Tag: 49ers draft picks

Instant analysis: Can 7th-round LB Tatum Bethune carve out role in Year 1?

Did the #49ers draft their next great starting LB in the 7th round?

There was already going to be a bit of a logjam for the 49ers at linebacker, and now their LB room is more crowded after the club selected Florida State’s Tatum Bethune with their final pick (251 overall) in this year’s draft.

Bethune fits the mold to play the Will linebacker spot in the 49ers’ defense. He’s 5-11, 229 pounds, but it’s not evident from watching him where he flies around and sticks his nose in with force against the run. There is plenty of athleticism and instinct in coverage to believe Bethune could become a viable coverage option as a pro. He also had good ball production in college with 14 pass breakups and four interceptions.

The problem for him finding his way onto the roster is that he’ll have Fred Warner and De’Vondre Campbell ahead of him on the depth chart. Veteran Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles is also back, along with second-year LBs Dee Winters and Jalen Graham. Dre Greenlaw’s status is uncertain after he tore his Achilles in the Super Bowl, but he could return in the 2024 campaign.

Bethune’s path to a roster spot will start on special teams, but he’ll have an opportunity during his rookie year to place himself as a potential long-term starting option in the event Greenlaw doesn’t re-sign with the 49ers this offseason. To get there though he’ll need to outperform both Winters and Graham who looked good in preseason action last year.

There are plenty of tools for Bethune to become a starting LB in the NFL. Now he has to prove it in a crowded, but largely unproven LB room.

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49ers final pick in 2024 NFL draft is LB Tatum Bethune

The final pick is in for the #49ers in the 2024 NFL draft!

The 49ers wrapped up their 2024 NFL draft by selecting Florida State linebacker Tatum Bethune with the 251st overall pick.

Bethune is a very 49ers linebacker prospect in that he’s undersized with good athleticism and a ton of aggression that allows him to play bigger than his 5-11, 229-pound frame.

Before joining Florida State, Bethune played for three seasons at the University of Central Florida where he played in 35 games with 17 starts. With the Seminoles he started 21 of the 26 games he played.

In his 61 college games Bethune posted 339 tackles, 28 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, 14 pass breakups and four interceptions.

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Instant analysis of 49ers 6th-round pick Jarrett Kingston

49ers 6th-round OL Jarrett Kingston played almost every position on the OL in college. So where will he play with San Francisco?

Near the end of Round 6 of the draft, the 49ers made another addition to their offensive line. With the 215th overall pick, San Francisco brought in USC offensive lineman Jarrett Kingston. During six college seasons, Kingston was a jack of all trades, master of none.

That experience at so many spots had to be a key selling point for San Francisco as they aim to add some quality depth along their offensive line. Whether Jackson will be able to play in the NFL remains to be seen, but his athleticism should allow him to at least be competitive in the quest to eventually earn a roster spot.

Chances are his first season is spent on the practice squad, where the 49ers hone his skill set at one position. His frame (6-4, 308 pounds with 32-inch arms) says he’ll be a guard in the NFL unless San Francisco wants to try playing him at center — the lone position he didn’t play in college.

If Kingston winds up being a quality, versatile offensive lineman, he could become a viable backup for a 49ers club that doesn’t have a ton of depth up front.

 

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49ers add to OL, select USC G Jarrett Kingston in 6th round

The pick is in! It’s USC OL Jarrett Kingston to the #49ers with the 215th pick.

The 49ers made another addition to their offensive line late in this year’s draft. With the 215th overall pick San Francisco selected USC guard Jarrett Kingston.

Kingston played a lot of football across his six-year college career. He began his college time with Washington State where he played in 37 games with 26 starts. In his lone year with the Trojans after transferring he started 11 of the 12 games he played.

Impressively, Kingston started at four of the five spots on the offensive line. He started 16 games at left guard, 10 at left tackle, six at right guard and five at right tackle. Given his 6-4, 308-pound frame and relatively short arms (just over 32 inches) he’ll probably wind up sticking as a guard in the NFL.

He’s a good athlete with plenty of experience. His NFL future will rely on him settling at a position and honing his skill set there.

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WATCH: 49ers 4th-round draft pick Jacob Cowing college highlights

Jacob Cowing highlights? Jacob Cowing highlights. Check out the #49ers 4th-round pick at WR:

The 49ers’ quest to revamp their receiving corps started with their first-round pick in this year’s draft. It continued at the end of Round 4 when they took Arizona wide receiver Jacob Cowing No. 135 overall.

Cowing didn’t measure in with great size at the combine where he came in at 5-8, 168 pounds. While that size may be a bit of an issue that limits him to working out of the slot in the NFL, he has plenty of athleticism to make a living playing from that spot.

At the combine Cowing clocked a 4.38 40-yard dash so he has the speed to take the top off a defense, but he’s not just a speed merchant. He works a lot in the short areas of the passing game where his ability to create separation makes him a potential go-to target on third downs and in the red zone for San Francisco.

Check out these highlight clips:

 

 

 

 

WATCH: 49ers 4th-round draft pick Isaac Guerendo makes tackle breaking look easy

49ers 4th-round RB Isaac Guerendo can MOVE. Check out these highlight clips:

Adding running back depth was such a priority for the 49ers in this year’s draft that they traded two fifth-round picks to slide up to No. 129 in the fourth round to take Louisville RB Isaac Guerendo.

The raw numbers for Guerendo aren’t super impressive. He rushed for 1,392 yards and 17 touchdowns on 231 college carries. He added 358 receiving yards and one touchdown on 42 catches.

Watching him tells a much different story than the numbers though, and it’s clear from his one season at Lousiville that his lack of statistical production hard more to do with injury problems during his time at Wisconsin than his overall talent.

Check out these highlights of the 49ers’ newest RB:

 

 

 

 

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WATCH: 49ers 4th-round draft pick Malik Mustapha brings the thump in college highlights

Check out these highlight clips of #49ers 4th-round pick S Malik Mustapha:

The 49ers made Wake Forest safety Malik Mustapha the 124th overall pick in the 2024 draft. He may not start on Day 1, but there should be a long-term role available for him beyond the 2024 season.

Watching highlights of Mustapha makes it clear why San Francisco loves his upside. There won’t be a ton of electric athletic flashes, but he is an outstanding, instinctual football player who is able to constantly be around the football despite not having the elite speed traits teams may typically look for at safety.

Mustapha has enough athleticism to cover tight ends and wide receivers in short areas, but his calling card is the thump he brings as a tackler, and that shows up constantly in his highlight reels:

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Instant analysis: Is there room on 49ers roster for WR Jacob Cowing?

Can 4th-round pick WR Jacob Cowing carve out playing time in a crowded 49ers WR corps?

The 49ers have created a logjam at wide receiver. That position group was already crowded by San Francisco’s selection of Florida WR Ricky Pearsall in Round 1, and it got more crowded at the end of Round 4 when they picked Arizona WR Jacob Cowing with the 135th overall selection.

Cowing will have a chance to compete for a roster spot. He’s undersized at 5-8, 168 pounds, but he has a versatile enough skill set that he should push for snaps as a slot option. In college he has some flashes as a deep threat, but he did a lot of work on routes in the short area of the passing game where he hauled in 39 of 51 targets for 357 yards and six touchdowns.

Gaining separation on short throws is something the 49ers’ wide receiver room lacks, so that’s where Cowing could make his mark as a rookie.

The snaps won’t be easy to come by though with Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel atop the depth chart, and Jauan Jennings and Pearsall likely working as the third and fourth options. Veteran Chris Conley is back in the mix, as are 2022 third-round pick Danny Gray and 2023 seventh-round pick Ronnie Bell. The 49ers also brought back Trent Taylor who will likely be a return specialist if he makes the team.

With question marks beyond 2024 there could be a heavier snap load available in the near future, but there are a lot of players vying for one or two roster spots this year. Cowing will need to have an outstanding camp to prove he can hold down offensive snaps and contribute on special teams if he wants to have some kind of role as a rookie.

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Instant analysis: Will 4th-round pick RB Isaac Guerendo play right away for 49ers?

Can 49ers 4th-round RB Isaac Guerendo break a troubling NFL draft trend for San Francisco?

49ers fans may be holding their collective breath after the team traded up to select running back Isaac Guerendo in the fourth round of this year’s draft. San Francisco ditched a pair of fifth-round picks to jump up to 129th overall pick where they snagged the super-athletic Louisville product.

Running backs taken before Round 6 haven’t had much success in the Kyle Shanahan era. Joe Williams, Trey Sermon and Ty Davis-Price were all selected in Round 3 or 4 and all three flamed out before getting a real shot at playing for the club.

Guerendo could certainly change that though.

He wasn’t a star in college, playing 27 games without a start in five seasons with Wisconsin before transferring to Louisville. With the Badgers he had 99 carries for 582 yards and six touchdowns. Injuries limited him a lot in those seasons. He dealt with two hamstring injuries and a foot injury that lost him for 23 games in three years.

The Cardinals utilized him more though as he got healthy, but he still started only one of the 13 games he played for them. Last season he posted 132 carries, 810 yards and 11 touchdowns while hauling in 22 catches for 234 yards.

His athleticism is evident in the way he moves through and around contact, but he still has plenty of speed to hit home runs.

There’ll be stiff competition for snaps behind Christian McCaffrey with Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason both in the mix. Availability has been an issue for Mitchell though and Mason hasn’t been able to consistently get on the field for offensive snaps. If Guerendo can reliably pass block and catch passes he could push for snaps as a secondary or tertiary option right away,  and he could shoot up the depth chart in future years with Mitchell and Mason both heading for free agency next offseason.

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Updated 49ers Day 3 draft picks after pair of Day 2 trades

Here’s an updated list of the #49ers Day 3 draft picks after a couple of Day 2 trades:

The 49ers got active on Day 2 of the NFL draft with one trade in each round.

In the second round San Francisco slid down one spot in a swap with the Chiefs that also included a swap of Day 3 picks. Then in the third round the 49ers got aggressive and traded up to No. 86 in a deal with the Eagles that included the 49ers’ third-round pick and a fourth-round choice.

After the dust settled, here’s where San Francisco stands with its picks heading into Day 3, which features Rounds 4-7:

Round 1, Pick 31: WR Ricky Pearsall, Florida
Round 2, Pick 64: CB Renardo Green, Florida State
Round 3, Pick 86: OL Dominick Puni, Kansas
Round 4, Pick 124 (via DAL)
Round 4, Pick 135
Round 5, Pick 173 (via KC)
Round 5, Pick 176 (Compensatory)
Round 6, Pick 215 (Compensatory)
Round 7, Pick 251 (Compensatory)

The 49ers have checked their major needs in the draft with some offensive line help, secondary help and wide receiver depth. There’s still plenty of work to do at running back, tight end and on the defensive line. More offensive line help wouldn’t hurt either.

Day 3 of the draft should be fun for the 49ers. They hold six picks, but it’s hard to imagine they use them all so some more trades could be in the works.

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