Steve Wilks lauds veteran S Logan Ryan for leadership qualities

Dec 28, 2023, 1:32 PM | Updated: 1:46 pm

Logan Ryan #33 of the San Francisco 49ers walks off of the field after an NFL football game against...

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San Francisco 49ers Beat Writer

The San Francisco 49ers have a next-man-up mentality on both sides of the football, with Logan Ryan the next to start at safety.

The veteran secondary is the likely candidate to see starting time if rookie S Ji’Ayir Brown (knee) can’t play in Week 17. Ryan was brought on after special-teams ace George Odum and All-Pro Talanoa Hufanga suffered season-ending injuries. Now down to their fifth option, San Francisco feels confident that Ryan can fill in next to Tashaun Gipson, especially considering his pedigree on defense.

“Logan has done a great job, I was excited when we got him,” 49ers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks said Thursday. “I knew at some point in time that he was going to do a great job in stepping in for us.”

Wilks went on to share how Wednesday’s practice with Ryan in the starting lineup went.

Veteran Logan Ryan is filling in at safety for the 49ers with Ji’Ayir Brown, Talanoa Hufanga and George Odum all out. Coming off the practice field Wednesday, Fred Warner and Steve Wilks had a conversation lauding how well Ryan is communicating with the secondary

— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) December 28, 2023

The veteran was barking out calls left and right, showing he hadn’t missed a beat, despite being 32 years old. That communication is everything Wilks and defensive captain Fred Warner are looking for, talking about it in length after practice.

“I talked to Fred about this coming off the field yesterday. It’s like ‘Did you feel and see Logan?’ He’s like, ‘Yeah man, he talks.’ And that’s a great sign of a safety, his ability to communicate, particularly when you got a new guy in there and he’s stepping up and doing those things,” Wilks stated.

“So, I like his presence. He has skin on the wall, as I call it. He’s been around the league for a while, playing in a couple of Super Bowls. So, he understands the magnitude of where we are at this time of the year.”

Logan Ryan has amassed 744 combined tackles, 98 pass break-ups, and 13 sacks in his 11-year career thus far. While he may not be at the physical peak of his powers anymore, his I.Q. and willingness to do the dirty work speaks volumes for a team like the 49ers.

“[He’s a] team player, committed. And then also understanding it’s the standard here. We always talk about many powers in one body of work, it’s nobody’s bigger than the actual cause. So guys come in and they adapt to how we do things and that’s what he’s done. So, again, I like him a lot, as a player and as a person,” Wilks added.

Steve Wilks is confident in the 49ers' safety depth despite numerous injuries at the position 💪 pic.twitter.com/XuHPuN5gjz

— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) December 28, 2023