Raheem Morris' hire as 49ers defensive coordinator provides a reunion with Kyle Shanahan

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SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Kyle Shanahan wanted to bring Raheem Morris to San Francisco as an assistant when he was first hired as head coach of the 49ers in 2017 only to be blocked by the Atlanta Falcons.

Now the two longtime friends who worked together as assistants at three previous stops have been reunited with Shanahan having hired Morris this offseason as defensive coordinator to replace Robert Saleh.

“Kyle was someone that you love working with, love working for,” Morris said Thursday at his first news conference since being hired in February. "Kyle’s definitely one of those people you always want to work with. From our time being in, whether it was Tampa the original time we worked together, when we were both young puppies, or the second time we worked together when we were in D.C. and being able to be around his father, be around the Shanahan family, the tradition and the culture that they’re able to form really molded me throughout my career since I was around the Shanahans to be honest.”

Morris had a chance to join San Francisco in 2021 after his time in Atlanta ended the previous season but the Niners promoted DeMeco Ryans to defensive coordinator. Morris went to the Los Angeles Rams as defensive coordinator and helped them win the Super Bowl his first season before turning that into a head coaching job with the Falcons in 2024.

Morris was fired again after this past season by Atlanta and was Shanahan's No. 1 choice as coordinator after Saleh got the head coaching job in Tennessee and the reunion finally came together.

The relationship between Morris and Shanahan started in 2004 when Shanahan was hired as an assistant in Tampa Bay for his first NFL job where Morris was an assistant defensive backs coach on Jon Gruden's staff. They then worked together again in Washington on the staff of Kyle's father, Mike, and in Atlanta.

Morris' ties to the Niners are deeper than just Shanahan. When he first started in Tampa Bay in 2002 as a defensive quality control coach, one of the stars of that team was San Francisco general manager John Lynch.

“Raheem’s been the same guy I remember when I sat in the back of the DB room and Raheem was right behind me when he came down from Hofstra years ago,” Lynch said. “He’s a bundle of energy, he’s curious, he’s insightful. We always talk about there’s guys who drain a room and then there’s guys who give life to a room, he gives life to a room.”

One of Morris’ best traits is his versatility. He came up under the Tampa 2 system under coordinator Monte Kiffin with the Bucs. He adapted Brandon Staley’s system when he joined the Rams, switching to a three-man front, and then employed more five-man fronts during his time in Atlanta.

Now he joins a San Francisco team that has relied on four-man pass rushes during Shanahan’s tenure. Morris understands the strengths of the core that features star linebacker Fred Warner, defensive end Nick Bosa and a defensive line built to cater to line coach Kris Kocurek's attacking style.

But the Niners drafted an undersized pass rusher in Romello Height who resembles players such as Byron Young and Jalon Walker, who thrived under Morris at previous stops with the ability to rush or drop on coverage and can utilize more five-man fronts after dabbling with them last season.

“Whatever’s required, whatever’s needed to go do those things,” Morris said. "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. 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.”

Morris will be San Francisco’s fifth defensive coordinator in as many seasons. Ryans left following the 2022 season to become head coach for Houston before Shanahan cycled through Steve Wilks and Nick Sorensen the next two seasons before firing both.

Saleh, who was Shanahan’s defensive coordinator in his first four seasons in San Francisco, returned in 2025 after a failed stint as head coach of the New York Jets and did a good job piecing together a capable defense despite having a unit hampered by injuries to players such as Bosa, Warner and Mykel Williams.

Now Morris is in the role with the task of getting the unit back to its dominant form it had in 2021-22 to help the Niners get over the hump and win the Super Bowl after so many close calls.

“Nothing would be more satisfying for me personally, than to be able to come here and help this organization, this head coach, this general manager, this owner, this team, the players that they have,” he said.

“When you talk about Fred Warner and Nick Bosa and guys that absolutely you want to go win that thing for. You get chills just fully thinking about it.”

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