Half of 49ers 2019 NFL Draft class could start Week 1

It may be barely preseason, but the early signs look very promising for the San Francisco 49ers’ 2019 rookie class. Of the eight drafted rookies, four of them look like they could be instant Week 1 starters.

Under the Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch regime, the San Francisco 49ers have had some mixed NFL Draft classes throughout the years.

On the one hand, there have been players who have been busts (linebacker Reuben Foster and running back Joe Williams) and some who are underachieving, such as defensive end Solomon Thomas and quarterback C.J. Beathard.

But on the other hand, we’ve seen some picks who are so far living up to lofty expectations, such as offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey and wide receiver Dante Pettis, some late-round selections who look like punching above their weight, such as defensive tackle D.J. Jones and defensive back D.J. Reed and a few home runs in linebacker Fred Warner and tight end George Kittle.

Add in some undrafted free agents who have surpassed expectations (quarterback Nick Mullens, running back Matt Breida and wide receiver Kendrick Bourne), and it’s been a mixed bag for sure.

But for this season, early signs are showing 2019 could be the most promising draft class yet.

Of the eight drafted rookies on the roster, half of them could be starting as early as Week 1 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And praise is easily going around for this rookie class:

Nick Bosa

EDGE Nick Bosa has been exceeding some lofty expectations in training camp, to the point left tackle Joe Staley has been picking the brains of the young rookie after manhandling him.

Bosa has been developing elite run-blocking technique to go with his array of pass-rushing moves, and it looks very probable that he will start on the defensive line in Week 1.

At absolute worst, Bosa will be on during passing downs before being eased into the starting role later in the season.

Deebo Samuel

Pettis and fellow wideout Trent Taylor look to have two of the three starting positions at receiver locked up (if you count the slot receiver role as a starting position).

Rookie wide receiver Deebo Samuel has been developing a rapport with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in camp, and he had a standout performance on Sunday where he caught three receptions, including an impressive leaping catch for a would-be touchdown.

Samuel has a bit of work to do to get the starting job. But with nobody yet stepping up to fill the starting role, Samuel could find himself starting in Week 1.

Mitch Wishnowsky

We’ve all gone over the misgivings of using a fourth-round NFL Draft pick on a punter, so we’ll just conveniently skip past that onto Mitch Wishnowsky himself.

It was pretty obvious Wishnowsky was going to start Week 1, given his lofty draft status, unless the ball flew off the side of his foot every punt. But early signs point to more than just a mere punter.

Wishnowsky has regularly been blasting punts with hang time, distance and accuracy, as well as punting in such a way that 49ers returners have struggled fielding the ball.

Punters are very rarely weapons, but Wishnowsky could be a perfect trump card for both field position and takeaways.

Dre Greenlaw

Kittle was a 2017 fifth-round selection who turned out to be a massive steal last season. Linebacker Dre Greenlaw may be able to show from Week 1 what he can do.

Greenlaw demonstrated right away at camp what he could do with a strong performance.

This hasn’t been a fluke, and Sunday was his best day yet.

The SAM linebacker position is wide open, and if we were to judge the depth chart by camp performance so far, it would be Greenlaw starting there.

Current status

The 49ers have not yet released an official depth chart this season, but it seems a fairly logical guess Wishnowsky is a starter.

Of the other three rookies, Bosa is the most likely to start with his run-stopping and pass-rushing abilities.

Greenlaw and Samuel will probably have to show they can produce in the preseason games before starting Week 1. They should get plenty of reps in these games, and the interesting thing will be if they get reps with the starters, especially in the third “dress rehearsal” game.

For now, they have to keep up their momentum at camp and take their chances when it comes. If they do, the 49ers could see four rookies starting in Week 1.