Raheem Morris is back in Atlanta -- and he's bringing his surging 49ers defense

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Upon his return to Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday, Raheem Morris won't head toward the home locker room as the coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Instead, he will veer in the opposite direction as the San Francisco 49ers'defensive coordinator.

Six games into his tenure with the 49ers, Morris -- who spent the past two years as Atlanta's head coach -- isn't worried about how to get back into the top chair. His top priority is leading a surging defense that has already surpassed expectations. It's why, when asked last week whether he hoped to get a third crack at becoming a head coach, Morris quickly brushed the idea aside.

"We have somewhere in society been screwed up," Morris said. "We have got this illusion in our head that everybody's a head coach. There are 32 head coaches in the National Football League. There are 32 defensive coordinators, and there are 32 offensive coordinators, and there's 32 everything we do. ... We are blessed and you couldn't have a better job than all of us."

Morris' return to Atlanta provides an ideal backdrop to examine the effect he has had on a San Francisco defense that is on its fifth coordinator in as many years. With some minor but notable schematic changes to unlock a more aggressive secondary and productive front, his group provided game-winning sequences the past two weeks against Seattle and Washington. And the numbers through six undefeated weeks speak for themselves.

This season, the 49ers have allowed the fewest explosive plays (rushes of 10-plus yards and passes of 20-plus yards) in the NFL. They rank fourth in points allowed per game (18.3) and yards allowed per play (4.7). They're also fifth in total yards allowed per game (300) and defensive expected points added (21.59), as well as seventh in ESPN's defensive efficiency metric (64.95).

Most of that production has come without star DENick Bosa (calf), as well as DTAlfred Collins (patellar tendon), DTC.J. West (knee) and DESam Okuayinonu (foot). Which is why safetyJi'Ayir Brownsaid that with a little injury luck and more time on task with Morris, San Francisco's defense can be even better the rest of the way.

"Honestly, I think we can be No. 1 in all categories, but it is a new defense," Brown said. "It is a lot of figuring things out."

Brown's belief is rooted largely in the improvement of his position group. Despite the occasional hiccup, the Niners have continuity from last season at safety (Malik MustaphaandMarques Sigle) and cornerback (Renardo Green, Deommodore Lenoir and Upton Stout). During training camp, all players in the secondary pointed to Morris' schematic tweaks as allowing them to play more freely in coverage.

Unlike previous coordinators with linebacker backgrounds, such as Robert Saleh and DeMeco Ryans, Morris comes with a long history working with defensive backs. Morris has spent nine NFL seasons working as either a defensive backs coach or a defensive pass game coordinator. He has also spent time coaching receivers, including with Atlanta in 2016 whenNiners coach Kyle Shanahan was the team's offensive coordinator.

"You can't help but bring that back to defense when you had to go back over there," Morris said about his time as an offensive coach. "When I was able to go back and really formulate how I see the game, how I feel the game, how you want to make your players feel the game, that philosophy really helped me a lot to grow."

While Morris hasn't abandoned the Niners' long-held preference for zone coverage, he has tweaked it in subtle ways that have changed how his defensive backs attack. Under Saleh in 2025, the 49ers were in base defense -- three linebackers and four defensive backs -- on just 18.5% of snaps (29th-highest rate in the NFL). They played Cover 6 -- a combination of quarters coverage on one side of the field and Cover 2 on the other -- on 11.6% of snaps (ninth-highest rate).

In part because of rookie linebackerJaden Dugger'sversatility, Morris now has the team in base defense on 37.7% of snaps (ninth-highest rate in the league). They're in Cover 6 on 19.2% of snaps (fifth-highest rate). Morris is also utilizing more "match" coverage, which asks defenders to start in traditional zone drops, keep their eyes on the quarterback and read routes to tighten up throwing lanes. If a pass catcher crosses into their path, the defender picks up that player, often only turning him loose for checkdowns and short gains.

The approach has not only served to limit big plays, but it has also allowed the secondary to be more active. That was evident in Green's two-interception game in Seattle and Mustapha's jarring hits to help seal Monday night's win over Washington.

"Those guys aren't counting on linebackers, so they have to be more aggressive in coverage," Shanahan said. "Those guys are playing concepts to stop plays without any help and that's been their edge. I think it's made them better. It's given them more confidence in practice, and I think that's what we're all seeing in games."

With the pass rush, Morris has found ways to improve a unit that ranked last in sacks (20) and sacks per dropback (3.2%) in 2025. The defensive line has missed Bosa's presence for the majority of the season, but San Francisco has varied looks with five-down linemen, sometimes deploying Dugger as an extra edge rusher. The 49ers are still just 17th in sacks per dropback (6.4%) and tied for 12th in sacks (15), though their nine sacks over the past two weeks are second most in the NFL in that span. Last season, they didn't record their 15th sack until Week 13.

The sack production is coming from all over in Morris' scheme; 11 players have contributed at least half of a sack. With defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa facing double-teams on 79% of his snaps (19th most in the NFL), Morris moves him and the other linemen around to create favorable matchups. And the DC does it withthe type of passion that has his players willing to sacrifice so someone else can get the glory.

"He's energetic, funny, but when it's time to work, he's dialed in," said rookie defensive tackle Gracen Halton, who has two sacks this season. "But he's a player's coach. He loves every single one of us and he comes out there like this is his last day."

The 49ers still have plenty to figure out. While they've limited the big plays, they've struggled to get off the field at times, ranking 24th in the NFL in opponent's time of possession (31:02). They're also 20th in defensive success rate.

But Brown and his teammates believe that those adjustments will come in time. For most recent 49ers defensive coordinators, time hasn't been an available luxury. After a season, they either moved up to head coaching jobs (Saleh and Ryans) or the Niners moved on from them (Steve Wilks and Nick Sorensen).

Shanahan hopes that the musical chairs at defensive coordinator will end with Morris. Or, at minimum, slow down dramatically.

"I see Raheem here for as long as I'm here," Shanahan said. "Raheem's so good of a coach, you've always got to be nervous you'll lose him as a head coach. But if that doesn't happen, I don't plan on him ever leaving."br/]