49ers hire ex-Falcons coach Raheem Morris as defensive coordinator, sources tell ESPN

"SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The San Francisco 49ers are hiring Raheem Morris as their new defensive coordinator, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Sunday. Morris will become the team's fifth coordinator in as many years. He replaces Robert Saleh, who departed to become the head coach of the Tennessee Titans. This is the second year in a row in which the Niners had to wait out the head coaching carousel before landing their man."

"Morris and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan are close friends from previous coaching stops with Tampa Bay (2004-2005), Washington (2012) and, most recently, with the Atlanta Falcons in 2015-2016. The Niners bring Morris aboard after he spent the past two seasons as Atlanta's head coach. He previously held that position in Tampa Bay from 2009 to 2011. This will be Morris' third professional stint as a defensive coordinator, having done the job in Atlanta in 2020 and for the Los Angeles Rams from 2021-2023."

"Morris coordinated a Rams defense that helped win Super Bowl LVI. The Niners, meanwhile, are looking for some stability at the coordinator position having gone from DeMeco Ryans to Steve Wilks to Nick Sorensen to Saleh in the past four years. "I definitely don't like doing this for a fifth year in a row," Shanahan said on Jan. 21. "I really would like to go on vacation, but these D-coordinators keep making me have my family wait and get mad at me for it.""

Raheem Morris was hired as the San Francisco 49ers' defensive coordinator, replacing Robert Saleh, who left to become the Tennessee Titans' head coach. Morris spent the past two seasons as Atlanta's head coach and previously led Tampa Bay from 2009 to 2011. This will be his third stint as an NFL defensive coordinator after roles in Atlanta (2020) and with the Los Angeles Rams (2021–2023), where he coordinated a defense that helped win Super Bowl LVI. Morris and Kyle Shanahan share a long coaching friendship. The 49ers aim for stability after cycling through four coordinators in four years; Saleh's 2025 defense finished 13th in points allowed and 20th in yards despite injuries to Nick Bosa and Fred Warner.

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