Steve Wilks received almost all the blame for the 49ers three-game losing streak. Now, he isn’t getting nearly enough credit for their current four-game winning streak. Wilks could be the Coordinator of the Year.
Just a few weeks ago, it seemed he was on the verge of getting fired. The 49ers made him move from the coach’s booth to the sideline to call plays. They essentially put him on notice. If he didn’t improve, the next move most likely would be out of the building. So Wilks had a ton at stake, and he had a bye week to find solutions. Fortunately for him, the 49ers traded for defensive end Chase Young, who has been a big addition.
But Wilks deserves most of the credit for the defense’s dominant play. Since the bye week, the 49ers defense has given up just 42 points in four games — that’s 10.5 points per game, which is phenomenal. Suddenly, the 49ers defense is performing better than it ever did under former 49ers defensive coordinators Robert Saleh or DeMeco Ryans. Those two had dominant defenses, but defenses with certain weaknesses.
Wilks’ defense currently has zero weaknesses. And he recently has fixed a problem that has plagued the 49ers for years, and that’s defending mobile quarterbacks. Neither Saleh nor Ryans could keep them in the pocket. Wilks can and does. This past week, he kept Jalen Hurts in the pocket and exposed him as a quarterback who can’t win from the pocket. Suddenly, mobile quarterbacks don’t hurt the 49ers anymor
