The 49ers added some tight ends this offseason, so their depth chart sees some changes from last year despite not taking one in the NFL Draft.
One of the less-discussed but more-provocative aspects from the San Francisco 49ers' 2025 NFL Draft class is they opted not to select a tight end despite it being a deep class at the position, which is made stranger in light of head coach Kyle Shanahan's seemingly yearly quest to add a No. 2 option behind the perennial Pro Bowler, George Kittle.
Despite not adding a tight end via the draft, the Niners' didn't wholly avoid the position entirely during the offseason.
In fact, San Francisco spent relatively big bucks on former Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Luke Farrell, bringing him aboard on a three-year deal worth just over $5 million per season -- a lot of money for a blocking-only kind of tight end.
Yet the 49ers' depth behind Kittle and Farrell was notably thin and unproven, which prompted Shanahan and Co. to at least explore some other options.
One of those was to bring back a longtime Niner, Ross Dwelley, who spent 2018 through 2023 in the Bay Area before a one-year stint with the Atlanta Falcons.
Dwelley's spot on the roster is mainly contingent upon how much money he has guaranteed on the one-year deal signed with San Francisco.
If one doesn't consider that, though, it's reasonable to assume he'll make the 53-man cut.
Predicting 49ers tight end depth chart in 2025
The 49ers have kept four tight ends on a roster before, but the draft's reinforcement of the defensive line and secondary could prompt Shanahan to limit this number down to three.
If that's the case, the top-three options are pretty concise:
- George Kittle
- Luke Farrell
- Ross Dwelley
Farrell and Dwelley are almost interchangeable, depending largely upon what Shanahan is asking the No. 2 option to do (run block, serve as a pass-catching decoy, etc.). Considering Dwelley saw his offensive involvement diminish in his previous final two years with the Niners in favor of another blocking tight end, Charlie Woerner, it's likely Farrell sees more snaps than Dwelley.
Missing out on the cut, however, are some fringe players who'd face an uphill fight to hang around into the regular season: Mason Pline, Jake Tonges and Brayden Willis, any of whom could potentially be candidates for the practice squad as an emergency call-up, provided San Francisco can slip the individual through waivers.