All 49ers

49ers Fire Their Special Teams Coordinator

The first move of the offseason has been made by the 49ers with them cutting ties with their special teams coordinator.

Jose Luis Sanchez III

September 18, 2022; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers special teams coordinator Brian Schneider before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
September 18, 2022; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers special teams coordinator Brian Schneider before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
In this story:

The writing was on the wall with this move.

The San Francisco 49ers have fired their special teams coordinator Brian Schneider, per ESPN's Nick Wagoner. As mediocre as the 49ers were on offense and defense, their special teams took the cake. Almost every week there was some issue with them.

Every facet of special teams was atrocious. Kick-off coverage was putrid, punt coverage was pitiful, punts were getting blocked, and being prepared for any fake punts/kicks was lacking. In the regular season finale against the Cardinals, the 49ers allowed a fourth down conversion due to a fake punt.

That likely only made it an obvious decision for the 49ers to cut ties with Schneider after joining the team in 2022. The 49ers will be on the lookout for any prominent special teams coordinator so that the unit is never significantly factoring into losses as they did countless times this season.

However, that was the idea three years ago when the 49ers parted ways with former coordinator Richard Hightower. Given his track record in Seattle, Schneider was supposed to be this massive upgrade when the 49ers hired him. Yet, he never managed to get the special teams in an adequate standing in any season.

The reality is the special teams will always be low-level for the 49ers because of Kyle Shanahan. He gives no more than one percent of his energy towards it. Look at how the last two coordinators fared. They had similar results, which means it's on the head coach. Shanahan doesn't care about it.

Until he finally starts to acknowledge he needs to put more energy into improving it and taking it seriously, the 49ers will continue to be weak on special teams.

Read more of 49ers on SI

Published |Modified
Jose Luis Sanchez III
JOSE LUIS SANCHEZ III

Jose Luis Sanchez III has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily for FanNation since 2019. He started off as the lead publisher for FanNation's All49ers, then switched positions to become the Deputy Editor in 2020. Sanchez writes, edits, and produces videos daily for All49ers. He also co-hosts a show on YouTube with All49ers lead publisher Grant Cohn weekly. Prior to FanNation, Sanchez started his writing career back in 2016 for the school newspaper at Skyline college where he covered all sports team in the Bay Area. Following that from 2017 to 2019, he found a role as a contributor for FanSided's news desk along with their site's Just Blog Baby covering the Las Vegas Raiders and Golden Gate Sports every professional Bay Area sports team. Atop all of that, he was able to graduate with a Bachelors degree in Communication Studies at San Francisco State University in 2020. Sanchez is committed to ensuring he delivers transparent analysis and straightforward opinions that resonates with readers to get them thinking.

Home/News