Former Falcons coach Raheem Morris to lead 49ers' defense

"SANTA CLARA Two decades ago, when Kyle Shanahan broke into the NFL coaching ranks, he was a Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive assistant who would crash the team's defensive meetings to learn that side of the ball. Also in those discussions was Raheem Morris, the assistant defensive backs coach. That Shanahan-Morris connection would continue onto two other coaching staffs in Washington and Atlanta before Sunday's confirmation of yet another reunion."

"Shanahan is hiring Morris to serve as the 49ers' fifth defensive coordinator in as many seasons, a league source stated Sunday. Morris, 49, succeeds Robert Saleh, who was hired as the Tennessee Titans coach after reprising his role as the 49ers' defensive coordinator this past season after serving as Shanahan's initial DC from 2017-20."

"Morris became available when the Atlanta Falcons unexpectedly fired him after a two-year run, and they've overhauled their hierarchy by hiring former MVP quarterback Matt Ryan as president, Kevin Stefanski as coach and Ian Cunningham as general manager. Morris was in contention for the final head-coach vacancies among 10 openings in this offseason's cycle, but those last two spots are tagged for former Shanahan assistants in Klint Kubiak and Mike LaFleur, with the Las Vegas Raiders and the Arizona Cardinals, respectively."

Kyle Shanahan hired Raheem Morris as the San Francisco 49ers' defensive coordinator, the franchise's fifth defensive coordinator in five seasons. Morris, 49, previously worked with Shanahan in Tampa Bay, Washington and Atlanta. Morris succeeds Robert Saleh, who was hired as the Tennessee Titans head coach after returning as the 49ers' defensive coordinator this past season following his initial DC stint from 2017-20. Morris became available after the Atlanta Falcons fired him following a two-year run amid a front-office overhaul. Morris went 17-31 in his first head-coaching stint with the Buccaneers, went 4-7 as the 2020 Falcons' interim coach, posted 8-9 records in each of the past two seasons, and served as the Los Angeles Rams' defensive coordinator from 2021-23, when that Rams team beat the 49ers in the NFC Championship en route to a Super Bowl win.

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