The 49ers have struggled to find a young defensive end to pair with Nick Bosa on their defensive line. ESPN NFL draft analyst Mel Kiper has them potentially fixing that problem in his second mock draft.
Kiper’s original mock had San Francisco eyeing an offensive lineman with the No. 31 overall pick, but his most recent projection has the 49ers adding to the defensive front with Penn State outside linebacker Chop Robinson.
Here’s what Kiper wrote about the selection:
San Francisco could take the comp pick for defensive end Chase Young and let him walk in free agency, opening up a spot on the other side of Nick Bosa. That’s where I’d slot in Robinson, whose sack numbers were a little disappointing the past two seasons (9.5 total, four in 2023) but who has the potential to be a star. At 6-3, 250 pounds, he is extremely explosive. Give him time with 49ers D-line coach Kris Kocurek and he could be a star. The reason Robinson might be a late Round 1 pick is because of that questionable production, but scouts and execs love his tool set.
Robinson spent his last two seasons with the Nittany Lions after transferring from Maryland where he posted two sacks and 13 pressures according to Pro Football Focus.
His first season in Penn State yielded strong results with a career-best 48 pressures, five sacks and nine QB hits. Last season, as noted by Kiper, was disappointing though with just three sacks and 26 pressures per PFF.
Perhaps more encouraging than his pass rush production though are some of the other aspects of his game. PFF graded him above 90.0 overall the last two years, and he graded out as a good run defender as well while lining up in a bunch of different spots for Penn State’s defenses. Robinson’s athleticism pops immediately on tape. He’s explosive off the edge and his ability to dip under defensive tackles to find a straight line to the quarterback provides a ton of optimism for his ability to affect QBs in the NFL.
We saw what an athletic speed rusher looks like in San Francisco’s defense in 2019 when Dee Ford helped them form one of the NFL’s best pass rushes. Robinson has some similar traits, but he’ll need to refine his pass rush moves and develop some counters where he’s effective beyond the pure speed rush.
All the tools are there for Robinson to be an impact edge defender in the NFL though, and bolstering that group is the only alternative that really makes sense if the 49ers aren’t going to address their offensive front when they return to the first round for the first time since 2021.
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