49ers roster: Predicting who makes the 2021 cut on defensive line

Who makes the cut for 49ers along their defensive line?

OK, it’s

truth

prediction time.

Most NFL teams keep nine defensive linemen on a 53-man roster with eight of them dressed for game day. And given the need to rotate players, particularly pass-rushers, this is a prime explanation why the Niners won’t keep three nose tackles unless one of them is versatile enough to play a 3-technique or something along those lines.

San Francisco 49ers

As for our pre-Week 1 regular-season roster predictions, here you go with the backups italicized:

• Nose tackle: D.J. Jones, Zach Kerr
• Defensive tackle: Javon Kinlaw, Maurice Hurst
• Left defensive end: Arik Armstead, Arden Key, Daeshon Hall
• Right defensive end: Nick Bosa, Samson Ebukam

Keep in mind, this is for base downs. In pass-rushing sub packages, one should look for Jones to come out of the lineup and for Ebukam to be inserted on the edge, thereby moving Armstead inside.

Not too much of a question mark there, and pass-rushing packages tend to be the norm anyway in today’s pass-happy NFL.

The question marks arise with the depth.

Pegging Dee Ford as being available seems premature, and Jordan Willis’ absence opens up the door for someone like Hall to make the cut, even though he’ll likely be inactive on game day. At 6-foot-5, though, Hall fits the mold for an outside edge rusher.

Heck, perhaps Ford and Willis being out for the foreseeable future opens up the door for Key to rejuvenate his own career, too.