49ers’ 2018 ‘Who Is?’ series: Wide receiver Dante Pettis

Niner Noise takes a look at San Francisco 49ers rookie wide receiver Dante Pettis in our 2018 “Who Is?” series, breaking down his likely impact for the upcoming season.

For most teams, trading up to the No. 44 overall spot to grab former Washington wide receiver Dante Pettis in the 2018 NFL Draft would have been a major reach.

Not for head coach Kyle Shanahan and the San Francisco 49ers, though.

Pettis was easily one of college football’s best route runners in 2017. That attribute, paired with Shanahan’s offensive game plan, make this a perfect marriage of talent and scheme. Shanahan’s offense is predicated on getting guys open. Matching that with a player naturally able to create separation with his route-running skills, one can see why the Niners acted so aggressively in Round 2 of the draft.

And it isn’t as if Pettis’ college numbers were questionable.

Provided by CFB at Sports Reference: View Original Table
Generated 6/22/2018.

Tack on his record-setting nine punt-return touchdowns over that four-year span, and the 49ers have themselves quite a unique player.

But at 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds, how much work will the slightly undersized Pettis have to do at the NFL level? Should we expect the young prospect to contribute right away, or are we looking at someone more likely to make an impact in 2019 or later?

Why Dante Pettis Improves in 2018

Niner Noise already broke down Pettis’ strengths and weaknesses in this rookie-preview piece. Going off that, let’s look at the reasons why he’ll be a major commodity in Shanahan’s offense.

For starters, Pettis already has collegiate experience lining up either on the outside or in the slot.

Shanahan doesn’t use his receivers in the traditional WR1, WR2, slot and WR4 sets as many head coaches do. Instead, outside receivers can run pick routes, while slot wideouts can bump to the outside. Simply put, there’s a lot of movement. It’s all about getting receivers open.

Two elements from his NFL.com draft profile stand out — an ability to run a full route tree and excellent catching abilities.

You can get the idea from this game film versus Stanford last year:

Pettis should be able to blend right in to Shanahan’s complex system. It isn’t as if the rookie wideout will have to adjust too much. Excellent route runners can thrive in this kind of offense.

And being a reliable target only serves to bolster Pettis’ chances of making an immediate splash.

Why He Regresses

For starters, there’s the size issue.

The 49ers list Pettis at 195 pounds, up quite a bit from the 186-pound weight shown on his NFL.com draft profile.

This should help, but one can question how much this impedes the fluidity and movement skills he displayed in college. On top of that, Pettis has tendencies to be jammed at the line of scrimmage. It’s not often. But the bigger and better competition he’ll face at the NFL level could pose some problems here.

San Francisco 49ers

Another possible setback could be a relative lack of physicality, as pointed out on the same draft profile — the “alpha personality,” as it’s so described. It’s anyone’s guess whether this trend continues over to the pro ranks. But the best receivers have a knack for fighting for the ball.

And not just against opponents’ defensive backs but within their own ranks.

What to Expect with the 49ers in 2018

Pettis’ second-round draft stock all but guarantees a spot on the 53-man roster. Barring a complete meltdown during training camp and the preseason, we’ll be seeing him suit up on game days in 2018.

The only question is what role he’ll hold his rookie year.

His punt-return abilities already lend to the likelihood of special teams contribution, which is a bonus. But the Niners didn’t use this pick to get a specialist. No, they’ll look for offensive efforts too.

Right now, the top three wideout spots are going to be occupied by Pierre Garçon, Marquise Goodwin and Trent Taylor. Pettis could, feasibly, steal targets away from either of the three. But it probably won’t happen right away. What you’ll likely see to start the season is Pettis serving as that No. 4 or 5 wideout, limited in snaps but given some opportunity to flash his abilities.

If he can run with those, it wouldn’t be a shock to see Pettis emerge as a bigger option as the second half of 2018 arrives.

Next: 49ers 2018 offseason positional preview: Wide receiver

And that would prove to be a good investment by San Francisco.