PFF ranked every draft class by snaps played, and the 49ers were in the top 5.
The San Francisco 49ers drafted a 20-year-old in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, but Mykel Williams is far from inexperienced.
John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan picked up where they left off from the 2024 NFL Draft by bringing in players with on-field playing experience who contributed at multiple positions for their respective teams.
Pro Football Focus ranked each draft class by snap counts to see which teams came away with the most experienced class. The 49ers came away with the fourth-most snaps with 21,753 — likely aided by the number of draft picks they had.
4. San Francisco 49ers: 21,753 snaps
The 49ers made 11 selections in the draft, with much of their haul coming on Day 2 and Day 3. They held three picks in the seventh round and added multiple players in both the fourth and fifth rounds, and that’s where most of their snap volume came from.
San Francisco’s top three picks — edge rusher Mykel Williams, interior defender Alfred Collins, and linebacker Nickolas Martin — each logged fewer than 2,000 college snaps. Williams, the No. 11 overall pick, earned a 78.4 grade in 2024 but never played more than 407 snaps in a season. He lined up either over the tackle (408 snaps) or outside the tackle (638 snaps), and his size and length could make him a candidate to see occasional work as a 3-4 defensive end.
Deeper into the draft, the experience level rose. Seventh-rounders Kurtis Rourke and Connor Colby brought a combined 5,563 college snaps to the roster. Colby, a guard from Iowa, logged 2,803 career snaps — primarily at right guard, though he also saw time at left guard and right tackle in 2022. He finished his college career with a 77.1 grade in 2024.
Williams played the second-fewest snaps but also played on a team loaded with NFL prospects. The same is true for Collins, who played behind a pair of defensive tackles who were drafted, including one in the first round.
I’m intrigued by Stout and Watkins’s playing time. Will that experience help them step onto the field sooner? There’s an opening for Stout with Malik Mustapha’s injury.
CJ West played plenty of snaps throughout his collegiate career. He had six games last season where he played at least 40 snaps. That’s impressive for a 317-pounder. If West can maintain that kind of stamina, it shouldn’t be difficult for him to start early on as a rookie.