Brandon Aiyuk is gone. What’s next for the 49ers at wide receiver? How about some speed? (paywall) “The 49ers have speed on the roster. Cowing and Watkins both ran sub-4.4-second 40-yard dashes before
their respective drafts, and Pearsall clocked 4.41 seconds before his. But none could stay on the field in 2025. Cowing suffered a hamstring strain in the opening practice of training camp, then aggravated the injury multiple times while rehabilitating. He said he finally got on top of it by the end of the season and is entering the offseason healthy.
Watkins, a rookie, was off to a good start before suffering a high-ankle sprain in the preseason opener.“
Hutchinson: The 49ers’ FINAL 2025 Trench Grades: Divisional Round + Season Long (paywall)
“They desperately need to invest real resources, particularly at guard, if they are going to compete with the Seahawks.
The ideal is that add a combo player who can start at guard before taking over for Trent Williams at tackle. The Steelers’ Troy Fautanu was a player I thought fit that mold well. Maybe… Kadyn Proctor is that option this year? We’ll be sure to evaluate him….Both West and Collins improved at astounding rates from the start of the year.
Kalia Davis deserves a mention because he is the complete boom-bust run defender. I don’t think it’s an effective way to play defense. He fires off the line recklessly, which either leads to an incredible backfield stop/disruption, or gets him pummeled into the ground and leaves the rest of the defense scrambling to pick up the gap he abandoned.
Jordan Elliott was better than in 2024 by a significant margin, but teams still had a relatively easy time displacing him with double teams. Bringing both back on minimum deals wouldn’t be damning, but I think the 49ers need more stable players who eat up space and/or split gaps. Teair Tart is an intriguing free agent option…..I will never argue that adding another great edge rusher is a bad idea.
However, what I think the pass rush would benefit from more than anything is a gap-splitting defensive tackle. Alfred Collins doesn’t have a bag (nor does Williams, but his power creates vertical displacement), and the rehab he’ll face this offseason isn’t encouraging. West started to collapse the pocket pretty effectively towards the end of the year, but he was also kept fresh.
All that said, the most paradigm-altering addition that doesn’t involve an outsized cap investment or a trade, is a defensive tackle. Williams was the right pick, but imagining a Walter Nolen (who also got injured) in this scheme is the exact thing that would take it from the basement to the penthouse. And/or adding my longtime draft crush, Demonte Capeheart — a bagless wonder, but a wrecker in the run game — would continue their effort to add beef to the line and clog up lanes.“
49ers legend Steve Young pinpoints two offensive fixes to help Brock Purdy thrive
“”It can’t be the Christian McCaffrey show,” Young said. “We know that. That’s asking too much of Christian—way too much of Christian. And I think it affects Christian’s running game. I don’t think we get the full measure of Christian as a runner when he has to do six other things.”
Baldy on 49ers QB Brock Purdy: ‘He’s good enough’
“I mean, you’re not going to upgrade,” Baldinger said. “You’re not going to find anyone better than Brock. He is what he is. You’ve got to build around Brock. Things have got to get better around him: defense, receivers, speed. You’ve identified this guy, you’ve paid him, [owner] Jed [York] made the right decision. He’s good enough.”
