SF 49ers: Fred Warner, others rightfully named to 2021 Pro Bowl

The SF 49ers managed to get three of their players — Fred Warner, Kyle Juszczyk and Trent Williams — named to the 2021 Pro Bowl.

He might have flown under the radar the last two seasons. But SF 49ers linebacker Fred Warner is now a household name across NFL circles.

And it’s certainly time he begins to receive some recognition on the national level.

Warner was one of three Niners players who were nominated to represent the team in the 2021 Pro Bowl, fullback Kyle Juszczyk and left tackle Trent Williams being the other two in an announcement from San Francisco on Monday afternoon.

Warner, the SF 49ers’ third-round pick from the 2018 NFL Draft, has been on the ascent ever since his rookie year but never received a Pro Bowl nomination until this season despite landing at No. 70 overall on the NFL’s Top 100 list entering this season.

There’s plenty of argument as to who is the game’s top linebacker today, and that list certainly includes the Seattle Seahawks’ Bobby Wagner and the Indianapolis Colts’ Darius Leonard.

But Warner definitely belongs right in the middle of that discussion.

Meanwhile, both Juszczyk and Williams have emerged as perennial Pro Bowlers in their own right. Juszczyk, not exactly seeing a lot of competition at a less-used position, now makes his fifth Pro Bowl in a row and has received the accolade in each of his four seasons with the Niners. Williams, of course, was a regular Pro Bowler during his time with the Washington Football Team, racking up seven such awards consecutively before sitting out in 2019 and ending that streak.

It’s great to see him pick up where he left off after San Francisco acquired him from Washington last offseason.

SF 49ers 2021 Pro Bowl snubs

Interestingly enough, the NFC champion SF 49ers from a season ago sent only one more player to the Pro Bowl than this season. Those four included Juszczky, tight end George Kittle, EDGE Nick Bosa and cornerback Richard Sherman.

But Kittle, Bosa and Sherman have been hurt for the vast majority of 2020, so it makes sense why they didn’t get the nod.

Were there any snubs, though?

Possibly. One could make the argument fellow corner Jason Verrett, who has enjoyed quite the bounce-back season with two interceptions after missing the vast majority of his campaigns between 2016 and 2019, should have received some attention. There’s also the rookie wide receiver, Brandon Aiyuk, who has recorded at least 100 yards or a touchdown in nine of the Niners’ last 10 games.

Yet it’s important to remember the Pro Bowl is often a “popularity contest,” of sorts, and those tend to favor teams with far better records than the 5-9 SF 49ers.

In that regard, maybe it’s a good thing San Francisco still managed to send three Pro Bowlers to the top of the rankings.

Oh, and for those who are wondering, there won’t actually be a Pro Bowl at the end of the season because the game itself won’t be played.

So don’t be expecting any alternates either.