Initially, this would have been about how Nick Sorensen should keep his spot as the 49ers’ defensive coordinator despite his shortcomings and the defense’s late-season collapse.
I would have defended this angle by mentioning how, yes, it looked rough, but that’s what happens when you place a first-time coordinator in such a high-profile spot as the defensive coordinator of the defending NFC champions. Even with the struggles, the first year would be used as a base to grow Sorensen, allowing him to team with Brandon Staley with time to develop into a better coordinator.
Kyle Shanahan didn’t reward Sorensen with that patience, removing the first-year defensive coordinator from his post last week.