San Francisco 49ers: 5 Rookies Who Could Start in Week 1 of 2016 Season
By Peter Panacy
The San Francisco 49ers brought in 11 rookies via the 2016 NFL Draft and a number of other undrafted free agents. Niner Noise looks at five players who could end up starting right away this season.
A youth movement is the name of the game for the San Francisco 49ers with the 2016 NFL season on the horizon.
According to Fox Sports, the average age of the Niners’ 90-man roster is a mere 23 years old. That’s awfully young but, for a team in transition, it at least opens up the door for young players to step up and assert themselves right away into roles needing bona fide playmakers.
The 49ers drafted a total of 11 players during the 2016 NFL Draft and ended up signing an additional 12 undrafted free agents shortly afterwards.
Two of these players — first-round draftees DeForest Buckner and Joshua Garnett — are likely candidates to assume starting roles to kick off 2016. Or, at least, have significant enough roles to see a good number of snaps in their respective rookie seasons.
They’re on this list, and we’ll break them down shortly.
But what of the others? Are there any other players who could end up stepping into starting roles to begin the regular season?
Training camp and the preseason will determine the pecking order and whether or not rookies will be starting, supplying depth or will even make the final 53-man roster.
Still, let’s take a look at five 49ers rookies who could end up working their way into a starting job in 2016 and break down why they’ll start, what could hold them back and predict what to expect.
We’ll begin with the obvious ones first.
Next: DE DeForest Buckner