The San Francisco 49ers suffered a huge blow to their defense a few weeks ago when Fred Warner was ruled out with a season-ending ankle injury.
It was a crushing blow, given that the 49ers had already lost defensive end Nick Bosa for the season, as San Francisco was hoping to have its stars bridge the gap with its young, developing players.
Since Warner’s injury, the 49ers’ defense has really struggled, including giving up 42 points last weekend against the Los Angeles Rams. Still, they elected not
to add any major pieces at the trade deadline, instead looking to continue developing their young core amid a playoff push.
Warner has long been the heart and soul of the 49ers defense, both on and off the field. His energy has always been infectious, and his style of play is so unique and impressive that it allows defensive coordinators to take advantage of other matchups on the field.
Now sidelined for the rest of the season, the star linebacker is still trying to find a way to impact the team in more of a coach-like role.
“Fred is kind of letting us learn,” fellow linebacker Tatum Bethune said. “He’s teaching us too, but moments like this, he’s letting us learn and figure it out and just get better from it. Because if someone is babysitting you and telling you what you need to do all the time, you’re not really going to understand what’s going on. He’s there for us, but he’s letting us learn, too.”
That learning curve, week by week, is paramount for the younger players, so having Warner as a resource while navigating the process is definitely significant.
“There’s so much learning,” defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said Thursday. “And it’s fun. I was talking to the staff about it, and I was recalling Wednesday with a young group is a little rougher than, because it’s a new game plan, right? And I told Tatum yesterday, I said, ‘If Fred tells you that his Wednesdays were awesome his first couple years he’s lying,’
“There is a learning curve there. But, you trust because of how hard they work and how important it is to them. You trust that by Sunday they’ll hit the ground running. That’s on me too. Just finding that balance of what they are and we’re all learning one another. I’m actually having a ton of fun doing it. There are frustrating moments for sure, but there’s a lot of fun because coaches are learning players, players learning coaches, and we’re all learning this thing together. Like I said, we’re going to get better every single week. I’m confident in that. The main goal is to continue getting better so that way, like I said, in January we’re hitting the ground running, and let’s see if we can do something pretty cool.”
Warner’s energy was seen just days after his injury when he was posted up at Levi’s Stadium, getting a loud ovation from the crowd. And he’s making an impact on the younger players, while also allowing them to grow on their own, which will be important for the defense to improve as the playoffs near.
The 49ers offense will have to find a way to carry this team. But, there’s still room for improvement defensively, and having an All-Pro as a mentor on the sidelines can help speed up that process.
