Ward now a star in new role on 49ers

SANTA CLARA >> Jimmie Ward’s NFL career has been filled with plenty of ups and downs.

But finally, he’s a Star.

Not in terms of fame and recognition, though Ward did deserve a Pro Bowl nod last season.

No, “Star” is his new position. And the Niners’ NFL-best defense is reaping the benefits of his shift.

Ward has played many roles for the 49ers in his nine seasons with the team, but since returning to the Niners’ lineup full-time in Week 7, following a stint on the injured reserve with a hamstring injury and then a broken hand — suffered on the opening kickoff of his first game back in Week 5 — the Niners’ do-it-all defensive back has been filling in as the team’s starting nickel back.

But in reality, the longtime free safety is more than a guy providing slot coverage on passing downs.

There are dozens of other names for the hybrid, strongside linebacker, slot-cover-man role across the world of college football, because defensive coordinators are realizing it’s a must-have position if you want to combat the spread offenses. Lobo, Cinco, Bandit, Bullet, Viper — they’re all more or less the same. But Alabama coach Nick Saban — whose defenses in Tuscaloosa popularized the position — calls the position the Star.

Kyle Shanahan’s defensive coordinators have been trying to utilize the role more for a halfdecade now, though they lack a cool name for the position.

Probably because no one has been able to do everything asked of the role until Ward took the job.

“Jimmie’s one of the best safeties in this league, whether he’s deep or whether he’s up [at the line of scrimmage],” Niners coach Kyle Shanahan told me on KNBR. “But in terms of coverage, that he does [that] better than every safety in this league.”

“Through these six years, he’s been our best cover guy. [We’re] trying to get our best group out there, and with how good [Tashaun] Gipson was playing, it was nothing against Jimmie.”

“I think it’s a little bit more fun for him,” Shanahan said of Ward being near the line of scrimmage. “Jimmie likes being up there in the mix. I think he gets a little bit bored back there deep… Now he’s up there where he can scrap it up in the run game and get on guys in the pass game and really challenge guys.”

The position change comes with complications, though.