49ers post opt-out 53-man roster predictions

49ers Defensive Line (9)

EDGE Nick Bosa

DE Arik Armstead

DT Javon Kinlaw

EDGE Dee Ford

DT D.J. Jones

EDGE Dion Jordan

DT Kevin Givens

DE Solomon Thomas

DE Ronald Blair

The 49ers could really go about 10 or 11 deep on the defensive line, and I’m not sure there would be much drop off at various positions.

To be sure, players like Nick Bosa, Arik Armstead, and Dee Ford are among the best players in the league at their respective positions. But a guy like Ronald Blair, Solomon Thomas, and Dion Jordan, whom the 49ers signed back on Aug. 7, could reasonably step in and provide quality reps to spell those higher-level starters.

But the 49ers are looking to continue sporting one of the league’s best defensive lines, and one of the major tenets of doing so last season was not forcing the stars to play 1000-plus snaps. So even though Blair or someone like defensive tackle Kevin Givens aren’t household names, they could be key cogs in the Niners’ continued success at this position.

The strangest thing about this unit is how few camp battles there seem to be, with Bosa, Ford, Armstead, rookie defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw, D.J. Jones, and Thomas close to locks for various reasons.

Jordan may be competing with players like Kentavius Street or Kerry Hyder, but his pedigree may push him ahead of these guys in the end.

This group is a strong one and probably still one of the best units in the entire league.