49ers 7-round mock NFL Draft after first wave of free agency
By Peter Panacy
Round 6, Pick No. 193 Overall: 49ers select tight end Tony Poljan, Virginia
Over the last few years, Kyle Shanahan has made efforts to find a complementary tight end to pair with the All-Pro, George Kittle. Last year’s efforts resulted in landing Georgia tight end Charlie Woerner in the NFL Draft, who is little more than a run-blocker, along with still free-agent veteran, Jordan Reed.
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While tight ends Ross Dwelley and Daniel Helm remain on the depth chart, one might assume Shanahan still explores late-round options to pair with Kittle over the long run.
And one of those of intrigue is Virginia’s Tony Poljan.
Poljan, 6-foot-7 and 256 pounds, doesn’t have the fluidity or natural movement skills like Kittle, and Poljan certainly won’t be a yards-after-the-catch machine. If anything, he’d be more like Dwelley, settling down in a soft spot within defensive zone coverages and using his big-body frame and reliable hands to haul in passes.
Those efforts resulted in 411 receiving yards and six touchdowns last year for the Cavaliers after he transferred from Central Michigan.
Poljan also looks to be a solid inline blocker, too, which will help his draft stock a bit and make him much more useful compared to someone like Woerner, whose pass-catching abilities are all but nonexistent.