ESPN’s Nick Wagoner reported that the San Francisco 49ers fired special teams coordinator Brian Schneider. We discussed earlier on Monday whether Schneider’s replacement is in-house.

This was Schneider’s third year as the 49ers special teams coordinator. The 49ers finished 31st overall in special teams DVOA. They had the second-worst kick return team, fourth-worst field goal and punt units, and fifth-worst kickoff coverage team. The “best” special teams unit they had was the punt return team. The Niners finished 10th-worst there.

From execution to tackling, San Francisco’s special teams had reached rock bottom. However, the struggles in the third phase of the game are nothing new for the 49ers. They were 25th overall in 2023 after finishing 15th in 2022.

In fairness to Schneider, special teams is the unit that takes the biggest hit when you’re constantly dealing with injuries. It’s how you end up with coverage teams full of players who were not on the roster during training camp.