San Francisco 49ers: Grading each rookie NFL Draft pick after 2019 season
By Peter Panacy
It’s pretty safe to assume the San Francisco 49ers got some excellent production out of their 2019 rookie NFL Draft class after the regular season, and Niner Noise grades this unit out at the end of the year.
There are a number of elements which helped transform a 4-12 San Francisco 49ers team in 2018 to the 13-3 squad that ended up pulling off the No. 1 overall seed in the conference and the team’s first NFC West crown since 2012.
Getting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo back healthy from his 2018 ACL tear was instrumental, of course. A fully healthy cornerback, Richard Sherman, helped a lot, too, as did the continued ascent of younger players like tight end George Kittle and right tackle Mike McGlinchey. Key trades, such as the offseason move for EDGE Dee Ford and the mid-year pickup of wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, also worked wonders.
Yet it’s impossible to trace the Niners transformation from a lowly bottom feeder to legitimate Super Bowl contender in a single year without looking at the team’s efforts in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Needless to say, San Francisco received some excellent contributions from this season’s rookie class.
The big name, EDGE Nick Bosa, made a massive difference and helped transform what was a lackluster 49ers pass rush into one of the more formidable pass defenses in the league during the regular season.
But Bosa wasn’t the only standout from this year’s class. Another player, in particular, stood out in just as big a way on the opposite side of the ball. And the Niners also received some pretty exemplary efforts from depth guys drafted, too.
So, with the 2019 regular season in the books, Niner Noise goes back and dishes out year-end grades for every member of the team’s 2019 NFL Draft class.
Starting with the top pick, Bosa.