The San Francisco 49ers are turning to Tatum Bethune to anchor their defense after star linebacker Fred Warner suffered a dislocated and fractured right ankle in Sunday's loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, ending his season. Bethune immediately stepped in for the All-Pro, and head coach Kyle Shanahan came away impressed with the second-year linebacker's performance.

"I thought Tatum did a real good job," Shanahan said ahead of Wednesday's practice as the 49ers prepared for their Week 7 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. "I mean, he had a couple of mistakes, which were understandable."


Shanahan admitted that reviewing the game film on the plane ride back to the Bay Area was difficult, knowing Warner's injury had occurred.

"And then I stopped and rewatched it a different way, from a different light," Shanahan continued. "And it was very inspiring watching how Tatum played, a bunch of our young guys, some good things on that tape. Got to clean up some mistakes that we made, but I liked how the film looked and how the guys played."

Bethune to wear the green dot


With Warner sidelined, Bethune will take over wearing the green dot, meaning he will serve as the defensive signal-caller on the field, relaying play calls from the coaching staff to his teammates.

Shanahan made it clear that the team has complete confidence in Bethune's ability to lead.

"I think it has to start with how you play linebacker," Shanahan explained. "Can you run, can you hit, can you make tackles, can you cover people? I thought he did that at a very high level in college, and he's done it very well since he's got here. ... But we've liked him since the beginning. He's shown that ability.


"I think it's been good for him to be behind someone like Fred and just see how he does it. And Tatum, to me, is so made of the right stuff, and he's so handled this year and a half the right way that I think he's definitely more than ready for this opportunity."

Bethune ready for the opportunity


Bethune also shared his perspective on stepping into a larger role, acknowledging the challenge of filling Fred Warner's shoes.

"Fred, he's the leader of the team—not just the defense," Bethune said. "When he goes down, that's a huge blow to every single one of us. We all are professionals, and we've got to prepare like we're the starters, so I just want to be able to go in and make sure there's no drop-off when Fred comes off the field. That's my goal right now.

"I'm not trying to be like Fred. I'm just making sure I'm Tatum Bethune, and that's what I'm going to do moving forward."

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