Richard Hightower will be the 49ers’ special teams coordinator
Feb 14, 2017 at 4:10 PM
•
The San Francisco 49ers were reportedly considering two candidates for their special teams coordinator vacancy. The first was Chicago Bears assistant special teams coach Richard Hightower, who was reportedly their top candidate, and the second was Atlanta Falcons assistant special teams coach Eric Sutulovich. According to Adam Caplan of
ESPN, Hightower will get the job.
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and Hightower were teammates at the University of Texas and then served on the same staffs with the Houston Texans (2006-08), Washington Redskins (2010-13), and Cleveland Browns (2014). While Hightower has never been a coordinator, he has been a member of the 49ers coaching staff before. He served as the team's assistant special teams coach in 2015.
During that season with the 49ers, Hightower helped the punt coverage unit rank eighth in the NFL allowing just 6.4 yards per return, while working with rookie punter Bradley Pinion. Kicker Phil Dawson was 10th in the NFL with an 88.9 field goal percentage, which tied for the fourth-highest percentage of his 17-year career.
Hightower joined the Chicago staff in January of 2016.
More San Francisco 49ers News
Transcripts: What Kyle Shanahan, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Richard Hightower said ahead of 49ers-Jaguars
The San Francisco 49ers are preparing to play the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. Head coach Kyle Shanahan, special teams coordinator Richard Hightower, and quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo spoke with reporters before today's practice. Here is everything they had to say.
Transcript provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.
Head Coach Kyle Shanahan
Opening comments:
"The injuries. Mo [DL Maurice] Hurst, calf won't practice. [RB JaMycal] Hasty, ankle, won't practice, [CB] Josh Norman, ribs, limited. [WR] Deebo [Samuel], shin, limited. [OL] Jaylon Moore, knee, limited. [T] Trent Williams, he'll get a vet day and [RB] Elijah Mitchell won't practice, finger."
Any update on Elijah,
Brian Baldinger breaks down the 49ers' dismantling of the Rams
It's always fun to watch NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger break down game film. It's even more fun to watch him break down game film of a San Francisco 49ers victory. What's the only thing that can top that? Baldinger offering his unique commentary on a 49ers win during a Monday nighter because it's the only game of the day, so you get the gift of so much more analysis.
Much to the delight of The Faithful, the 49ers delivered a 31-10 beatdown of the division-rival Los Angeles Rams at Levi's Stadium. Below is a collection of all of Baldinger's analysis from the game, shared via
49ers WR Deebo Samuel named NFC Offensive Player of the Week again
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel has been named the NFC Offensive Player of the Week following his performance in Week 10 against the Los Angeles Rams. The 49ers beat the Rams 31-10 at Levi's Stadium.
Samuel totaled five receptions and 133 scrimmage yards (97 receiving, career-high 36 rushing) with two touchdowns (one receiving, one rushing) against the Rams. It was his first career game with both a receiving and rushing touchdown.
This is the second Offensive Player of the Week award for Samuel, with the first coming in Week 8 of this season. He joins Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice (1990, 1992 and 1994) as the only 49ers wide receivers to earn
49ers look to build on momentum against the Jaguars
The San Francisco 49ers are now a couple of days removed from the beat down they put on the divisional-rival Los Angeles Rams. The 49ers are now tied with the Pittsburg Steelers for most wins on Monday Night Football after destroying the Rams 31-10 at Levi's Stadium.
Emotions are high for fans and players alike, as the team finally came away with a much-needed win. For the majority of the season, the 49ers were taking a lot of heat from fans and media for their mediocre performance, lack of identity, poor execution, and the mishandling of personnel. However, after the win on Monday night, a lot of that noise has since ceased, even though those criticisms were valid and perhaps still relevant.
This was just one win. Granted, it was a massive win, one that
