ESPN’s Benjamin Solak went through breakout candidates for each team. For the San Francisco 49ers, he chose second-year cornerback Upton Stout:
The 49ers’ defense was young, raw and outmatched for much of last season, so it can be tough to find the diamond in the rough. But that diamond is Stout, a third-rounder who started in the slot — a taxing position to master mentally — and kept his head above water.
Stout got burned plenty as a risk taker, but he didn’t make the same mistakes over and over again. He’ll never dominate with pass breakups given his 5-foot-9, 181-pound size, but he has stopping power as a tackler and creates opportunities for his teammates to finish off run plays by penetrating and disrupting. He’ll stick around in the league for a long, long time as he fully gets up to the mental speed of the game.
Stout allowed nearly 78 percent of his targets to be completed. And there was no shortage of those, as he was targeted 18.2 percent of the time last season. According to Next Gen Stats, he allowed an average of 3.8 yards of separation. Stout also allowed a 103.2 rating and an additional 4.8 yards after the catch. It goes without saying that there’s room for improvement in the coverage aspect.
Stout will make his presence felt as a pass rusher in his second year. He only rushed the passer 39 times as a rookie. That number should triple under Raheem Morris. He generated a 23.1 pressure percentage. Eight of those were of the quick variety. Stout’s average time to pressure was 2.13 seconds. That’s a weapon that needs to be used more. Despite the low blitz volume, Stout finished eighth in quick pressures as a rookie.
You can see how effective Stout’s speed and tenacity as a blitzer are in the clips below:
Last year, the Falcons didn’t blitz their nickel players often. But when they did blitz, they were effective. Stout might be better served by rushing the passer until he gets more comfortable in coverage.
I’d argue that the more you use Stout as a pass rusher, the more his confidence grows. That should bleed into his coverage skills and help him become a more complete player as the season goes along.
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