San Francisco 49ers: Predicting the secondary depth chart after 2018 NFL Draft
By Peter Panacy
Safety
Free Safety: Adrian Colbert
Strong Safety: Jaquiski Tartt
Backups: Jimmie Ward, Marcell Harris
2017 seventh-round draftee Adrian Colbert won’t get pushed out of his starting spot at free safety. Not after finishing with a respectable 77.6 overall grade, per Pro Football Focus, which is pretty good for a rookie.
This essentially pushes Jimmie Ward out of a starting job. It’s not a surprise, as Ward has landed on injured reserve in three of his first four seasons at the NFL level. But playing on his previously picked-up fifth-year option, the Niners have $8.53 million fully guaranteed reasons to keep him on the roster in 2018.
The only question, though, is where Ward will play. And if he’ll even start.
Ward’s versatility is good — more on that in a second — and so is Jaquiski Tartt’s, whose 85.8 overall PFF grade ranked tops among all Niners defensive backs a year ago.
Tartt is a shoo-in for the strong safety spot, and the 49ers wisely extended him for two more years.
The fourth safety spot is a bit trickier. Flordia’s Marcell Harris is coming off an Achilles injury that negated his 2017 collegiate campaign. A Round 6 grab is worth the flier, as Harris (6-foot-1 and 216 pounds) has the body type to fill an in-the-box safety role.
Harris is a heavy hitter but needs to focus on his coverage abilities. Right now, he’s on the fringes of the 53-man roster. But, depending on the injury and development factor, he has as good a shot as any to be around during the regular season.