San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans has the respect of his players, fellow coaches, and general manager John Lynch. Ryans' defense enters Week 12 ranked No. 7 in passing yards allowed, No. 4 in points allowed, and No. 1 in total yards and rushing yards allowed.

Ryans has done a fantastic job after replacing former 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, now the head coach of the New York Jets. It won't be long before Ryans joins the head coaching ranks as well.

"DeMeco's been tremendous. He really has," Lynch told KNBR's Markus Boucher and Marcus Thompson this morning. "As good of a football coach as Robert Saleh was. You thought it was going to be really tough to replace him. We had a ton of confidence in DeMeco, but you just don't know until you see him out there in that capacity, and DeMeco just continued to get better and better.

"I think he's so respected. If you're around him, he just has a presence to him. He still looks like he could play, and so he commands a respect from the guys. But I think, most of all, it's just his consistency. Man, he's a stud. And he's extremely bright. He rallies those guys."


The 49ers defense has dominated the second halves of the last three games. San Francisco has outscored its opponents a combined 54-0 after halftime in those matchups.

The defense will look to continue its impressive play down the stretch. The team is preparing for a three-game home stand against the New Orleans Saints, Miami Dolphins, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Lynch added, "The guys are having fun playing, and I think it's very representative of their defensive coordinator, who he is as a person, as a man, and his guys are playing at a really high level right now."

You can listen to the entire conversation with Lynch below.


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