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It’s been a rough offseason in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers. The team has undergone a notable amount of changes between free agency and retirements and they’re not done evolving yet.
New 49ers defense coordinator Eric Mangini has paired up with head coach Jim Tomulsa with one goal in mind: causing confusion.
While the 49ers defense will stick to their usual 3-4 alignment scheme, they will reportedly shift positions before the snap in order to puzzle the opposing offense.
49ers safety Antoine Bethea said this of the new defensive coordinator and his style per the Sacramento Bee:
“All D-coordinators have their style. Coach Mangini, his thing is that we’re going to cause confusion. The offense is not going to know what we’re going to do each down. That could be bringing pressure; that could be dropping eight (players) in coverage. But it’s keeping the offense on their heels.”
Bethea seems to have the right message. The 49ers indeed appear to be aiming to raise questions. The team has made zero use of their new assistant coaches available for interviews. The franchise appears to be uninterested or at least unprovoked by the common conception that the 49ers are a mess in their current state.
Mangini seems to envision a more aggressive and complicated defense for the 49ers who have stuck to what works for them in the last four seasons: simplicity.
Can the 49ers handle more changes to an already completely uprooted and revised team? Probably. One thing is certain: anyone asking themselves that question is probably right where the team wants them for now.
Stay tuned to see the new and revamped 49ers defense hit the field in the upcoming 2015 season.
Kelsey Kay is a San Francisco 49ers analyst for Rant Sports. Follow her on Twitter @kelseyykayyy, “Like” her on Facebook or add her to your network on Google.
