have to arrange it if there's a problem, but there's not. Nick knows who the defensive coordinator is, and Brandon does. I have to talk to both of them. I think Brandon is in a real good spot, just leaving from being a head coach and how he can help us in a number of roles. I think Nick feels very excited to have a guy on the staff who has called plays, who has done it at a number of different places and things. I think he's helped him a lot in those ways. But no, there's no really gray area of it. Brandon is helping him on a lot of things just like all the other coaches do on the defensive staff. With Brandon's expertise just in other areas than just defense, with his expertise as a head coach and things, I thought he was a real benefit in the draft and helps me in a number of areas also.”