49ers select Jarrett Kingston with the No. 215 overall pick in the NFL Draft
By John Porter
After making a trio of picks in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, the San Francisco 49ers had a long wait until their next time up, not only bypassing Round 5 but having their pick in the sixth round come right near the end of the round at No. 39, a compensatory selection following losses in free agency last year.
When they finally stepped up to the podium, they kept a local player around, selecting Anderson, California, native and former USC player Jarrett Kingston.
Kingston is an experienced lineman, spending five years at Washington State, appearing in 37 games with 26 starts, before transferring back closer to home and finishing out his career at USC, starting 12 games in his senior year for the Trojans.
While his college career was mixed between guard and tackle, it's very likely that Kingston projects to guard or center in the NFL. His arms look simply too short to play anywhere else. He's a competent player, however, and flashes some very good technique at times.
He's probably a better fit in the zone-blocking system utilised by the 49ers than anywhere else as he doesn't have the power to work on the inside in a power-blocking scheme. What Kingston does have is quick feet and good athleticism, two things that should allow offensive line coach Chris Foerster to attempt to mold him into a useful contributor.
Kingston adds his talents to an unproven offensive line group along with Day 2 pick Dominick Puni, who also projects to guard. Given the uncertainty on the right-hand side of the guard spot (currently shared between Jon Feliciano and the underwhelming Spencer Burford), and Aaron Banks' contract coming up on the right, this pick feels like potential insulation against any depth issues moving forward on the offensive line, if Kingston is indeed good enough to beat out the likes of Ben Bartch to make the roster.
Will he fare better than Chilo Rachal and Marcus Martin, previous USC linemen drafted by the 49ers?
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