It’s finally game day for the San Francisco 49ers, who face a tough challenge at the start of the season on Monday Night Football against the New York Jets.
Not only will this be the first game of the season for the newly formed team, but it will also be Nick Sorensen’s first game as playmaker since being promoted to defensive coordinator at the start of the offseason.
Sorensen served as an assistant coach after retiring from playing football in 2013 and spent seven seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, including as a special teams coach and secondary coach, before spending a year as special teams coordinator in Jacksonville.
He then joined the 49ers as a defensive assistant in 2022, was promoted to passing specialist and nickels coach in 2023 before finally getting the defensive coordinator job after Steve Wilks was fired in the offseason.
This will be Sorensen’s first season calling a defense’s plays, and it comes at a crucial time for the 49ers, who are now attempting another push for the Super Bowl after narrowly losing to the Kansas City Chiefs last year.
Has Sörensen’s routine during a game week changed much compared to previous years?
“I think it’s just going through the week now. I think it’s just an adjustment from the offseason to training camp and now. For me, it was more about remembering the schedule and how we kind of spend the days. I think that would have been the case at any position,” Sorensen said before Monday night’s game.
“Obviously it’s different for me being in that position. But it was more because we changed the schedule a little bit later in the year to tweak it, like everybody does. It was just remembering what the process was like and what came next and how we go about it because you’re just working so hard you don’t have time to think other than just working. So to say, ‘Does it feel that much different?’ It doesn’t because you’re just slogging away and trying to do everything you can to win.”
Although the defensive coordinator doesn’t believe much has changed in terms of hiring, Sorensen pointed out that there are changes every year, such as in the coaching staff.
“Is it different because we have some new coaches as well? Absolutely. We have a lot of young coaches that are new to us, and (assistant coach/defense Brandon) Staley is coming in as well. I think it’s different every year,” Sorensen said. “I don’t think it’s that shockingly different than saying, ‘Oh my God.’ It’s just, ‘Let’s do the work.’ And ‘Hey, when’s the next meeting again? Let me look at the schedules.’ That’s pretty much it.”
In his first game as coordinator, Sorensen will have his hands full as he faces a healthy Aaron Rodgers, who is making his comeback from a torn Achilles sustained in Week 1 last year.
With Rodgers’ level of play uncertain following his injury, the defensive coordinator expects only the best from the former MVP in Week 1.
“We haven’t seen any footage other than maybe you see him throw on TV or something once when someone is in training camp. I would assume he’s back to where he is and feeling great,” Sorensen said. “His arm is his arm as long as he can move, which I think he can. And he put himself in that position. He took a lot of reps in practice. I think he was ready. I think he came back from that injury so quickly last year at this point. So I think we’re going to see his best.”
It will be interesting to see what changes Sorensen makes from Steve Wilks’ predictions a year ago. With the internal hire, the 49ers seem to be looking to return to the defense of years past, but every coordinator has their own flair, and San Francisco’s DC will get his first chance to show that on Monday night.
