49ers expect to give up home game to play internationally in 2026
“So far, the league has confirmed the following locations for international games during the 2026 regular season:
Melbourne, Australia (Melbourne Cricket Ground) — Los Angeles Rams participating
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Maracanã Stadium)
Munich, Germany (FC Bayern Munich Arena)
London, England — three games
Madrid, Spain (Bernabéu Stadium)”
Is 49ers’ defense facing a difficult adjustment with hiring of Raheem Morris? “Morris, 49, has dabbled
and evolved through the years, and he’s hard to pigeonhole when it comes to his defensive philosophy. Still, Morris and Wilks are now the only coordinators among the six hires Shanahan has made who aren’t students of the Seattle-style 4-3 defense that former Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll began to popularize more than 15 years ago.”
Hutchinson: Kyle Shanahan got his ruthless pragmatist
“Morris is far closer to a polyglot than a dogmatist.
This is someone who has that same foundation as Robert Saleh. It’s the Cover-3, Legion of Boom basis that’s mostly gone the way of the dodo. *Coughs in Gus Bradley*
Morris leaned on that from 2015-20 with Quinn in Atlanta, before running a 3-4 and 5-man “penny” fronts and a healthy dose of Cover-4 and Cover-6 with the Rams. He also did an effective job with their young group when they hit the reset the following year. He opted for these fronts with Aaron Donald as his paradigm-shifting nose tackle and a still-cooking Von Miller on the edge.
He failed his first year in Atlanta trying to continue that 3-4-heavy basis, and canned his own defensive coordinator, Jimmy Lake. He took a back seat this past year, allowing Jeff Ulbrich to reform the scheme similar to what the 49ers’ ran — part of why the 49ers got their run game going against Atlanta (see: below) — with a mostly 4-3 over setup and the Wide 9.
Atlanta didn’t quite have the horses on defense, and the main, valid criticism of Morris is that he’s never had a top-10 defense by the numbers. But the Falcons, a team with 31 sacks in 2024, set a franchise record with 57 sacks last season — second in the NFL — and they wreaked havoc before falling apart in the run game in the second half of the season after the 49ers showed their weaknesses.
Morris is a pragmatist. He is as experienced a 49-year-old coach as you’ll ever find.
For a defense that Saleh had a lot of fun experimenting with early, the communication on the back end was diabolically bad at times. Once injuries set in, it led to a sharp regression. It’s part of the reason Ji’Ayir Brown went from bit player to starter. He communicated in a secondary that didn’t.
Morris speaking multiple defensive languages and having experience working with young secondaries sets this up for someone who can not just command respect from young players, but communicate effectively… and ideally, teach them to do the same.
As for that front, Morris used the Wide 9 last year. And he also saw the weaknesses of it, particularly if your defensive tackles aren’t protecting your linebackers.
He’ll see what Saleh experimented with early. It’s actually not too hard to imagine the 49ers using their variety of chess pieces with different fronts.
If they played around with a tite front (4i-0-4i), they’ve got a perfect 4i in Mykel Williams and a similar counterpart in Keion White, with Alfred Collins also feasible. CJ West is a stellar nose tackle option. And then Nick Bosa and Bryce Huff or Sam Okuayianonu at the edge? That’s enticing.“
49ers, Kyle Shanahan lose another top assistant to Titans
“As expected, the Tennessee Titans have made a move to hire San Francisco 49ers assistant head coach Gus Bradley, bringing him on as their new defensive coordinator.”
49ers defensive assistant expected to join Packers
“According to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports, the Green Bay Packers are expected to hire Bullocks for a role on head coach Matt LaFleur’s staff.”
49ers macro minute: Mac Jones and Brock Purdy split the season. Who came out on top? (paywall)
“Stout seemed to get stronger as the year went on and ended up as the team’s top rookie. Over the full season, quarterbacks had a 97.1 passer rating when targeting him. But that rating was just 74.9 over the last eight games. He allowed one touchdown (versus the Giants) and finished third on the team in tackles (82) behind linebackers Winters and Bethune.”
CBS Sports links 49ers to Joey Bosa, other key NFL free agents
“CBS Sports analyst Zachary Pereles recently examined the upcoming free-agent market, identifying the 49ers as a top landing spot for Joey Bosa, the older brother of star edge rusher Nick Bosa.”
49ers go in unexpected direction in latest NFL.com 2026 mock draft
“Sadiq (6-3, 245) is the first tight end off the board in Zierlein’s projection. Fellow NFL draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah also mocked Sadiq to the 49ers in his own projection, suggesting there may be growing consensus around the fit.”
