NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah had the Niners sticking staying on the defensive side of the ball..
It’s officially mock draft season now that we’ve had our annual week of fun with free agency. NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah and ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. both released mock drafts, so let’s go over who they selected for the San Francisco 49ers.
Jeremiah had the Niners selecting a name we’ve seen a couple of times during this draft cycle:
Pick 31 San Francisco 49ers, Chop Robinson
Penn State · Edge · Junior
The 49ers signed Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos to join Nick Bosa, but they love to have a deep rotation of pass rushers to keep players fresh. Robinson has the best get-off in the class, and that’s the hallmark of a Kris Kocurek-coached defensive line.
Robinson is a 21-year-old, 254-pound edge rusher who ran a 4.48 40-yard dash and plays with tremendous effort. This is around the area where you take an athlete like Robinson. He’ll dominate a series with his burst, twitchy traits and pass-rushing arsenal. But then, in the next two series, you’ll be left wanting more than a guy getting off the line of scrimmage quickly.
For example, a “Welcome to the NFL” moment could happen routinely during the first week of practice against Trent Williams.
Kiper has a new name for us to learn:
31. San Francisco 49ers
Roger Rosengarten, OT, Washington
The 49ers have been able to make several moves in free agency to make tweaks to their roster, acquiring veterans on short-term deals to build out their depth. One position they haven’t added? Offensive tackle, where soon-to-be-36-year-old Trent Williams is holding down the blindside, and 2020 fifth-rounder Colton McKivitz just started every game on the right side.
Williams ranked first in the league in pass block win rate among tackles (95.8%). McKivitz? He was 50th out of the 69 who played in at least 10 games. That’s not good enough. I’d like to see San Francisco bring in some competition. I thought Rosengarten might return to college for another year; he could have been a top-10 pick with some more seasoning. He might be a steal here, though, as the right tackle is aggressive as a run-blocker and solid in pass protection (though he had his worst game of the season in the national championship loss). I really liked his tape when I went back through after the season ended.
This would be viewed as a reach pick, as Rosengarten isn’t in most draft analysts’ top 50. As Kiper puts it, Rosengarten needed another season of schooling. I wonder if signing Brandon Parker was the team telling us they’re comfortable with a Day 3 tackle starting on the right side.
As for Rosengarten, he’d be an upgrade in pass protection, given his range and recovery skills. He also seemed comfortable handling stunts defensives threw at him. I’m not sure if the 49ers would draft a tackle in the first round who struggles to hold his ground against power or with the number of times he had a defender beat him across his face. But Rosengarten started 15 games in 2023 and has 28 career starts. Plus, he comes from a scheme where he was asked to do a variety of things and played on the best offensive line in the country.
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