In the NFC Championship game against the Detroit Lions, defensive coordinator Steve Wilks of the San Francisco 49ers laid out the brutal facts about his team’s defence on Friday.
The problems were ascribed to effort and pursuit by defensive end Nick Bosa, linebacker Fred Warner, and head coach Kyle Shanahan of the Niners. After trailing 24-7 at the half, San Francisco staged an incredible comeback to win the game and go to Super Bowl LVIII.
“Collectively as a team, I can tell you as a defence it’s unacceptable,” Wilks stated. “All right. We discussed that. I wish I could tell these men that this is what’s going to happen on play 27 and play 4. You are ignorant.
Therefore, we must ensure that every down is played as though it will make a difference in the outcome of the game. And it was evident from those specific plays that they didn’t meet our standards. It was embarrassing, to be honest, and those guys are aware of it.”
Shanahan identified a few problems from the game earlier this week.
According to ESPN, he stated, “They were expecting someone else to make the tackle.” “Whenever you’re expecting someone else to make the tackle, bad things happen.”
It was made clear by Niners general manager John Lynch that effort was “nonnegotiable.” He added that players were questioned about their effort on the pitch.
Eventually, twice did Bosa get to Lions quarterback Jared Goff. Arik Armstead recovered a fumble that Jahmyr Gibbs had been forced to make by the team.
