Fortunately for the San Francisco 49ers, who experienced no shortage of criticism for their 2026 NFL Draft class, the bulk of rookies competing in training camp and preseason thus far have impressed to justify the selections.
Not everyone, though.
The Niners' final pick of the draft, former Kansas offensive tackle Enrique Cruz Jr., might be having the worst camp out of all the first-year pros who've participated thus far.
And that's not hyperbole. Nearly every observation of Cruz has been overly negative. ESPN's Nick Wagoner hasn't shied away from criticism. So have Niners Nation's Kyle Posey and Brad Graham of @TheSFNiners.
None of it is pretty.
Enrique Cruz Jr. might've played his way off 49ers roster already
Much of Cruz's analysis up to San Francisco's exhibition opener was from the media, but fans got a first glimpse during the preseason bout against the Tennessee Titans.
As Graham also shared, it wasn't good.
At best, Cruz might have to kick inside to guard where he can be better protected, but even that would involve some serious patience from the 49ers' perspective. And they may not be in a developmental mood at this point.
Particularly when Cruz is losing one-on-one reps as badly as this:
Romello Height made Enrique Cruz Jr. completely whiff in their 1v1 pic.twitter.com/hZj8YOKjHf
— Coach Yac 🗣 (@Coach_Yac) August 18, 2026
At this point, the Niners would be better off waiving Cruz immediately, potentially looking at him as a developmental practice squad addition in September; it's unlikely any other team would sign him at this point.
Then, San Francisco could use that spot on the 90-man roster to look at other options who'd at least have a fighting chance to compete for placement on the regular-season depth chart.
After all, the 49ers must've already concluded the rookie won't be able to contribute in any meaningful capacity in year one, and that roster spot is far more valuable at finding adequate depth than developing someone whose chances of finding a long-term role at the NFL level appear slimmer by the week.
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