SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Coach Kyle Shanahan has spent most of his tenure with the San Francisco 49ers hoping that his special teams unit wouldn’t make the catastrophic mistakes that would contribute to losses.

A year after that group was one of the worst in the NFL, strong special teams play has led to wins for the 49ers (9-4) this season with that unit playing a crucial role in a 26-8 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

“I think they have been a weapon,” Shanahan said. “We made some big plays in that, and we made some big plays at some important times too. The biggest challenge today, what we’re saying with the special teams, was that we’re hoping to get some big plays, but also not making any dumb plays with penalties and things like that.”

Skyy Moore’s 66-yard punt return

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