The Niners had one of their best drafts in recent mem
The San Francisco 49ers had one of their better drafts in recent memory last offseason, as each of their first four draft picks were starters to end the 2024 season and should play key roles in 2025.
San Francisco, who built their initial infrastructure on the draft back in the early years of the Kyle Shanahan era, had struggled to find success in 2022 and 2023, where they had a lack of capital due to the Trey Lance and Christian McCaffrey trades.
In the 2022 draft, the 49ers ended up with only one starter: quarterback Brock Purdy, and even that was somewhat of a fluke. They missed on early-round selections Drake Jackson, Tyrion Davis-Price, and Danny Gray, while the remainder of the selections haven’t panned out as expected or have been cut.
The 2023 draft was even more eye-opening as the 49ers took safety Ji’Ayir Brown, kicker Jake Moody, and tight end Cameron Latu with their first three picks. Brown was benched for rookie Malik Mustapha earlier this season, Moody severely struggled in his sophomore campaign, and Latu was cut after just one season with the team.
The 49ers have already cut four of their nine selections from the 2023 draft, with Moody being the only starter of the group.
But, those fortunes changed in 2024, as the 49ers finally had a first-round pick and made the most of it, taking wide receiver Ricky Pearsall at No. 31 before going after cornerback Renardo Green in the second round.
Pearsall, Green, third-round pick Dominick Puni, and Mustapha were all starters for the 49ers this past season, while running back Isaac Guerendo, returner Jacob Cowing, and linebacker Tatum Bethune all played in reserve roles in 2024.
The 49ers have seen some major changes in their front office over the past few years, with the most notable departure being Adam Peters to the Washington Commanders.
Has the team’s draft philosophy changed with the departure of those key executives, including Peters? And if so, how has it improved?
“[It’s actually been a] very similar approach,” general manager John Lynch said about the team’s draft philosophy. “I think if anything, just, Kyle and I have worked together a long, long time. And so, you know, just walking through the halls, I was just at a restaurant, ran into DeMeco Ryans and Bobby Slowik right before him and Mike McDaniel over there.
“All these guys that have been with us over the years and personnel people, Adam Peters, you know, and so a lot of people contributed a lot to really refining a process that we work by. And we always are tweaking it, trying to make it better. So I think if anything, when you have some form of continuity and we’ve had that, it allows you to have systems challenge them, test them, what’s working, what’s not, and continue to hone in and always try to get better. You never stay the same. So you always are trying to get better.”
Well, something clicked for the 49ers last offseason, as they were able to balance need with the top players on their board, resulting in one of their most successful drafts in recent memory.