Ranking 49ers' 5 best moves from 2023 NFL offseason
By Peter Panacy
49ers best offseason move No. 2: Round 5 NFL Draft picks, Darrell Luter Jr. and Robert Beal Jr.
Alright, two offseason moves wrapped into one. But, considering San Francisco had three separate chances to grab a running back in Round 3, discussing what John Lynch and Co. did in Round 5 is worthy of one single move, too.
If the 49ers' third-round moves were questionable, the fifth-round moves were exciting. Granted, the Niners had only two picks in that particular round, but they came away with two players who could have easily been drafted higher, South Alabama cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. and Georgia EDGE Robert Beal Jr.
Luter was a standout during the Senior Bowl, while Beal is still raw but possesses very refinable traits that could mold him into a quality pass-rusher within a year or two's time.
Beal isn't close to starting, per se, but Luter could challenge someone like Deommodore Lenoir for the No. 2 boundary cornerback role right out of the gate.
Even if Luter starts off as a reserve but emerges into a decent starter in a year or two's time, it'd be yet another example of a solid Round 5 draft choice, and San Francisco has a history of producing those in recent years.