Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris Press Conference

Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris

Press Conference – May 7, 2026

San Francisco 49ers

What have you been doing as far as when you take over as defensive coordinator, what are the first things on your plate when you come to a new building?

“It’s pretty simple. You get a chance to go evaluate all the guys that are in this building, our current players, the people that we have, you get a chance to really marvel over some of the talent that they’ve been able to acquire over here the last couple of years. Being in this division not too long ago, you got a chance to know a lot of the guys and know a lot about all the guys, and then obviously the people that they acquire through the draft. You really want a good feel on the people that are here, what they have, what’s already in place and what they’ve done really well. And I was really close to this building from afar. So, that happened pretty easily and pretty seamlessly with some of the coaches that we do have.”

You alluded to it just then. Over the years, head coach Kyle Shanahan has said he’s wanted to bring you here many times. How close were you over the years to being here and what made right now the right time?

“I don’t know. You’ve got to ask Kyle how close because you’re either on the stick where, you know, we went to Super Bowl together in 2016 and easily could have come then if allowed to. Denial’s there from that standpoint, nothing in a negative way, but it’s always nice to be wanted within your own building as well. So, being able to stay there over the course of the years. And then obviously when things didn’t work out the first time and we were let go in Atlanta, Kyle’s always a person that I talked to regardless of the situation. But I had an opportunity to go be a coordinator and then obviously you guys had great people in place at that point and [Houston Texans head coach] DeMeco [Ryans] was in place and going to be the coordinator. But as you know, all coaches want to be around guys that they want to be around. So, when you get an opportunity to add people to it, like you guys did with [Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator] Gus Bradley last year was probably going to be a similar opportunity at that point. But, got fortunate enough, was able to go with [Los Angeles Rams head coach] Sean [McVay], who’s another guy that you always talk to when these kinds of things come up, and went to L.A., had some success there and was able to go along and become a head coach again back in Atlanta. So, this time when it came open, had a couple different opportunities. You’re never expecting it, but you’re really not expecting those things to happen and you sit back, kind of take some time with family, do some of the things that we all want to do when we’re not looking at you guys and get the opportunity to go out there and make some real decisions. And Kyle was someone that you love working with, love working for. Not to say that you wouldn’t like working with other people as well, but Kyle’s definitely one of those people you always want to work with. From our time being in, whether it was Tampa the original time we worked together, when we were both young puppies, or the second time we worked together when we were in D.C. and being able to be around his father, be around the Shanahan family, the tradition and the culture that they’re able to form really molded me throughout my career since I was round the Shanahans to be honest.”

In terms of defensive philosophy, we’re seeing across the league more five-man fronts pretty generally. Why do you think that is and what’s your philosophy on five-man fronts?

“These guys are getting, they’re harder to defend. Just the coordinators in this league, let’s not kid ourselves, people want to see offense. The rules have changed in different ways for you to do different things. So, you’ve got to have some multiplicity in your front. You’ve got to have multiplicity in the back end. You’ve got to be able to do different things. You’d like to be able to do those things when you decide to do those things and use them as terms where you can dictate, so to speak. But, we have been a four-down rush team, and we’ve done a nice job with it. I know we’ve dibbled and dabbled a little bit last year, even with [Tennessee Titans head coach] Robert Saleh, who I have so much respect for and what he was able to do and how he did it. But I was able to accumulate and acquire a bunch of different ideas and thoughts along my stops with the different people that I work with. Whether it’s been [Seattle Sea Dragons head coach] Jim Haslett in Washington, where they were strictly three-four base Pittsburgh team, or really being able to do some of the different things that we did last year, being able to mix it up, being able to play some four-down stuff, being able to play a bunch of five-down stuff. So, I think you’ve got to be able to move around and kind of move those chess pieces to be able to help you go out there and really do your best to stop these really explosive offenses.”

Kyle has talked a lot about when it comes to the development of a coach, he credits his early time in Tampa getting to actually work on the defensive side of the ball to help him as an offensive coach. And he’s talked about different coaches having that experience. You obviously have worked on both sides. How much do you credit your work on the offensive side, including with Kyle in Atlanta, for your development as a defensive coach?

“Oh, I mean, our whole career has kind of been the business of being nosy, so to speak. So, like when Kyle came to Tampa fresh out of UCLA, all fired up and eager, we were stealing his dad’s zone scheme keeper game as much as he was stealing Tampa two and all different values that he wanted to bring to us. So when we did all the cross training where even when we were young, it was constantly, staff development within the building with some of the better coaches that we had been around in our lifetime, like [former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach] Mike Tomlin was secondary coach and [former NFL defensive coordinator] Monte Kiffin was the defensive coordinator along with [former Las Vegas Raiders defensive line coach] Rod Marinelli, and what he was able to bring with the original a part of his attack front doing some of the different things, sort of the stuff that we have, very similar to that stuff. And he was running all the good coaches and [Miami Dolphins run game coordinator/senior defensive assistant] Joe Barry, all those guys. But we shared a bunch of information, and then I got a chance to obviously work on defense in such a long time. When I was able to switch over to offense, with Kyle in Atlanta kind of having the outside-in version of what the offense looks like, what it means and what it’s going to do to really get into the deep weeds of it, watch him game plan and watch him go through the process of a week of preparing for a different team. And then even when he left, being able to stay on that side of the ball and really develop and grow as a person that can really go out there and formulate plays to go find open spaces and do different things that you want to do from an offensive standpoint was so much fun and a different perspective than you had just going out there coaching defense, right? You can actually speak in their language, understand what some of the quarterback reads are, being able to be detailed enough to go out there and try to stop those things. Being able to explain it to your players in a completely different way, which was my strength when I went from defense to offense. And then being able to come back, it still remains your strength. So, you grow from all the experiences, you gain all experience with the people. And I’ve really enjoyed the process of being able to switch back and forth. Now not many coaches in the National Football League say they can coach on both sides of the ball and definitely not many can say they’ve been on the number one defense and a number one offense, and coach on both sides of the balls in respective season. So, I am truly blessed, truly feel it as like a definite benefit to being able to work with Kyle and being able to work around those types of people.”

Do you expect your defense to resemble what it looked like in Atlanta or is it going to be more of a continuation of what’s been happening here the last few years?

“We definitely want to do what’s best for our players. You know, you’re always going to do what they do really well. You know, [LB] Fred Warner is Fred Warner for a reason. I’m going to try to utilize those guys to the best of their ability to do some of their different things and be able to have some additions, to be able to go out there and ultimately to go try to win a championship. Whatever’s required, whatever’s needed to go do those things. Those are the expectations and those are the things that we want to get done. So, to say it’s going to be more resemblant to me or more resemblant to them, it’s going to be what’s best for us in order to go win football games. And I think that’s the best way to look at it, ultimately, whatever it takes to go win football games, whatever it takes to go out there and get it done for us.”

What about the 49ers made you pick them? I know you said you had some other teams, but what was it about this organization that felt right?

“Didn’t know all about the organization before, knew more about Kyle, knew more about [president of football operations and general manager John] Lynch. Obviously those are guys that I’ve been really close to just throughout the whole process of everything, right? Having the ability to coach Lynch when I was a very young football coach being around that culture and what it meant, and then having a chance to be a coach with Kyle and being a coach with Kyle in multiple spots and then have an opportunity to come out here. And then you get out here and you see what everything is like, what they’ve done together, how they built this thing to be able to run the draft, be able to run the process, be able to run the standard of play, being around these guys. And then really competing against these guys, you get this healthy respect of, you love to be a part of that. When you get a chance to go be a part of teams like that, which I’ve been fortunate enough to do in the past, it certainly made it an easy choice for me. With all due respect to the people that I talked to. Because everybody that I talked to that actually called me, I have so much respect for those people. But, Kyle was a great opportunity to come work here at the 49ers.”

By being in Atlanta the last couple years, you got to see WR Mike Evans up close, and you’ve been in the league as long as him. What is he going to do to Kyle’s offense that you’ve noticed so well and having faced it with RB Christian McCaffrey at full strength and QB Brock Purdy back there?

“Yeah, I just think it’s more about the people and what they can do for each other I think would be the most beneficial thing that those guys sit down and talk about and how they can make each other better. Mike is a pain in the neck, defending against him, because he has so many skill sets and different things that he can do, and I’m sure Kyle’s going to find things that he didn’t do as great and try to make it better. And when you do those things with great players, you capture their attention right away, and when you capture your attention, you get the best from those guys. And I’ve seen it happen with a bunch of different guys in this past, and I don’t want to name their names because some of them have been here, some of them have been other places, but when you get the best version of the players in the building, which I know Kyle can do along with the staff, being around these guys to meet these guys, I’m really fired up. Being around [offensive coordinator Klay] Kubiak, being around Mike, being around all the different people that are here. I’m really fired to see what they can do with Mike. I’m really fired up to see what he can grow here as a player.”

John Lynch said that you brought a lot of energy in the Draft meetings, and he said that when you really liked a player, you were like, “Hey, if we get that guy, we’re going to throw a pool party.” Do we any pool party Draft picks in this Draft from your perspective?

“Honestly, it was a cool process for me to be a part of, to find consensus with the organization. I forget who just asked the question about defensive thoughts and ideas, but it’s cool to be able to try to express those things to those guys and those guys to formulate and find ways to be able to help you formulate those things, get those people in the building. But there were certainly some pool party people, both offense and defensively. Being nosy, having the ability to coach on offense and defense. You got a chance to see [WR DeZhaun] Stribling, you got a chance to see all these different guys that you are able to acquire on defense. And the way and the manner that we went about getting them I thought was very unique and I thought was pretty cool to watch. To watch all these guys and have such a respect for whether you’re talking about [assistant general manager] RJ [Gillen], whether you’re talking about [vice president, player personnel Tariq] Riq [Ahmad] and some of the different guys that all are part of that process along with the coaches and everybody in that room, talking about scouts and everybody coming to these really strong convictions. I think was pretty cool. I thought it was a great process. I loved being around it and there are definitely some pool party guys. That was a cool thing.”

What do you see from DL Romello Height and DL Gracen Halton, your two defensive line guys?

“Obviously, just going off what you guys know from here, you always want to have those pass rushers, right? And Romello brings a certain ability to pass rush that he showed opposite of his young teammate out there at Texas Tech. Romell’s going to come in here and be able to provide some of those things for us, be able to get into that room and really learn from one of the best D-Line coaches in the world in [defensive line coach] Kris Kocurek and [assistant defensive line coach] Greg Scruggs and obviously [defensive quality control coach] Cameron Brown and being able to get with those guys and be able to be the best version of himself. So, watching Romello as a pass rusher, watching Romello be able to go out there and do some different things, whether it be in the pass game or whether it be even in the run game. You see all the things that we love about the guy, the WIT, the stuff that he does, how he plays the game and all this stuff. And he plays with high energy, probably one of the highest energy guys in the Draft that we saw and that I was at least able to evaluate. So, extremely confident and fired about that and no different with Halton, right? He gives that same type of interior presence. You know, last year you guys went out and added big [DL] C.J [West] and you added big [DL Alfred Collins] A.C. you know, big time run stoppers, big time guys that can just get off the ball, disrupt and do a bunch of different things and you go out there and keep adding guys in those positions so you can get that constant roll, and to be able to get those guys to roll through that, cause absolute disruption for everybody that we play against is something that you love.”

I’m curious, when you and Kyle were in the Super Bowl versus the Patriots, you guys obviously came so close, and this organization is pretty much the same. Have you guys had the chance to connect about that and how eager are you guys to bring the Bay Area and the Niners a Super Bowl?

“Yeah, ultimately as a competitor it’s what you want to do, it’s what you think about every single day. And then nothing would be more satisfying for me personally, than to be able to come here and help this organization, this head coach, this general manager, this owner, this team, the players that they have. When you talk about Fred Warner and [DL] Nick Bosa and guys that absolutely you want to go win that thing for. You get chills just fully thinking about it, but to have the ability to go do that and help people do that, that’s what you coach for. That’s the ultimate goal.”

Going back with Kyle, it’s been a friendship for a long time. What do you think clicks between you two guys?

“The ultimate thing with coaches that really are committed to each other is obsession. He has an obsession about football that’s just unmatched. And when you have that obsessive personality to be the very best at what you do, I think that’s something that ultimately clicks when you’re talking about coaches. Like there’s going to be coaches in everybody’s office, there’s going to be cross training and it’s already started to happen with [quarterbacks coach] Mick Lombardi on the offensive staff, myself, my own personal staff, being able to get with [assistant head coach defense] Matt Eberflus, being able to get with [defensive passing game coordinator] Jerry Gray. Some of the guys that were here, like Kris Kocurek, being able to go to their side of the ball with some of the young guys that are just eager to be the very best to be able to learn and keep growing. It’s just an obsession of football that makes you click.”