5 defensive NFL Draft prospects 49ers must have atop big board
By Peter Panacy
852. Scouting Report. EDGE. Minnesota. player. Pick Analysis. Boye Mafe. 4
No. 4 player on 49ers defensive NFL Draft big board: EDGE Boye Mafe, Minnesota
It’s a good year to be in need of a pass-rusher in the 2022 NFL Draft. And while there are only a few clear-cut studs in this year’s class (and those will be long gone by the time the Niners select), there are nevertheless plenty of solid edge rushers to be had from late in Round 1 all the way through the latter stages of day three.
San Francisco would like to pair a complementary pass-rusher with Pro Bowl EDGE Nick Bosa this offseason, and it sure doesn’t look like oft-injured EDGE Dee Ford will ever come back, and the remaining crop of options are rotational at best.
There are plenty of potential fits for the 49ers here, but one player who’ll probably either wind up selected late in Round 1 or at least by the halfway point of Round 2 is Minnesota EDGE Boye Mafe, who steadily showed improvement and prowess over his collegiate tenure.
| Tackles | Def Int | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Solo | Ast | Tot | Loss | Sk | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | PD | FR | Yds | TD | FF |
| *2018 | Minnesota | Big Ten | FR | DL | 6 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |||
| *2019 | Minnesota | Big Ten | SO | DL | 7 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2020 | Minnesota | Big Ten | JR | DL | 6 | 18 | 9 | 27 | 5.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |||
| *2021 | Minnesota | Big Ten | SR | DL | 12 | 26 | 8 | 34 | 10.0 | 7.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |||
| Career | Minnesota | 59 | 28 | 87 | 19.5 | 15.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Provided by CFB at Sports Reference
Generated 4/13/2022.
At 6-foot-3 and 255 pounds, Mafe is the definition of a speed rusher, which has been a point of emphasis for the Niners defensive line since the slowish group that graced the field in 2020.
He’ll still need some polish and shouldn’t anchor a team’s No. 1 outside pass-rusher spot.
Luckily for San Francisco, it already has Bosa to do that, making Boye a top target if he falls late in the second round.