Dee Ford is as good at music as he is at sacking quarterbacks

The 49ers aren’t just acquiring a dynamite pass rusher once they officially trade for Kansas City Chiefs outside linebacker Dee Ford. They also picked up an exceptionally talented musician.

Ford, according to a 2017 feature by Terez A. Paylor in the Kansas City Star, has been playing music since before he started playing football. His first piano lessons came at 12-years old, and his first performance happened when he was in eighth grade.

He’s not limited to the one instrument though. Paylor noted the outside linebacker also plays drums and guitar. Ford said he has several instruments at home and practices to clear his mind.

“I’ve got the acoustic drum set, I’ve got the piano in the house,” Ford said. “I’ve got like four digital keyboards.”

Music was nearly Ford’s career choice. He had more music scholarships than football scholarships, and only chose the latter once the University of Auburn came calling.

“I actually was in the mix of getting a scholarship for music before I got one for football,” Ford told Paylor. “I was in jazz band my senior year of high school, and my teacher was actually going to go and put me in touch with this music director at Alabama. He told me all I had to do was go audition and I’d pretty much get the scholarship because I was really gifted. I would have been in music.”

The 49ers are certainly glad he opted for football.

While Ford may have excelled in music, and still hopes to in his post-playing days, he’s been terrific on the football field. He has 25 sacks, 29 tackles for loss and nine forced fumbles in his last 37 games. He posted a career-high 13 sacks while earning his first trip to the Pro Bowl in 2018.

That productivity was enough to entice the 49ers to trade for the 27-year-old and offer him a reported five-year deal worth up to $87.5 million.

Ford is set to join a 49ers team that also has a talented musician on its coaching staff. Offensive line coach John Benton is a guitar player who’s put on pre-practice concerts during the final week the last two seasons.