San Francisco 49ers: 5 players likely to get cut before Week 1
By Aaron Tan
No. 5: Defensive Tackle Earl Mitchell
It really pains me to say this, as the third episode of Brick by Brick (the 49ers’ “Hard Knocks” behind-the-scenes show) just featured nose tackle Earl Mitchell reminiscing his times playing high school football in Houston. He seems like a great guy, but being a good person doesn’t really matter when you play football.
San Francisco 49ers
Mitchell had a mediocre first season with the 49ers in 2017, earning a measly 53.8 grade from Pro Football Focus, which is considered “poor” by PFF’s standards.
He actually wasn’t terrible last season, but he has not been impressive to start off preseason, which should be a direct result of his relatively old age for a nose tackle (Mitchell turns 31 in September).
However, the reason why he is on this list has more to do with the emergence of D.J. Jones, stud second-year nose tackle from Ole Miss and former Last Chance U star. Jones didn’t show much last year, but has been consistently disruptive against opposing offensive lines this preseason. Defensive tackle Sheldon Day, last year’s waiver pickup from the Jacksonville Jaguars, has also played well ever since he arrived at San Francisco.
Cutting Mitchell would be a surprise and would cost the 49ers over $4 million in dead money. But the Niners aren’t in salary cap hell, and the extra roster spot could be used to bring in some extra players prior to Week 1 of the regular season.
The future for the 49ers’ interior defensive line is Jones and Day. They need to get the most playing time to hone their promising skills instead of Mitchell.