Will Steve Wilks be a One and Done for the 49ers?

The 49ers defense is built for Steve Wilks to thrive in and have his best year as a coach.

The 49ers have spoiled over the last seven years with elite defensive coordinators.

It started with Robert Saleh who would eventually become the head coach of the Jets, then it was DeMeco Ryans who is now the head coach of the Texans. Both of these coordinators were elite at what they did and were well deserving of their new positions due to the phenomenal jobs they did.

Now the 49ers are turning to their third defensive coordinator under Kyle Shanahan in Steve Wilks. The background Wilks carries isn't that impressive as he has never been able to hold onto a position for long. However, the 49ers defense is built for Wilks to thrive in and have his best year as a coach. 

Plus, the 49ers are bound to benefit from him because he carries a secondary background. 2023 could be the year where the 49ers are the best in coverage like they were in 2020. Doing so, along with other successes on the defense, can create buzz around Wilks and make him a popular coach for other teams to target. This is usually the trend for a 49ers defensive coordinator anyways. It happened to Ryans after one season at the position and it can very well occur with Wilks.

So, will Wilks be a one and done for the 49ers? 

No chance. Joining the 49ers to be the successive defensive coordinator is a tremendous gig for any coach, especially Wilks. He is a guy who hasn't lasted long anywhere ever since he took on the head coach position with the Cardinals in 2018. That was basically a dead-on arrival job for Wilks who was simply there to keep the seat warm for the next candidate. Talk about unfair treatment. 

Following that, Wilks spent one season as the defensive coordinator for the Browns in 2019, then took 2020 off, and eventually resumed his career at the University of Missouri as defensive coordinator for the 2021 season. So, Wilks has had a ton of movement in his career for the last six years. The last time he knew what stability was when he had his first stint with the Panthers from 2012 to 2017. I think this time he wants to actually last more than a year with a team, especially one that has tremendous structure. 

The 49ers are the perfect spot for Wilks to build up his stock for the future, so that way he can end up having several teams tap him on the shoulder to become their next head coach. He has to make sure that he is ready, and I don't think after one year with the 49ers that he will want to make that jump yet. And that is assuming that he does catch a team's eye to be their next head coach. The best move for him is to stay with the 49ers and build himself up. He has a chance to anchor a defense that is bound to be elite for the next several years. 

And who knows, maybe he ends up being content with his position and stays on for the long haul. Either way, I don't see Wilks jumping at the chance to become a head coach after one season if the offers do come his way.