Kyle Shanahan believes in Fred Warner – even if he’s struggling.
The All-Pro linebacker had a performance to forget in the 49ers’ 38-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, missing a game-high, season-high and career high-tying four tackles.
Following the game, Warner admitted feeling “embarrassed” for his and San Francisco’s defensive output against Green Bay, allowing a monstrous 169 rushing yards by Josh Jacobs.
Even then, the 49ers coach praised Warner’s inarguable elite skill and play amid a personal slump.
“I still think Fred is the man,” Shanahan told reporters Monday. “I think Fred is playing at a high level. I know he had more missed tackles than he’s had, I think he had, I want to say four, which is too much for anyone, way too much for him.
“So, obviously he can do better in that way. But Fred is still playing like one of the best linebackers in the league. I know he's got a real high standard, so when he has something like that, it's going to stick out. But Fred's still playing like one of the best players in this league.”
Warner’s four missed tackles were a fraction of the 19 posted by the 49ers’ defensive unit on Sunday. Ten of the 19 came in the first quarter alone.
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With plenty of mistakes to point to, is it safe to say that there’s a disconnect between San Francisco’s defense, defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen, Shanahan and the rest of his defensive coaching staff?
“I wouldn’t say there's disconnect,” Shanahan added. “I would say, especially in that first half, they got some guys in space and we sat in a chair a little too much versus that running back [Jacobs].
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“And when you come to a jump stop on that running back, he is going to break your ankles, and he did it to a number of guys. It always helps if you can get two people there, but when we had one person there, he did as good as I've seen anyone make someone miss tackles in the way he ran.”
Jacobs’ powerful performance aside, the Packers posted 38 points, keeping the 49ers' defense on the field for an exhausting 67 plays over nearly 37 minutes of possession.
San Francisco’s defensive efforts fell short – and Shanahan, like Warner, had no issues admitting it.
“I thought we did better there in the second half,” Shanahan concluded. “I think we ended up counting 12 [missed tackles], so I know PFF has different numbers than we do, but it doesn't matter. Twelve is still way too many also.
“I thought we'd tightened it up there in the second half and tackled better and got them in some third downs and got off the field, which I thought gave us every chance to get back in the game. But that was really tough to do when we led three drives in a row with three turnovers in a row. I thought that's really what killed us.”
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