For most of Kyle Shanahan's tenure in San Francisco, the 49ers' defense has been built around a familiar formula: an aggressive four-man front, zone coverage and a pass rush capable of getting home without constantly blitzing.

Robert Saleh's return to San Francisco last season did little to change that identity. But with Saleh now in Tennessee and Raheem Morris taking over as defensive coordinator, the 49ers entered 2026 looking to add more versatility to their defense.


Four games into the season, it is becoming clear that Morris has made changes. But he has not completely reinvented the 49ers' defense. Instead, he has expanded it.

The 49ers Are Still a Zone-heavy Defense


The easiest assumption would be that Morris brought an entirely different defensive scheme to San Francisco. But the numbers suggest otherwise.

In the first three games, the 49ers had played zone coverage on 84.5% of their defensive snaps, compared to just 9.8% in man coverage. San Francisco had also played middle-closed coverage on 56.4% of its snaps and middle-open coverage on 39.1%.

In other words, Morris has not suddenly turned the 49ers into a man-heavy defense. That is important because the biggest difference between Morris and Saleh may not be what coverage San Francisco plays. The 49ers are still comfortable playing zone behind an aggressive front. Morris, however, is giving the defense more ways to create uncertainty before the snap.

More Ways to Attack Up Front


The biggest change has come along the defensive front. The 49ers have continued to use their traditional four-man front while incorporating more five-man looks. Morris' previous defenses, particularly with the Rams and Falcons, used five-man fronts more frequently than San Francisco had in recent years.


That gives Morris another option. A defense can show five potential rushers at the line of scrimmage without necessarily sending all five. Linebackers can threaten to blitz before dropping into coverage, while defensive linemen can stunt into different gaps. The quarterback and offensive line are then forced to determine where the actual pressure is coming from.

It Is Not Simply About Blitzing More


Morris is blitzing more than Saleh did last season, but that alone does not explain the difference.

San Francisco blitzed on 23.4% of its defensive snaps under Saleh in 2025. Going into the game against Denver, that number had increased to 27.9%. That is an increase, but it is not enough to turn San Francisco into an extremely aggressive blitzing defense.

The more interesting part is what happens when the 49ers do not blitz. Against Denver in Week 4, San Francisco blitzed Bo Nix on 29.5% of his dropbacks but still pressured him on 43.2% of those plays. The 49ers did not record a sack, but they consistently moved Nix out of the pocket while maintaining their coverage.

That is where Morris' influence becomes more apparent. He does not need to send six defenders to create pressure. He can change the front, use stunts, move linebackers around and create pressure with four or five rushers to challenge the quarterback.


The Difference is Happening Before the Snap


Saleh's defense was built around allowing the four-man rush to win while the secondary maintained its structure. Morris can still do that, but he is adding more disguise to the process.

A linebacker can line up at the line of scrimmage and threaten a blitz without rushing. A defensive lineman can shift gaps. A defensive back can creep toward the box. The defense can show a five-man front and then drop a player into coverage.

The offense has to account for all of those possibilities. And that can create opportunities for the four-man rush even when the 49ers are not technically blitzing. This may ultimately be the biggest difference between the two defenses.

Warner and Greenlaw Give Morris More Flexibility


Morris also has two important pieces that Saleh did not have for much of last season: Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw.

Warner missed a significant portion of 2025 with an ankle injury, while Greenlaw was playing for the Broncos. Their presence gives Morris two linebackers capable of doing more than simply playing traditional linebacker roles.


That matters in a defense built around disguise. Warner and Greenlaw can threaten to pressure, drop into coverage and move around the formation without the defense having to show its cards. That versatility allows Morris to create different looks while keeping the same zone-heavy foundation.

So, How Different is the Defense?


Four games into the season, the answer appears to be different, but not completely different. The zone coverage is still there. The four-man rush is still there. But Morris has added more possibilities around that foundation.

The 49ers are blitzing more than they did under Saleh, while also using more fronts and pressure concepts. The early-season results have been encouraging. Through four games, San Francisco has allowed explosive pass plays on just 3.5% of opponent dropbacks, the lowest rate through four games by any team since 2000.

The defense also held Denver to 14 points in Week 4 as the 49ers improved to 4-0.

It is too early to know whether those numbers will hold throughout the season. But Morris does not appear to be trying to throw away the defensive identity San Francisco has relied on for years. He is just adding to it.

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