The 49ers’ 2021 rookie class won’t be very present in a healthy starting lineup for San Francisco. They’ll be extremely prevalent in the spots directly behind the starters though with key depth roles on both sides of the ball.
There’s plenty of time for first-year players to make their mark, but a few weeks of camp and a preseason game have given us enough to go off of to generate some early 49ers rookie rankings.
We’ll update these throughout the year, and the criteria will change a bit depending on how the season goes.
The next two preseason games should feature plenty of the rookies that are still vying for roster spots and higher places on the depth chart. First-year players saw a ton of action in the preseason opener against the Chiefs, and that playing time will likely continue through the exhibition slate.
Here are the rookie rankings after the first preseason game: