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49ers’ 2018 ‘Who Is?’ series: Offensive lineman Jamar McGloster

By Peter Panacy

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 01: Eric Dungey #2 of the Syracuse Orange celebrates his touchdown with teammate Jamar McGloster #65 in the first quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at MetLife Stadium on October 1, 2016 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 01: Eric Dungey #2 of the Syracuse Orange celebrates his touchdown with teammate Jamar McGloster #65 in the first quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at MetLife Stadium on October 1, 2016 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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In this episode of Niner Noise’s annual “Who Is?” series, we look at San Francisco 49ers undrafted free-agent offensive lineman Jamar McGloster and see if he can make the 53-man roster in 2018.

A year ago, the San Francisco 49ers hoped to find hidden gems for their offensive line by grabbing undrafted free agents Erik Magnuson and Darrell Williams Jr., among others.

This year, they’re hoping former Syracuse offensive lineman Jamar McGloster can be the next piece to supply depth and developmental options.

Standing at 6-foot-7 and 309 pounds, McGloster is a big-bodied presence with two years’ starting experience at right tackle during his collegiate tenure.

The Niners already have their starting offensive tackles in place for 2018, Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey. And it appears as if the backup duties will fall between Magnuson and veterans Garry Gilliam and Mike Person.

This means McGloster’s route to a roster spot in the regular season will be difficult. So what will he need to do to ensure he sticks around beyond the preseason?

Why Jamar McGloster Improves in 2018

According to his NFL.com draft bio, McGloster weighed in at 330 pounds. The 49ers website now lists him at the aforementioned 309 pounds, meaning the rookie has probably lost some weight to increase his mobility and athleticism.

This is important for two reasons. First, it opens up the flexibility of playing at guard. But it also increases McGloster’s chances of working well within head coach Kyle Shanahan’s outside-zone blocking scheme.

Zone blockers need to rely on movement skills and operating in space. With so many of Shanahan’s linemen pulling and performing bootleg blocks, this movement is key.

McGloster ran a 5.32 40-yard time at his pro day, so it isn’t as if he’s slow for an O-lineman.

Why He Regresses

McGloster does have the two years’ worth of experience in a starting role at Syracuse, but only on the right side.

This likely eliminates him from any swing tackle role, and it’s unknown if he’d be able to adequately handle bumping inside if needed. We’ll need to see how well his mobility works out for that particular switch.

Being an undrafted free agent, McGloster won’t get the chance to work much with first- and second-team units during training camp. Coaches won’t be paying as much attention to him, and he’ll have to stand out in a big way to even suggest additional consideration.

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Chances of Making the 49ers’ Roster in 2018

Sure, the Niners found nice depth pieces for their O-line in Magnuson and Williams last year. But they’re probably sticking around, along with the veterans, this season.

McGloster will have to outperform both to even stand a chance. As things look right now, he’s about as big a long shot there is on San Francisco’s 90-man offseason roster.

It’s always possible McGloster stands out enough to earn consideration on the practice squad. Here, he’d be able to develop his blocking abilities while also learning to command the nuances of Shanahan’s offense.

Next: Ranking the 49ers' top 10 offensive lineman of all time

We’ll see if this winds up being the case, but McGloster is looking to be little more than just a camp body at this point in his career.