Foerster explains why he has felt this way
San Francisco 49ers offensive line coach Chris Foerster discussed the Niners’ team-building philosophy during Wednesday’s media availability.
Spoken like a man who understands his employer— and has been told no a time or two—Foerster delved into why he believes it makes sense to invest in skill players early in the NFL Draft, as opposed to offensive lineman:
“This is my personal opinion, if they ask me, invest in guys that touch the ball, guys that can touch the ball and score touchdowns. And then there’s a range of guys, second, third, fourth round, fifth round even, that we will find starting offensive linemen in. At some point can you draft them?
Yeah, you draft [OL] Trent Williams. You pick a draft where you’re getting a difference-maker. But there’s guys that can make a difference, that touch the ball, well into the second, third, fourth rounds, or second and third rounds, at least. And definitely in the first round. That guy that touches the ball, it makes a huge difference in the game.
The right guard makes a difference, we’ve talked about it before, but that’s where we’re able to find fourth and fifth round draft picks. How dominant is the difference between pick 34 versus pick 54, in offensive line play? And that’s what you’re trying to balance all the time. So, will we draft the best available player, all those types of things? Definitely will. And were we possibly ready to draft guys higher in the draft? Yes. But if there’s somebody that can touch the ball and make plays, in my opinion, if you ask me, ‘Chris, do you want him?’ I want the guy that touches the ball, for me.”
You would think that quote came from a wide receiver coach. That sounds like somebody who gets it. Somebody who understands where the league has been headed for years.
I appreciate Foerster’s outlier analogy. Sure, there is a Trent Williams every decade, but impactful players touch the ball.
Now, the pushback will be the 49ers haven’t developed some of these later round picks. I would argue getting multiple seasons out of Spencer Burford, or one full season where you ended up in the Super Bowl from Colton McKivitz, is proof that you can win without investing a first round pick in an offensive lineman.
Foerster continued:
“Because I think we can develop those players much more readily and have developed those players through the times because we do have specific things that we’re looking for. We know what we’re looking for through the course of time.
That’s the advantage of being together with Kyle for so long that we kind of can pigeonhole these guys. Are we always right? Heck no, we’re not always right and nobody is on anything. Could you put five first rounders across the front? I don’t know that we have to, to have success. And it hasn’t been that case as far as running the football and protecting the quarterback. We don’t have five first rounders, so there’s always going to be that. But, the fact that you can throw a short pass to [WR] Deebo [Samuel], even though the right tackle’s getting beat, it ends up being a 60-yard touchdown.
So yeah, the right tackle blocks somebody, but if the guy gets tackled at five yards, you don’t have the 60-yard touchdown. ‘Boy that right tackle did a great job.’ What’s it matter if the guy touching the ball can’t take it to the house? So, there’s the trade off and you’re constantly playing that game.”
It’s difficult to argue with his thought process and examples. The 49ers have an offensive line that can do just enough to create a hole while their play-caller can scheme them open. But it’s on the player who has the ball in their hands to either make somebody miss or go above and beyond to generate the explosive play.
That’s what wins in today’s NFL, and that’s where the 49ers focus has been offensively. Based on their 2023 season, I’d say it’s working.