Opinions about the 49ers' first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft are, frankly, all over the shop.
There doesn't even seem to be a consensus about which position, let alone the actual player, with various mocks listing anything from a pass-rushing defensive end to a potential offensive weapon at tight end among the options for the San Francisco 49ers when their time comes to be on the clock in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Now, a venerated draft guru has thrown another surprising name into the mix.
According to his latest mock for The Athletic, Dane Brugler sees the Niners selecting Texas A&M "edge" Shemar Stewart.
To say this pick would be something of a surprise is an understatement. While Stewart has some incredible athletic gifts, most draftniks seem to have placed him around the middle-to-lower half of Round 1, rather in the upper echelons where the 49ers will be making their pick.
Even Brugler refers to the pick as a "bet," saying:
"I certainly understand the reservations with Stewart and his lack of sack production in college — he isn’t a slam-dunk prospect. But he created plenty of noise when the Aggies allowed him to pin back his ears and attack the quarterback (he led A&M in pressures in 2024). His dominant Senior Bowl flashes and elite explosion numbers at the combine could be enough to convince a pass rush-starved team such as the 49ers to bet on his tools."Dane Brugler, The Athletic
It would certainly be a controversial pick, and once the initial shock had faded, an easy comparison to another high-risk, high-reward pick in 49ers history emerged.
That of Aldon Smith.
Aldon Smith and Shemar Stewart: High-risk, high-reward project picks
True, Smith in 2011 isn't entirely Shemar Stewart in 2025. From a sheer statistics point of view, Smith was more productive in college, logging far more sacks (although, in fairness to Stewart, his pressure numbers are excellent), but there are some definite similarities. Both had relative inexperience (Smith had only played four years of football at all) and both found themselves coming into the professional game trying to translate their obvious physical tools to production on the field.
In fact, Smith's resume was so incomplete coming out of Missouri that his draft announcement barely made a ripple. Much like Stewart, Smith was largely mocked in the mid-to-late first round, and to my knowledge at least, no one connected him with San Francisco in the leadup to draft day.
That might have been because the 2011 Niners were largely in the same place as the team finds itself in 2025: multiple perceived needs (at the very least) across the roster, and as such, it was hard to pin down where then-general manager Trent Baalke would put his draft capital. There were links to quarterback Blaine Gabbert (shudder), cornerback Patrick Peterson, and defensive lineman Cameron Jordan, among others.
The 49ers, however, would step up and take Smith, and it largely worked out, at least in the short-term.
Beginning as a part-time starter, rushing primarily from the nickel formation and other special packages, Smith tore it up both as a rookie, then continued his hot pace, logging an astonishing 33.5 sacks in his first two years and being a hugely dominant part of San Francisco's seemingly ubiquitous playoff runs in the head coach Jim Harbaugh era.
Unfortunately, as you all know, Smith's demons would eventually get the better of him. After multiple suspensions, a fight with then-quarterback Colin Kaepernick, and other indiscretions, the 49ers would cut him entering 2015, after which he would bounce around the league with the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys before eventually retiring after more legal trouble in 2023.
Shemar Stewart's fit with the 49ers is obvious
Back in the present day, if the Niners do indeed take Stewart, it's not hard to see a similar projection for his San Francisco career, on the field at least. His athleticism and pressure numbers suggest that he could make some noise early as a pass-rusher, particularly if he's used sparingly and sensibly while vaunted 49ers defensive line coach Kris Kocurek rounds out his rougher edges and turns him into a more well-rounded defensive player.
No one will likely do what Smith did in his first two years in the league ever again, but if Stewart could have a similar impact as Smith from those first two seasons, it would be a huge shot in the arm for the 49ers pass rush.
General manager John Lynch has struggled for years to find a consistent complement to phenom pass-rusher Nick Bosa, and if Stewart can provide it, the team's defense will immediately take a step forward under defensive coordinator Robert Saleh.
It's all supposition, of course, and it's easy to see some potential skepticism and worry from the Niners fanbase over taking such a project player so high in the draft, particularly with the team having other glaring needs across the offensive and defensive lines.
But, if they believe in Stewart's potential, he might be the right choice after all.
Sadly, Smith's career would burn brightly and burn out quickly, and the 49ers will certainly hope that Stewart's career, if he is indeed the pick, doesn't turn out the same way. There's no record of any character concerns with Stewart, and indeed, his risk profile seems largely to be based around a lack of production relative to his obvious physical gifts.
It'll be up to the 49ers front office, led by Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan, to determine if they think they can unlock that production, and turn Stewart into the next NFL defensive star.
Will he be the pick?