When the 49ers’ new general manager walks through the door on Day 1, he has a mountain of work ahead.
The team’s 2-14 record in 2016 showed that the Niners have perhaps the least-talented roster in the NFL. And, when injuries took out some key starters this past season, there was no quality depth. Despite having a high number of draft picks over the past two years – 21 total -- the 49ers have swung and missed in stocking the team with young, impact players.
This week, in fact, the analytic website Pro Football Focus published its list of the top 25 NFL players 25 and under, and the 49ers had zero players mentioned.
While young defensive ends DeForest Buckner and Arik Armstead appear poised for solid careers, they aren’t yet considered among the league’s top level of rising stars.
Consider the past two drafts:
In 2016, after taking Buckner with the No. 7 overall choice, the 49ers picked up guard Josh Garnett at the bottom of the first round, then added cornerbacks Will Redmond, Rashard Robinson, defensive lineman Ronald Blair and tackle John Theus. All played in 2016, but none was a star difference-maker.
In 2015, after drafting Armstead 17th overall, the team picked safety Jaquiski Tartt, linebacker Eli Harold, tight end Blake Bell, running back Mike Davis and DeAndre Smelter with its top picks. Tartt has been good but not great. The rest have not lived up to hopes, have been injured or released. One of the best picks in 2015 was a seventh-rounder, Trent Brown, who has become a starting tackle.
Local
Even before this past season began, Pro Football Focus ranked the 49ers as having the least-talented roster in the league. After the season, it’s easy to see PFF was correct. The team is especially lean at quarterback, wide receiver, the offensive line and inside and outside linebacker.
And, when injuries took out some of the team’s top-ranked talent – inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman, nose tackle Ian Williams and Armstead – the drop-off was clear.
There is a foundation to build on and it includes Buckner and Armstead, running back Carlos Hyde, cornerbacks Tramaine Brock and Robinson, outside linebacker Aaron Lynch, tackle Joe Staley, Garnett at guard and Vance McDonald at tight end.
But going into this offseason, the team has a lack of dynamic, difference-making young stars.
As Grant Cohn of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat wrote recently, recalling some of the great 49ers teams of the past: “They need special players at the most important positions. They need their Charles Haley, their Patrick Willis, their Jerry Rice, their Joe Montana. Can the new GM – whoever he is – find those players?”
The first step is finding the right GM, and he'll need a blockbuster draft this spring.
