Raheem Morris Shares Perfect Vision for the 49ers' Defense

This is what you can expect from the 49ers’ defense under Raheem Morris.

October 19, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris during the fourth quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Losing Robert Saleh to the Tennessee Titans left a sizable hole on the San Francisco 49ers.

However, it didn’t take long for the 49ers to shrink or even fill that hole. Within a few weeks of Saleh’s departure, the 49ers hired Raheem Morris to be their new defensive coordinator.

He’s been a coach that Kyle Shanahan has wanted on his staff for years. Of all the candidates available, Morris was the best one for the 49ers to hire.

In fact, he was the only logical fit. He proved that on Thursday at his press conference when he was asked about what the 49ers’ defensive identity will be under him.

Morris gives the perfect answer

“We definitely want to do what's best for our players. You know, you're always going to do what they do really well,” said Morris. “Fred Warner is Fred Warner for a reason. I'm going to try to utilize those guys to the best of their ability to do some of their different things and be able to have some additions, to be able to go out there and ultimately to go try to win a championship.

“Those are the expectations, and those are the things that we want to get done. So, to say it's going to be more resemblant to me or more resemblant to them, it's going to be what's best for us in order to go win football games. And I think that's the best way to look at it, ultimately, whatever it takes to go win football games, whatever it takes to go out there and get it done for us.”

Everything Morris perfectly said can be simplified in one word: adaptability. That’s an elite trait that many coaches don’t have. Morris possesses that.

The defensive identity and scheme he utilized with the Atlanta Falcons won’t be brought to the 49ers. At least, he won’t transfer it fully. Maybe there will be pieces of it, but not a lot.

Morris’ defensive scheme is adaptable. Whatever his players’ strengths are, that is what he will tailor his defense to. It’s an awesome trait to have to avoid forcing players to play out of position.

The whole point of a play caller is to put their players in the best position to be successful. Morris makes that a priority. He’s like a painter with a blank canvas.

He’ll create whatever it is that is best suited for his audience, the players. I’m sure Warner, Nick Bosa, and Deommodore Lenoir will appreciate that.

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