Predicting Who Will Be the 49ers Most-Improved Sophomore in 2016?

The San Francisco 49ers enter the 2016 offseason with a young player at each level of their defense. Who can the team expect to make the most improvement from Year 1 to Year 2?

Rookies are given the benefit of the doubt for a reason. They are typically young guys, fresh out of college and looking to make a name for themselves alongside established veterans. In rare cases, rookies perform well and immediately erase any doubts that a team may have had. In other cases, the team waits with anticipation for when a player will take a step towards production.

The San Francisco 49ers are patiently waiting on more than one of those players as they prepare for the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine and NFL Draft.

At each level of their defense, the 49ers have a player entering their second season in the league. If those players improve, the team could be well on its way to fielding a top-notch defense. Defensive tackle Arik Armstead, outside linebacker Eli Harold and safety Jaquiski Tartt are all looking to build on their rookie seasons. And the team needs them to.

Assuming that the 49ers have hired a competent coaching staff, which second-year player will make the largest improvement in their second season?

Arik Armstead

Armstead was the team’s first selection in the 2015 NFL Draft. The 49ers traded with the San Diego Chargers in the first round. The Chargers moved to number 15 and selected running back Melvin Gordon. The 49ers received the Chargers pick at number 17 and selected Armstead out of the University of Oregon.

At the time, the pick wasn’t widely accepted. The 49ers left impressive cornerback Marcus Peters on the board and he was drafted just one pick later. In replacing former 49ers’ defensive tackle Justin Smith, the team decided Armstead was the right player.

He may very well turn out to be the heir apparent to the success that Smith saw as a 49er. Armstead’s rookie season got off to a slow start but the massive former Duck–Armstead is 6’7” and 292 pounds–provided a spark at the end of the season following injuries to starters.

NFL.com posts draft profiles each year and the report on Armstead remains largely the same from this time last year. He flashes impressive strength and explosiveness but he is still developing a pass-rush repertoire that extends beyond a power bullrush.

Pro Football Focus’ Jeff Deeney posted a Vine of a play from San Francisco’s final game of the 2015 season. It captures both the strengths and weaknesses of Armstead all in a matter of seconds.

With the seventh pick in the draft, some are suggesting that the 49ers select Armstead’s former teammate at Oregon, DeForest Buckner. Buckner is considered a more complete prospect than Armstead was coming out of college. The development, of course, will depend on where Buckner lands and whether Armstead improves in 2016.

The 49ers have depth along the defensive line but, as of now, the rotation is uncertain. Nose tackle Ian Williams is a free agent and will command a hefty salary. He deserves it. The 49ers have options whether they choose to retain Williams or not. Should Williams move on, the 49ers can kick defensive tackle Quinton Dial inside and still be effective with a 3-4 defense.

In that case, Armstead would immediately jump to the top of the depth chart as a defensive tackle. As it stands now, he’ll likely start but will be heavily pushed by Mike Purcell and Tony Jerod-Eddie. Armstead will be given every opportunity to show the 49ers he’s ready to become a dominant force along the defensive line.

He has the size, strength and athleticism to become the next powerful defensive lineman in an increasingly loaded NFC West division. The 49ers will be counting on Armstead to build on his rookie season. He’ll improve, but based on an impressive end to 2015, he won’t be considered the most improved of the three.

Eli Harold

Harold might have had the most disappointing rookie season of all three players mentioned. He wasn’t particularly impressive once he saw the field, and he was unable to beat outside linebacker Ahmad Brooks for the starting role.

Brooks has seen his production decline and, with a high cap number, will likely be cut before the beginning of the next season.

Harold will have a chance to earn the starting role opposite of Aaron Lynch. Unfortunately, fans were spoiled by the talents of former outside linebacker Aldon Smith. There are such high expectations that come with the position that it’s hard to ever meet the demands. Lynch, as impressive as he was, is still far behind the dominant defender that Smith was in his short time with the team.

Millions of viewers watched as Denver Broncos’ outside linebacker Von Miller won the Super Bowl MVP award. The reality is that production at that level is rare, and Miller is one of the best in the game. Expecting anyone to be on pace with Miller is nearly impossible.

However, the 49ers can find a second pass-rusher to combine with Lynch and bring pressure off of both edges. The defense might not need one specific player to be the primary source of pressure, but pairing two quality outside linebackers could give new defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil flexibility in his scheme.

Harold earned snaps towards the end of the year with Lynch suffering from concussion symptoms. He failed to take advantage of the opportunity and ended the year with no sacks. Harold recently turned 22 years old and is still developing as a player and athlete. He’ll have the offseason with the team to continue to put on muscle in the weight programs.

He flashed on obvious pass plays, but was essentially negated when asked to set the edge on run plays. He simply doesn’t have the ideal size or strength quite yet. But he could get there. He has obvious skill that is hard to deny.

As of now, Harold is labeled primarily as a pass-rush specialist and he hasn’t proven to be much more. The 49ers will be counting on him to make a major leap heading into his second season.

With outside linebackers available in free agency and the 2016 NFL Draft, there’s a chance he could find himself deep in a competition to play before the season even begins.

While the 49ers will hope for improvement, regardless of how much he does, Harold will not be the sophomore with the most improved play in 2016.

Jaquiski Tartt

Let’s start with something that will stand out, shall we?

Tartt was the 49ers pick at No. 46 overall in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Tartt was known as a heavy hitter with great size. The understanding was that the team selecting Tartt would need to give him time to develop coverage skills at an NFL level.

The book on Tartt remains the same. He shows tremendous willingness to get physical and involved in run plays. He’ll need to continue to be aggressive defending the run while learning the nuances of coverages, specifically route recognition and communication as an occasional inside-the-box player.

But it sure is fun to watch him make plays.

Tartt earned playing time early, as he saw action against the Minnesota Vikings to open the season. In the game, Tartt entered as an inside linebacker and was playing a hybrid safety role similar to Deone Bucannon of the Arizona Cardinals. Tartt is bigger than Bucannon but is not quite as versatile an athlete. Nonetheless, the productivity of Tartt alongside Bowman was exciting to watch.

Tartt ended the season having started eight games and recording 51 tackles. As the season went on, he managed to improve. That’s to be expected as rookies catch up to the speed of the game.

However, for all of the big hits, there were also poor angles taken and missed coverages.

In the following Vine, Tartt is the safety towards the top of the screen. He likely was coached to maintain outside leverage and, once the outside linebacker and defensive tackle on the left side had been taken out of the play, a clear alley was made for Todd Gurley of the St. Louis Rams. Tartt came downhill too wide and never recovered as Gurley raced right past him.

The touchdown is not squarely on Tartt but he shows moments of slow-processing and inefficient movements that lead to positive plays for the opponents.

Tartt was well worth his pick and should have an opportunity to earn the starting role at strong safety in 2016. Incumbent Antoine Bethea is coming off an injury and may not be back with the team, let alone be guaranteed a starting role.

If the team is encouraged by Tartt’s improving play, it is reasonable to assume they might elect to save some money and let Bethea go.

Tartt will have expectations increasing after the team saw flashes of impressive play in 2015. They’ll need every bit of his strengths in 2016 to continue building a high-quality and young defense.

Of all three defenders entering their second season, strong safety Jaquiski Tartt will be the most-improved of the three. And it’s good timing if the team hopes to replace Bethea with Tartt. With great size and aggressiveness, Tartt can be a moveable piece in O’Neil’s defense that lines up all over the field. He certainly has the athleticism to do so.

The 49ers will be counting on all three of these players making improvements in the 2016 season. With free agency and the 2016 NFL Draft approaching, there is a great chance that the team uses resources to bring in players to compete with these sophomores.

The young guys will be given opportunities to play, but the team doesn’t have the time to wait on the development of high draft picks.

Armstead will be able to use his length and incredible strength to begin replacing “The Cowboy” along the defensive line. Harold will need to put on muscle to be the complete outside linebacker that the 49ers need.

For Tartt, it is simply game experience and film study that will prepare the 49ers strong safety for success. Expect Tartt to start next season and finish with over 80 tackles and three interceptions.

He has the physical tools to be dominant. A full season of work under his belt has him prepared for a major breakout in 2016.

Next: Risers and Fallers from the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine

All statistics, records and accolades courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com and ESPN Statistics unless otherwise indicated.