Which 49ers’ Rookie Will Have the Biggest Role?
By David Ochoa
For the last few years, the San Francisco 49ers have been known to not give their rookies much playing time. This is mainly because of the talent on the roster that the 49ers had accumulated over the years. There is still talent on the team and barring an incredible off season, none of these rookies will be starting.
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The easy answer would probably be the 49ers’ first round pick, Arik Armstead. However this depends entirely on Justin Smith‘s decision on whether or not to retire, which should be coming soon.
If Smith decides to retire, then Armstead actually has a decent chance to win the starting spot. With both Smith and Ray McDonald gone, the starting spots on the defensive line is up for grabs.
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Armstead would still have to beat out veterans like Tank Carradine, Darnell Dockett, Glenn Dorsey, Tony Jerod-Eddie, and Quinton Dial.
With Jim Tomsula’s defensive line background and Armstead’s natural talent, perhaps Armstead can win that starting spot.
The rest of the 49ers’ draft was mainly role players that can eventually work their way up into an important role, but for now they are mostly situational players at most.
Jaquiski Tartt will most likely see some playing time in nickel and dime packages, but he still needs to beat out the other veteran defensive backs for that spot.
The 49ers are known to rotate their outside linebackers, so Eli Harold will get some decent playing time as a situational pass rusher.
Blake Bell is a huge target that should see some snaps whenever the team is in the red zone.
Mike Davis is stuck behind three good veteran backs, but still might get some carries on short yardage situations.
Every pick after Davis was either a project pick or an injured players for the future, so they most likely won’t see the field much, if at all.