Why 49ers’ Ji’Ayir Brown is working with QBs to reestablish his role on defense

When Ji’Ayir Brown was in the final stretch of his recovery from ankle surgery this offseason, he paid some unusual visits — to the 49ers' offensive meeting rooms.

The 49ers' third-year safety sat in on wide receiver meetings. Then he went over to the QB room, where coach Kyle Shanahan and quarterback Brock Purdy were busy formulating their plans to attack defenses in 2025.

"I'd listen to Kyle speak, and I'd listen to Brock's rebuttal," Brown said Thursday. "I did a lot of listening."

In many ways, safeties are the quarterbacks of the defense. Although a middle linebacker wears the unit's lone helmet with a radio in it, safeties are the on-field directors of the secondary — so toe-to-toe against opposing pass attacks. Brown figured that he could enhance his cerebral command of the game by better understanding how opposing QBs might attack him.

"So I listened to how they were trying to manipulate Cover 3 or Cover 4," Brown said. "I just paid attention to what they saw from the defense, and how they knew exactly where they were [throwing] to based on defensive scheme and play call."

Back in college at Penn State, Brown was often a step ahead of opposing quarterbacks and their plans. His 10 interceptions over the 2021 and 2022 seasons were the most of any drafted player in 2023.

Brown's instincts for the ball seemed to be porting well to the NFL game during his rookie season. He intercepted three passes, including a pick of Patrick Mahomes in the second half of Super Bowl LVIII.

But 2024 saw a team-wide regression for the 49ers, and Brown was very much a part of it. He intercepted only one pass, struggled noticeably with tackling angles on run defense, and even lost his starting job down the stretch.

Now, Brown is working to re-solidify a first-team spot among what's shaping up to be a fascinating collection of talent at safety.

Malik Mustapha, who burst onto the scene as a rookie in 2024, tore his ACL in the season's final game. That means he likely won't be ready until the regular season. The 49ers signed veteran safety Jason Pinnock, who's grabbed a first-team role at one of the safety spots in practice, to bolster the room this offseason. Brown has joined Pinnock as a projected Week 1 starter.

"I'm glad JP's here," Brown said. "We're doing a great job working together, communicating together."

The looming question, though, revolves around how long that pairing will last. Mustapha, who led all NFL safeties in yards per cover snap allowed as rookie, should be in line to reassume his starting role once healthy. And fifth-round pick Marques Sigle, the fastest rookie safety in the 2025 draft class, certainly has the physical gifts to make a Mustapha-like ascent come fall.

"He's explosive, he's fast, he can jump," Brown said of Sigle, who has clocked a 4.37 40-yard dash and logged a 38-inch vertical leap. "Did you see his backflip the other day? He jumped 10 feet in the air."

Unlike Pinnock — who also scored as a top-end athlete for the position — and Sigle, Brown didn't post electrifying marks at his NFL Scouting Combine in 2023. His 4.66 40-yard dash, in fact, is classified as "poor" by the Relative Athletic Score service.

When Brown succeeds, it happens because of his instincts, his recognition, and the diligence of his film study — not because of sensational athleticism. That's why he found himself in the QB room this spring, trying to glean every possible mental edge leading up to his return.

In hindsight, it might seem clear that Brown was not set up to succeed in 2024. Even before he suffered the ankle injury that ultimately required offseason surgery — shortly after his interception of Mahomes in the Super Bowl — Brown hurt his shoulder while dishing out a big hit on star Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce.

"I had nerve pain in my shoulder from when I hit Kelce that lingered for months," Brown said. "Trying to get my strength back from that slowed things down."

Beyond that, the 49ers fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilks — one of Brown's biggest proponents on draft day in 2023 — after the Super Bowl. And although Brown didn't specifically mention Wilks' short-lived replacement, Nick Sorensen, he did insinuate that the 49ers' defense wasn't exactly set up to excel in 2024.

"My mindset was where it should've been," Brown said. "[But] it was other factors that played in and didn't allow me to play to my full potential. And my standard is pretty high."

There's big-time focus, then, on returning 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh — who didn't overlap with Brown during his first stint with the team. Saleh did coach Pinnock with the Jets and was back in time to give a thumbs-up to the 49ers' selection of Sigle in the recent draft, so the returning coordinator already has fingerprints on this safety room.

Where will Brown end up as the situation develops? That'll depend on how effectively he can earn Saleh's trust and mesh with Pinnock to begin this season. It's fair to say that Brown's journey in 2025, playing under his third defensive coordinator in three NFL seasons, should provide intriguing insight into Saleh's evolution of the defense and the 49ers' secondary in particular.

"Coming out of Year 1 with the Super Bowl [injury] and going into Year 2 was challenging," Brown said. "I came back Year 2 and picked up slower. But there was a lot of growth going on in that year. I played with a different set of guys. I learned a lot from my Year 2 and looking forward to Year 3.

"I feel great now. My demeanor, my posture — everything — is different."

Both defensive end Mykel Williams and receiver Ricky Pearsall were back at practice Thursday, but coach Kyle Shanahan did not provide a return timetable for Jauan Jennings. The receiver missed his third consecutive practice with a calf injury.

The 49ers signed two veteran receivers, Andy Isabella and Marquez Callaway, to beef up the room while Jennings is out and Pearsall continues to ease his way back in following a hamstring injury. The team released veteran wideout Equanimeous St. Brown and waived fellow receiver Malik Knowles, offensive lineman Sebastian Gutierrez, and safety Jaylen Mahoney to open up room.

The 49ers also signed veteran running back Ameer Abdullah — rookie Jordan James is day-to-day with a knee issue — and quarterback Carter Bradley, who impressed them while throwing to Isabella, Callaway, and Abdullah at Wednesday's tryout.

Bradley is the son of 49ers' assistant head coach Gus Bradley, Saleh's top lieutenant who happens to have a big fan in Brown.

"That's my guy, man," Brown said. "Gus is one of the better philosophers I've been around. The way he sees it, the way he visualizes the game, the players he's encountered. He has a lot to teach me."