{"id":755822,"date":"2026-02-16T11:28:14","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T11:28:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/755822\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T11:28:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T11:28:14","slug":"49ers-news-welcome-to-the-bay-jerry-gray","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/755822\/","title":{"rendered":"49ers News: Welcome to the Bay, Jerry Gray"},"content":{"rendered":"

49ers reportedly hiring Jerry Gray for key defensive coach role <\/a>
\u201cGray brings decades of NFL experience as both a player and coach. A first-round pick by the Los Angeles Rams in 1985, he spent six seasons with the franchise before closing his playing career with the Houston Oilers in 1992 and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1993.<\/p>\n

He began his coaching career at SMU (1995\u20131996) as a defensive backs coach before breaking into the NFL with the Tennessee Titans organization in 1997. Gray helped guide the franchise to Super Bowl XXXIV during the 1999 season.<\/p>\n

Gray later served as the Buffalo Bills\u2019 defensive coordinator from 2001 to 2005. He then worked as a defensive backs coach with Washington (then the Washington Redskins) from 2006 to 2009 and with the Seattle Seahawks in 2010.<\/p>\n

He returned to Tennessee as defensive coordinator from 2011 to 2013, then spent six seasons (2014\u20132019) coaching defensive backs for the Minnesota Vikings and three more (2020\u20132022) with the Packers. Most recently, Gray spent three seasons (2023\u20132025) as assistant head coach and defensive assistant with the Atlanta Falcons.<\/p>\n

The move reunites Gray with Morris, his former head coach in Atlanta, and adds a seasoned defensive mind to a 49ers staff aiming to reestablish its dominance in 2026.\u201d<\/p>\n

49ers offseason advice: Trade Mac Jones, pass on Maxx Crosby, address EMF (paywall)<\/a>
\u201cBut they can replace Jennings, a pending free agent, with Colts\u2019 free-agent wide receiver Alec Pierce, who could reach the open market with Indianapolis needing to prioritize re-signing QB Daniel Jones.<\/p>\n

Jennings has a plodding 40-yard dash time (4.72 seconds) and averaged 11.7 yards per catch last season. Pierce has a blazing 40 (4.41) and has led the NFL in yards per catch the past two seasons, averaging 21.3 and 22.3 yards, respectively, while collecting 1,827 receiving yards. Pierce, 25, has already introduced himself to the 49ers: He had touchdown catches of 20 and 16 yards in the 49ers\u2019 48-27 win in December.<\/p>\n

Swapping Jennings for Pierce, financially, could be a wash. Per spotrac.com, Jennings is projected to sign a contract that averages $22.6 million annually. Pierce checks in at $20.2 million.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trade or release? 49ers insider weighs in on Brandon Aiyuk\u2019s future <\/a>
\u201c\u201cI would think, at some point, he will be released,\u201d Maiocco said. \u201cI can\u2019t imagine any team would trade for him. I don\u2019t even know, at this point, we haven\u2019t heard from Brandon, so we don\u2019t know if he wants to continue playing football. That\u2019s where this is, as far as the unanswered questions.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, from the 49ers\u2019 standpoint, I can assure you that they have gone through the NFL Management Council and everything else, as far as just making sure that it\u2019s all up to code,\u201d Maiocco said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t, no, because I think that any team that wants him, the 49ers would have to be open and honest about what they dealt with,\u201d Maiocco said. \u201cAnd Brandon\u2014yeah, I just don\u2019t see it. Every year, there are plenty of good players available in free agency, there\u2019s plenty of good players available in the draft, and I just don\u2019t know, at this point, that anybody really knows what they\u2019d be getting with Brandon Aiyuk.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a part of me that would be pleasantly surprised, but surprised if we even see him in the NFL, playing in a regular-season game next season,\u201d Maiocco said. \u201cI just don\u2019t know, and I don\u2019t think anybody really knows where he is, as far as what he views as his next step professionally.\u201d<\/p>\n

49ers lose key Kyle Shanahan assistant to NFC West rival Seahawks <\/a>
\u201cAccording to NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero, the Seattle Seahawks are hiring longtime 49ers assistant Brian Fleury as their new offensive coordinator. He replaces Klint Kubiak, who departed to become head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.\u201d<\/p>\n

49ers add \u2018three-down disruptor\u2019 in 2026 7-round NFL mock draft <\/a>
\u201cElijah has San Francisco selecting Florida defensive tackle Caleb Banks with the No. 27 overall pick.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe 49ers may be looking to add depth and explosiveness to their defensive front, and Florida\u2019s Caleb Banks could provide exactly that,\u201d Elijah wrote. \u201cWhen fully healthy, Banks projects as a three-down disruptor capable of dominating the interior and pressuring quarterbacks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile injuries have slowed his progress, Banks\u2019 upside remains undeniable. His combination of size, athleticism, and raw power gives the 49ers a potential game-changing presence up front, one who can impact both the run and pass and elevate the effectiveness of the entire defensive line.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the 49ers in need of a dynamic wide receiver, [USC WR Ja\u2019Kobi] Lane stands out as a prime candidate,\u201d Elijah explained. \u201cAt 6-foot-4, he combines size, length, and athleticism to create mismatches, particularly in the red zone.\u201d<\/p>\n

49ers lose longtime assistant Brian Fleury to Super Bowl-champion Seahawks (paywall)
<\/a>\u201cFleury played a role in game-planning for the 49ers and was among the coaches who assisted with play-calling during games. Last month, Shanahan explained that offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak, offensive line coach Chris Foerster and Fleury serve as in-game sounding boards and offer suggestions.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are the guys I rely on through play-calling throughout the game,\u201d Shanahan said. \u201cIt\u2019s not like I\u2019m just in silence there calling every play. I\u2019m discussing it with the guys we\u2019ve prepared with in the week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fleury was given the title of run game coordinator last year, which was his latest promotion after he joined the 49ers as a defensive quality control coach in 2019. Fleury served as an offensive quality control coach (2020-21) before he spent the past four seasons coaching tight ends.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"49ers reportedly hiring Jerry Gray for key defensive coach role \u201cGray brings decades of NFL experience as both…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":755823,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2080],"tags":[220,52307,7,6,1161,252,1137,2624,2623],"class_list":{"0":"post-755822","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-francisco-49ers","8":"tag-49ers","9":"tag-49ers-links","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-nfl","12":"tag-san-francisco","13":"tag-san-francisco-49ers","14":"tag-san-francisco-49ers-news","15":"tag-sanfrancisco","16":"tag-sanfrancisco49ers"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/755822","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=755822"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/755822\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/755823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=755822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=755822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=755822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}