Niners' Tank is Rolling at his New Position

Tank Carradine, miscast as a defensive lineman, has lost weight and moved to outside linebacker, where he's looking strong as an edge defender and pass rusher

It appears that the Tank Carradine experiment is working.

Carradine, a second-round pick of the 49ers in 2013 out of Florida State, had been a terrific player for the Seminoles and an athlete capable of getting to opposing quarterbacks.

But as a defensive end in the 49ers’ 3-4 scheme, Carradine wasn’t effective. After sitting out his first season with an injury, he played just nine games in 2014, then appeared in 14 in 2015. As a 49er he’s started just one game and been in on just 39 tackles, with four sacks.

The 49ers, however, weren’t ready to give up on him, and decided to move him to outside linebacker where he might be better able to use his talents. He looked good in his new role in offseason workouts, then continued to perform well in training camp.

Now, after three exhibition games, it looks like he’ll be on the opening-game roster and be a contributor to what the 49ers hope is a better pass rush in 2016.

He’s lost nearly 30 pounds, down to his college weight of about 270, and says it feels more natural to him.

“I’m able to play on the outside, set the edge, rush the passer from the outside and cover guys,” he told a reporter during training camp. “I’m able to do more to help the team, and so I like it a lot.”

In the 49ers’ third exhibition of the summer, vs. Green Bay, Carradine had two tackles and a sack. Defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil says he likes what he sees of Carradine in his new role.

“I would not want to block him if I was a tight end,” O’Neil told the 49ers website. “He continues to show up as far as pass rush, and he’s gotten better every rep that he’s gotten as far as pass coverage. So he’s done a nice job progressing at the position.”

The 49ers will wrap up this exhibition season Thursday night with a game against the Chargers in San Diego.

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