SF 49ers: Grading 2020 rookie NFL Draft class after one season

With one season in the books, the SF 49ers’ rookie NFL Draft class from 2020 can be looked at with some solid analysis and retrospect.

In contrast to the whopping volume of picks the SF 49ers have had in earlier NFL Draft classes under general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan, the 2020 draft class was comparatively small.

Last April, the Niners brought home only five drafted players after sending off picks to acquire left tackle Trent Williams and now-New Orleans Saints wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders.

Nevertheless, San Francisco’s rookie class made its mark. And for the most part, especially at the top, those marks were impressive enough to suggest some first-year members will be integral parts of the team for quite some time.

With one full season now in the books, Niner Noise goes back and looks at that class, along with the undrafted free-agent class, to evaluate cumulative grades over the course of 2020. These grades will take into account traditional stats, third-party analysis, general impact and will be curved with consideration towards where the player was selected.

Simply put, first-round picks have more scrutiny than sixth- or seventh-round picks.

For starters, though, let’s get the undrafted class out of the way.

SF 49ers 2020 Undrafted Rookies

San Francisco added 11 UDFA players after the draft. Out of that initial crop, only the following remain with the team:

• FB Josh Hokit
• DL Darrion Daniels
• S Jared Mayden
• TE Chase Harrell
• LB Jonas Griffith
• RB JaMycal Hasty

Out of those six, Hasty stood out the most as a change-of-pace scatback who accumulated 148 yards and a touchdown over eight games before suffering a season-ending injury.

Yet Hasty flashed some potential and could work himself into the rotation next year, particularly if runners Tevin Coleman and Jerick McKinnon depart in free agency.

Mayden, meanwhile, looks to be a solid contributor on special teams, while Hokit could find himself a replacement for fullback Kyle Juszczyk, should the latter leave in free agency, too.

Not a bad haul for some developmental players out of this otherwise-unheralded crop.