The 49ers selected Talanoa Hufanga in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. What are some things fans should expect to see from the rookie safety in 2021?
The San Francisco 49ers selected Talanoa Hufanga, a safety out of USC, with their fifth-round (180th overall) pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
For the current regime of head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch, the fifth round has typically proven successful for them.
Lynch and Shanahan always tend to find their late-draft steals in the fifth round. In 2017, they found a tight end named out of Iowa named George Kittle. And he quickly blossomed into an All-Pro talent and one of the best tight ends in the league, breaking a record or two on the way.
In 2019 the duo drafted linebacker Dre Greenlaw in the fifth round. Although Greenlaw has not been an All-Pro or Pro Bowler as yet, he quickly became a starter and solid contributor in his rookie year.
Hufanga also looks to be another late-draft steal for Shanahan and Lynch. The native of Corvallis, Oregon had an exceptional career at USC being named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team All-American in 2020.
Although he was the 14th safety selected in the draft, he has a unique skill set among his rookie peers at the position.
He is a hybrid safety and linebacker type (he even got some snaps at nickel corner) and has already drawn comparisons to Hall of Fame safety and follow Trojan alum Troy Polamalu, with whom he trained pre-draft.
With his very unique hybrid skill set, what can we expect from Hufanga in the 2021 season?
Let’s take a look at three things that fans should expect to see from him in the upcoming season.
No. 3: 49ers Get a Premium Pass Rush
Talanoa Hufanga only played six games in the pandemic shortened 2020 Pac-12 season. He put up some monster numbers in that short campaign. The stat category that stands out the most is the sacks.
Hufanga recorded three sacks in those six games. That was more than any of the 13 safeties drafted ahead of him for the 2020 college season. He is very good when playing up at the line of scrimmage, and is an excellent pass-rusher.
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In 2021, the 49ers should have great depth at the safety position. The fact that starting strong safety Jaquiski Tartt has been placed on the IR in three of the last four seasons was probably a big part of why they selected Hufanga.
In the event Tartt is inactive for a game, look for defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans to use Hufanga in a similar fashion to how safety Jamal Adams is used by the Seattle Seahawks.
While Hufanga will likely not have 9.5 sacks in 2021 as Adams did in 2020, he will be a pass-rushing force for the Niners defense. If he gets significant playing time, look for Hufanga to have something closer to three or four sacks in 2021.
No. 2: Run-Stopping Ability Will Help 49ers
As previously mentioned, Talanoa Hufanga is great at playing up at the line of scrimmage. He has a nose for the ball and even better than his pass-rushing abilities is his run defense.
He was seen all over the field bringing ball carriers down during his time at USC. That might be where the comparison to Troy Polamalu initially came from. During the 2020 season, he was the game leader in tackles for multiple games.
Against UCLA last December he tallied a whopping game-high 17 tackles.
When Hufanga sets foot on the field in 2021 look for him to execute run blitzes that get him tackles for a loss and give opposing running backs headaches.
Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins was on the reading list that Polamalu gave him during his mentoring sessions, but hopefully, he also gave Hufanga some tips on how to make a well-timed tackle over the top at the goal line.
Those run-stopping efforts sure will be impressive to watch.
No. 1: 49ers Rookie Has a Cool, Calm Demeanor
What is already very apparent from the few media appearances that Talanoa Hufanga made with 49ers team reporter Keiana Martin and other Bay Area media members is that he has a very cool and calm demeanor.
His presence is much like, you guessed it, Troy Polamalu. Hufanga has shown to be very humble and gracious to the media. He counts his blessing and values faith and his family.
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He has mentioned that he would be happy to play anywhere on the field to prove himself. His versatility playing at different spots on the defense was known during his college days. But he even mentioned that he would be happy to mark his mark on special teams for San Francisco.
He even began texting Niners special teams coordinator Richard Hightower once he found out he would be on the team. As he is well aware that he’ll have to prove some of his abilities on special teams especially early on.
From those media experiences, fans will pick up on the fact Hufanga lacks all the over-the-top bravado some rookies come into the league with. He’s not cocky or overconfident. He’s willing to put in the work needed to get where he wants to be with the team.
Hufanga is a great player, but also has great character, and that’s something that all of the Faithful should be able to get behind.