The 49ers have landed some massive talent when picking 11th overall in the NFL Draft, including a couple of Hall of Fame legends.
Generally speaking, it's not necessarily a good thing for teams to own the 11th overall pick in the NFL Draft.
While not exactly stemming from a terrible two- or three-win season the year prior, as the top-five drafting teams might have experienced, a pick right before the teens usually indicates coming off a down year.
And that's precisely what the San Francisco 49ers experienced after going 6-11 in 2024, resulting in them receiving the No. 11 overall pick in the 2025 draft a few months later.
Each draft is its own unique beast, of course, and no two draft classes can ever be alike.
That said, the Niners can take some comfort knowing they've landed some massive success stories when their number had been previously called at No. 11 overall.
Let's take a look at every player San Francisco selected 11th overall.
49ers' history of players selected 11th overall in NFL Draft
2010 -- OT Anthony Davis, Rutgers
While offensive tackle Anthony Davis' sudden retirement (and re-retirement) from the 49ers in 2015 and again in 2016 cast a gloomy shadow over his pro career, there's no questioning the fact he was a vital part of what was truly a mauling offensive line during the early 2010s under then-head coach Jim Harbaugh.
Coupled with left tackle Joe Staley, Davis helped bookend this formidable O-line, and the latter was a mainstay, starting every single game at right tackle from his rookie season through 2013.
2007 -- LB Patrick Willis, Ole Miss
Hall of Fame linebacker Patrick Willis deserves recognition as one of the greatest Niners players of all time, and the franchise found out he was heading in that direction during his rookie year when he secured both first-team All-Pro and Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.
That memorable 2007 season kicked off a career, that while shorter than most had hoped, nevertheless culminated in seven Pro Bowl accolades, five first-team All-Pro selections, being named to the All-2010s team and eventual enshrinement in Canton.
Too bad injuries kept Willis from playing beyond 2014, but he nevertheless remains a cornerstone in Niners lore.
1966 -- DL Stan Hindman, Ole Miss
Going back into the archives, San Francisco landed a quality defensive lineman in 1966 out of Mississippi, Stan Hindman, who'd record 26 sacks (unofficial) over seven years with the 49ers, including 12 his sophomore season over the course of 13 games.
Imagine that kind of production now over a 17-game season. Hindman would be a blockbuster star defender.
1967 was the exception, not the rule for Hindman, who never had more than five sacks in any other year.
Still, that number was impressive.
1960 -- TE Monty Stickles, Notre Dame
In 1960, the Niners used the 11th overall pick on Notre Dame tight end Monty Stickles, who'd go on to play for the red and gold for eight years, amassing nearly 3,000 receiving yards in the process.
1961 proved to be his best year in which he recorded a career-best 794 yards and five touchdowns over 14 games.
His 2,993 receiving yards currently rank 20th among all San Francisco pass catchers all time and fourth among the franchise's tight ends.
1954 -- QB Bernie Faloney, Maryland
Quarterback Bernie Faloney rebuffed the 49ers' offer to play for them after they used the No. 11 overall pick in 1954, opting to head north of the border where he'd carve out a notable career in the CFL.
It's safe to say the Niners whiffed on this pick.
1950 -- DL Leo Nomellini, Minnesota
If Willis wasn't enough of a justification to suggest San Francisco's success with players drafted 11th overall is good, defensive lineman Leo Nomellini should convince any doubters otherwise.
Prior to the dynasty years of the 1980s, some would argue Nomellini was the 49ers' greatest player of all time, an absolute legend who set the tone for the red and gold throughout the 1950s and well into the 1960s, doubling not only as a defensive lineman but playing on the offensive line, too.
During that Hall of Fame career of his, Nomellini tallied 10 Pro Bowl selections and six first-team All-Pro nods.
It wouldn't be a reach to suggest Nomellini should be in the conversation for greatest defensive player in NFL history and not just the Niners.
Read more from Niner Noise
feed