The San Francisco 49ers believe they have the Jesus of defensive line coaching.
Since joining the team in 2019, defensive line coach Kris Kocurek has worked a great many miracles. He saved Arik Armstead from being remembered as another Trent Baalke failure. He coaxed an 8.5-sack season out of journeyman Kerry Hyder. He resuscitated the career of Arden Key, who was headed for the densely populated graveyard of the Raiders’ draft busts.
The team worked hard to keep Kocurek around in the 2023 offseason — staving off interest from the Houston Texans to stay — because of his ability to turn water into wine.