What does the future hold for 49ers defensive end Solomon Thomas?
By Peter Panacy
In year three of his pro career, San Francisco 49ers defensive end Solomon Thomas finds himself under a lot of pressure to deliver in 2019. What’s on the line for him this season?
It’s been a rocky start to his pro career for San Francisco 49ers defensive end Solomon Thomas.
Thomas, who was selected No. 3 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft, has the honor of being the first player drafted during the current tenure of general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan. But after back-to-back underwhelming years, the Niners appear to have admitted the mistake, trading for former Kansas City Chiefs EDGE Dee Ford and picking up Ohio State EDGE Nick Bosa at No. 2 overall in this year’s draft.
And after looking at Thomas’ stats the past two seasons, it’s not hard to understand why San Francisco sought upgrades:
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 5/16/2019.
Those are decent numbers for a rotational player and depth piece, not a top-five draft pick at his position.
So, with the 49ers grabbing additional pieces, what kind of role is Thomas expected to play this season? More importantly, what lies ahead for Thomas amid an uncertain future?
A rumor surfaced during the NFL Draft the Niners were shopping Thomas. Lynch and Shanahan later refuted the report, although there would be some sensibility behind a possible move. Ford and Bosa add to an already crowded defensive line, one which includes Pro Bowl defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and his counterpart, Arik Armstead.
Armstead figures to be Thomas’ primary competition, at least on passing downs, for an inside defensive tackle spot. Pro Football Focus ranked Armstead the Niners’ second best defender last season behind Buckner. And while the former is on his fully guaranteed fifth-year option, worth north of $9 million, Armstead’s future beyond 2019 is anyone’s guess.
Based off that fact, Thomas’ long-term prognosis with the Niners looks fairly decent. So does the fact San Francisco brought in defensive line coach Kris Kocurek, and one of his first objectives was to properly determine how to handle Thomas.
That said, the 49ers are under much more pressure to perform, defensively, in 2019. If Armstead is the clear-cut better player over Thomas after training camp, he’ll get the start, relegating Thomas to backup duties.
Perhaps another scenario, too.
It’s possible, despite the denial, the Niners were shopping Thomas during the draft. The return San Francisco would get would be proverbially “pennies on the dollar” for its 2017 draft investment, of course. But the fact Thomas’ rookie contract is relatively easy to absorb for a defensive-needy team, it’s something which can’t be ruled out.
Most likely, the 49ers retain Thomas for 2019 and look for some noted improvement, especially knowing Armstead is hitting the free-agent market in 2020. If Thomas even reaches a good level, compared to the last two seasons, his complementary role for the defense would be safe a year from now.
Next. 10 49ers players with a lot to prove in 2019. dark
Again, though, he’ll have to prove he deserves it.