The 49ers are counting on new defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen to get the unit back to dominance

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers’ experiment of bringing in a defensive coordinator from the outside didn’t work out, with the team firing Steve Wilks after just one season.

Now they’re counting on the internal promotion of Nick Sorensen into that role — with a dose of outside perspective from former Chargers head coach Brandon Staley — to get the Niners back to performing at a dominant level defensively after taking a little step back last season.

“We all know the standard here and we all want to win, we all want to play great defense and that’s the expectation,” Sorensen said Friday in his first public remarks since being hired earlier this offseason. “But I have that on myself. Our coaches do, our players do. What is said, I’m not really worried about it. I just know what we want to get done and what I want to get done.”

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