SF 49ers: 4 players with unrealistic expectations entering 2021

No. 1: SF 49ers EDGE Samson Ebukam

In 2019, the 49ers boasted one of the league’s more elite outside pass-rushing tandems with EDGEs Nick Bosa and Dee Ford.

Yet Ford dealt with injuries that year, and in 2020, Ford was sidelined for all but one game with a serious back injury.

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While still on the roster because of his contract, there’s a chance Ford won’t see a game in 2021, which likely prompted the Niners to ink former Los Angeles Rams EDGE Samson Ebukam to a two-year free-agent deal during the offseason.

Ebukam has health on his side, never having missed a game during his four-year career to date. But unlike Ford, Ebukam was primarily a situational pass-rusher during his time with the Rams yet will be asked to do much more with San Francisco.

Especially with Ford likely out indefinitely.

In 2020, according to Pro Football Focus, Ebukam’s pass-rush productivity mark was 6.5 en route to 4.5 sacks. In 2019, Ford posted a pass-rush productivity mark of 9.9 over just 11 games compared to Ebukam’s 16.

Ebukam could easily be a solid player within the SF 49ers defense. But it’s probably not a good idea to automatically assume he’ll be just as potent as Ford was when healthy.