San Francisco 49ers: Creating the ideal starting lineup for 2018
By Peter Panacy
Offensive Line
Left Tackle: Joe Staley
Left Guard: Andrew Norwell
Center: Daniel Kilgore
Right Guard: Joshua Garnett
Right Tackle: Trent Brown
Three of the five offensive line spots are pretty much set for 2018. One of the seemingly pressing areas of concern was at center, although the 49ers brought back veteran Daniel Kilgore on a three-year deal.
It makes sense — we eluded to why here — as Kilgore’s play improved dramatically with Jimmy Garoppolo under center.
That leaves the guard positions open.
In an ideal world, the Niners would figure out a way to land Notre Dame’s Quenton Nelson in Round 1 of the NFL Draft. Nelson’s stock is skyrocketing, though, so it probably doesn’t happen.
Instead, San Francisco uses its plethora of cap space to lure in Panthers All-Pro guard Andrew Norwell, who figures to be one of the prized O-linemen available on the open market.
Norwell won’t come cheap, as his market value projects in the range of $11.7 million annually. But the 49ers have the cap space to make such a deal happen.
And there’s always this to chew on:
Here's a stat for those who want the #49ers to sign G Andrew Norwell: According to @PFF, he was also the only o-lineman in the league to have at least 500 pass-blocking snaps without allowing a sack or QB hit. Only four guards have done that since 2006.
— Al Sacco (@AlSacco49) February 6, 2018
Right guard is a bit up in the air, especially with Joshua Garnett (knee) missing all of last season. The hope is he wins out any camp competition and starts to develop into his first-round pedigree.