Kyle Shanahan: Steve Wilks "knows he messed up" with blitz late in first half
Late in the first half of Monday night's game in Minneapolis, 49ers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks called a seven-man blitz and third and long with 16 seconds left.
It blew up in San Francisco's face, with quarterback Kirk Cousins finding receiver Jordan Addison for a 60-yard touchdown.
On Wednesday, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters that Wilks realizes he made a mistake.
“Yeah he knows," Shanahan said. "He knows he messed up on that call. I have no problem with zero blitzes, especially when people need a lot of yards. If you need to get 20 yards to kick a field goal, I have no problem with a zero blitz. But I do when there's 16 seconds left. That's where he lost track. There was no necessary need for that just because of the time. I have no problem with that play call, but when it's that time you can't do that. That's not an option.”
So why didn't Shanahan overrule the call? That question wasn't asked.
Ultimately, Shanahan is responsible for whatever his team does. There's a real difference between delegation and abdication. Too many offensive gurus place too much blind faith in their defensive coordinators. So while it might have been Wilks's error, Shanahan apparently allowed it to go unchecked.
He can blame Wilks all he wants, but the buck always stops on the head coach's desk. Even if the head coach doesn't say so publicly.
