SANTA CLARA, Calif. – In an offseason that is expected to bring many changes after a 6-11 finish, the San Francisco 49ers made their first big move on Monday, relieving Brian Schneider of his duties as special teams coordinator, sources told ESPN .

Schneider’s firing is no surprise as he led a special teams unit that was among the worst in the NFL in 2024. The Niners ranked 32nd in the league in expected added points on special teams at minus-47.67, which equates to nearly 24 more lost points than the next closest team (the Atlanta Falcons at minus-23.9).

During San Francisco’s lost season, special teams mistakes seemed to occur almost every week, including missed field goals, successful fake punts allowed, costly penalties, muffled return attempts and a mediocre punting unit.

At the team’s farewell in late October, coach Kyle Shanahan said he had “no concerns” about Schneider and that it “didn’t occur to me at all to leave him.” But Shanahan also hoped things would change for the better on special teams.

In November, Shanahan said the Niners spent “a lot” of time in meetings and practices improving on special teams, but also acknowledged that the impact of the team’s injuries had not helped those efforts.

“We mixed a lot of people there,” Shanahan said at the time. “I do think the guys are getting better, but we have to make sure we don’t make stupid plays where we can cause a penalty, where we can cause a turnover and those are the things we really have. “clean up.”

However, that turnaround never really materialized as kicker Jake Moody struggled in the second half of the season, making 11 of his final 20 field goal attempts from Week 10 to Week 18. The Niners also finished the game with 18 special teams penalties, tied for eighth in the league.

In Sunday’s season-ending loss to the Arizona Cardinals, Moody missed a 47-yard field goal attempt and the 49ers allowed the Cardinals to convert a fake punt that led to Arizona’s first field goal of the game.

The 49ers hired Schneider in 2022 to replace Richard Hightower, who had served as special teams coordinator since Shanahan’s arrival in 2017. Schneider previously held the same role for the Seattle Seahawks from 2010 to 2020.