Your daily San Francisco 49ers news for Saturday, June 14th, 2025
49ers sign 4th-round draft pick CJ West to 4-yr, $5.2M rookie deal
“The No. 1 criteria when scouting defensive linemen is to find the guys that hate to be blocked, and West falls into that category with his fast, strong hands and high energy level,” Dane Brugler of The Athletic wrote in his player analysis. “He can win gaps with his quickness but has some tweener play traits, as he lacks the mass or length desired for the nose and his pass-rush process is underdeveloped when playing over the B-gap.
“Overall, West doesn’t have the size measurements to fit every scheme, and he needs to continue connecting the dots as a pass rusher, but his natural leverage, play violence and ascending instincts are of NFL quality. Similar in ways to Poona Ford, he has the goods to become a valuable part of a defensive line rotation.”
49ers mailbag: Who’s the frontrunner at safety? Darkhorses for the 2025 roster (paywall)
“Shanahan looks very closely at receivers’ lower bodies at practice. He wants them to be able to drive defenders off their marks, creating separation for the quarterback. That will determine how much Watkins contributes this year, and to be perfectly honest, I’m not qualified to assess how he handled that aspect this spring.
That said, he was one of the 10 49ers who stood out because he routinely made catches in the middle of the field and deep down the field. Watkins is smooth and never looks like he’s straining. There’s no perfect comparison for him as far as past 49ers. He’s similar to Brandon Aiyuk size-wise, and like Aiyuk, he can make plays at every level of the defense. He doesn’t seem to have Aiyuk’s suddenness. Aiyuk creates space for throws, especially against man coverage. It remains to be seen whether Watkins can do that.”
George Kittle shares candid thoughts on Kyle Shanahan, 49ers’ offseason
“I like to golf with him down in Cabo in the offseason, and then I like to win football games with him in the fall,” Kittle said. “He holds us all accountable. He definitely puts a lot of pressure on all of the guys on the team that have to help us win games, but one of the things he does really well is he doesn’t put guys in a position where they’re not going to succeed.
“He doesn’t ask guys to do crazy things. He is like, ‘Look, I drafted you for this reason. This is what I know that you’re really good at. I’m going to try to get you to do this as many times as you possibly can.’ And he does that for the entire roster, which is pretty special. He’s not out there just pulling stuff out of his ass. He’s pretty smart when it comes to that stuff.”
49ers insider predicts kicker competition outcome—and fans may not love it
“I think that, in a lot of ways, it has given Jake Moody a new lease on life with the 49ers,” Maiocco added. “And I do think that he is—maybe not the overwhelming favorite—but certainly the clear favorite to win that job.”
Maiocco added: “The other part is, if Jake Moody, if he struggles (during the season), Greg Joseph isn’t going anywhere. … My guess is they give Moody a chance to open the regular season, and then, where it goes from there remains to be seen.”