National Football League

Niners promote Nick Sorensen to DC, hire Brandon Staley as assistant HC

Updated Mar. 2, 2024 1:43 p.m. ET

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The San Francisco 49ers are reportedly promoting Nick Sorensen to defensive coordinator, and are expected to hire former Los Angeles Chargers coach Brandon Staley as assistant head coach, per ESPN. 

At the NFL Scouting Combine earlier this week, 49ers general manager John Lynch said the team was in "no rush" to hire a coordinator, per ESPN, but echoed what head coach Kyle Shanahan said when he announced former DC Steve Wilks' firing, that the organization did not want to stray far away from what it has done defensively for the past seven seasons. 

"We know who we are, who we're going to be, and that's not going to make a wholesale schematic change there," Lynch told reporters. "We feel good about where we're at." 

Lynch's sentiment made an in-house hire seem likely to occur, coupled with the fact that Shanahan opted to move on from Wilks due to his struggles to adapt to the defensive scheme San Francisco had utilized under previous coordinators Robert Saleh and DeMeco Ryans. 

Sorensen has been with San Francisco since 2022, when he joined the staff as a defensive assistant. He was then promoted to defensive pass game specialist and given oversight of the nickelbacks during his second season. 

Prior to his arrival in San Francisco, Sorensen spent the 2021 season as the Jacksonville Jaguars' special teams coach. Before that, Sorensen spent eight seasons with the Seattle Seahawks as the assistant special teams coach, assistant defensive backs coach and secondary coach. 

Meanwhile, Staley's hiring will give San Francisco the addition of an experienced member to its staff. Staley would replace Anthony Lynn, who left San Francisco to become the run game coordinator and running backs coach of the Washington Commanders.

Staley spent the previous two-plus seasons as the Chargers head coach, and before that, was the Los Angeles Rams' defensive coordinator in 2020. Staley has also previously served as the outside linebackers coach for the Chicago Bears (2017-18) and the Denver Broncos (2019). 

Staley was also in consideration for the Niners' DC job, as he was one of five known interviewees for the position, along with Sorensen. San Francisco also interviewed secondary coach Daniel Bullocks, Kansas City Chiefs defensive backs coach Dave Merritt, and Las Vegas Raiders safeties coach Gerald Alexander.

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