49ers roster: Get Ka’dar Hollman on your cornerback radar

If you said ‘who?’ with regards to 49ers cornerback Ka’dar Hollman, we’re here to help point out a bit more about the veteran entering 2022.

Niner Noise’s annual profiling of every single player on the San Francisco 49ers’ offseason roster is a fun project, and it’s usually easy when the player we discuss is a well-known one.

However, some of the more intriguing profiles are for the less-known players.

And, in the case of backup-to-the-backups cornerback Ka’dar Hollman, we have to dig way deep here.

With all due respect to Hollman, who played his college ball at Toledo and was originally the Green Bay Packers’ sixth-round NFL Draft pick from 2019, a big reason why you probably never heard from him is that he only joined the Niners last February after spending the 2021 season with both the New Orleans Saints and New York Giants.

He didn’t see the field last year, though.

Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com
Generated 6/14/2022.

Hollman did spend considerable time on special teams during his Packers tenure, though, and that might be the lone ticket he has to carve out a niche role for San Francisco in 2022.

Why Ka’dar Hollman latches on with 49ers in 2022

Hollman, 27 years old and 6-foot-0 and 196 pounds, is both at his prime in terms of age and has the ideal build. Going back to that 2020 season where he saw 14 games and played 108 defensive snaps, the cornerback was credited with allowing only seven completions on 17 targets for just 63 total yards.

That’s not bad. Heck, perhaps playing with another former Toledo alumnus, 49ers rookie Samuel Womack, might be the cause for some inspiration.

Special teams will be Hollman’s calling card, though, and that same 2020 campaign revealed a modest 54.3 special teams grade from Pro Football Focus.

If Hollman proves his worth there, he might receive some extra looks.

Why Ka’dar Hollman is one and done with 49ers before Week 1

The Niners signed Hollman to a reserve/future contract before revamping their cornerback room by inking free-agent Charvarius Ward, re-signing Jason Verrett and drafting Womack, among other moves.

One can fairly question why Hollman hasn’t latched on anywhere to date, although both the Saints and Giants had pretty well-stocked cornerback rooms last season. Still, considering he’s entering his fourth year at the NFL level, we’re losing the opportunity to call him a late bloomer.

Likely a third-string option during training camp, Hollman won’t be receiving a lot of reps to prove his value during practices, and there aren’t exactly a lot of opportunities for him to show he’d be a better option than many of the others on San Francisco’s depth chart.

Ka’dar Hollman’s chances of making 49ers’ 53-man roster

A long-shot designation for Hollman to survive roster cuts ahead of Week 1 is probably the right designation here.

He obviously won’t chase Ward, Verrett or Womack off the roster, barring injuries, and the same should be said about Emmanuel Moseley and Ambry Thomas, too.

That puts Hollman squarely in the competition with other defensive backs likely vying for the sixth and final spot on the 49ers’ regular-season roster, names like Dontae Johnson, Tariq Castro-Fields, Deommodore Lenoir and Qwuantrezz Knight.

Read More: Why cornerback is no longer a 49ers weakness after 2022 draft

Not only will Hollman have to beat out each one of those names, but he’ll also have to prove his special teams value to stand the slimmest of chances.

What’ll likely be the case is Hollman getting into preseason games late, perhaps in the fourth quarter where he’ll be competing against many a player who will find himself unemployed by the time Week 1 rolls around.

Unless Hollman suddenly balls out at a level never before seen, he’ll probably be in that same crop of roster cuts, too.