San Francisco 49ers: A breakdown of the team's UDFA signings

The San Francisco 49ers have signed 10 undrafted free agents following the 2019 NFL Draft. Here is a breakdown of each of their UDFA signings to date.

There were a total of 254 players that were drafted in this year’s NFL Draft, but each year we see a handful of players from each draft class who manage to fly under the radar and go undrafted, yet make a significant impact in the NFL. The San Francisco 49ers are hoping that they have landed at least one of those players this year.

We’ve seen the likes of Phillip Lindsay and Malcolm Butler become Pro Bowl caliber players in the past five years after originally going undrafted. The 49ers themselves have had their fair share of success with undrafted free agent signings in the past with Matt Breida and Nick Mullens being more recent examples.

This year’s crop brings with it some promising small-school talent and intriguing developmental talent. The majority of these players will fail to do much, instead fading away into the depths of football obscurity. However, there will likely be two or three who make the final 53-man roster and potentially even make an impact in the near or distant future.

That said, let’s take a look at who some of those players could be.

Wilton Speight, QB, UCLA

The San Francisco 49ers don’t necessarily have a need for another quarterback on the roster, but they decided to add one for insurance purposes with former UCLA signal-caller Wilton Speight. Speight has had an injury-riddled career thus far spending three seasons with the Michigan Wolverines before transferring to UCLA ahead of his senior season.

Starting just five games with UCLA, Speight was hardly a highly-touted prospect but has a chance to fight for a practice squad spot if he could impress in minicamp and the preseason. His success will have to begin with him staying healthy, however.

Malik Henry, WR, West Georgia

San Francisco made it a clear point of emphasis to bolster their wide receiver core going into 2019. In doing so, they addressed the position in both the second and third rounds of the NFL Draft and signed two undrafted free agents at the position.

The first of which is West Georgia wide receiver Malik Henry who hauled in 30 receptions for 407 yards in nine games for the Wolves. Henry has experience returning kick and punts which should help his chances of sticking on as a special teams player.

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Shawn Poindexter, WR, Arizona

The 49ers also brought in Arizona wide receiver Shawn Poindexter to add another body to the wide receiver core. In Poindexter’s case, it’s a pretty large body.

Poindexter stands at 6-foot-5 and weighs in at over 220 pounds making him an excellent red-zone threat. However, his lack of separation skills led to him going undrafted despite tying the school record with 11 TD’s during his senior season.

Tyree Mayfield, TE, Wyoming

Further rounding out the new group of pass catchers the 49ers have brought aboard, Wyoming tight end Tyree Mayfield was one of the 10 players signed. Mayfield will join a crowded tight end room featuring the likes of George Kittle, Garrett Celek, sixth-round rookie Kaden Smith, and former practice squad members Ross Dwelley and Marcus Lucas.

Mayfield is an athletic tight end who ran an impressive 4.59 40-yard dash at his pro day. The Wyoming product will look to make the roster as a special teams contributor and a potential third-string tight end with a strong preseason.

Ross Reynolds, OG, Iowa

You can never have too much offensive line depth and the 49ers clearly decided that they could benefit from adding an additional piece as well. Ross Reynolds will look to make the roster as a depth guard after going undrafted in the 2019 NFL Draft.

Reynolds is fresh off a Second-Team All-Big Ten selection after starting all 13 games at left guard for the Hawkeyes. He doesn’t have much experience playing other positions along the offensive line which could limit the odds that he sticks around.

Jamell Garcia-Williams, DE, UAB

There is no shortage of defensive line depth on the 49ers roster and the team has brought in two more players to compete for roster spots this preseason. The first of which is UAB defensive end Jamell Garcia-Williams who totaled 9.5 sacks and 15.5 TFL in 14 starts last season with the Blazers.

Garcia-Williams is a towering figure measuring in at 6-foot-8 but could use some bulking up as he weighs just 255 pounds. That said, the production in his only year as a starter is impressive and perhaps he could find a role as a situational pass rusher on the team.

Kevin Givens, DL, Penn State

Out of all the players that the 49ers signed as undrafted free agents, Penn State’s Kevin Givens might have the best chance of having some long-term success with the team. Graded as a 6th-7th-round prospect by NFL.com, Givens surprisingly went undrafted and opted to sign on with the 49ers despite interest from a host of other teams.

Givens has excellent leverage at the point of attack and uses his powerful lower body to drive interior offensive linemen back. He was criticized throughout the draft process for his small stature and lack of overall mass, but we’ve seen players like that succeed in the past.

Azeez Al-Shaair, LB, Florida Atlantic

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Many of the players on this list will likely look to use special teams as their path to making the final 53-man roster. FAU linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair will likely look to follow that same path.

Al-Shaair is an athletically-gifted linebacker who was a tackle machine during his time with the Owls. Despite missing half of his senior season due to a torn ACL and MCL in his knee, Al-Shaair currently ranks as the school’s all-time leading tackler and could look to bring that tackling ability to the NFL with the 49ers.

Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, S, Arizona

The 49ers signed their second Arizona undrafted free agent with safety Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles. Arizona’s Swiss Army knife throughout his collegiate career, Flannigan-Fowles played in all 50 possible career games totaling 243 tackles and six interceptions.

He has experience playing both safety and nickel corner and could push for a roster spot in San Francisco’s relatively weak secondary. Pro Football Focus rated him as the top-graded slot defender among all Pac-12 defenders and the highest-graded run defender among all Pac-12 safeties.

Cameron Glenn, S, Wake Forest

The 10th and final undrafted free agent the San Francisco 49ers signed was Wake Forest safety Cameron Glenn. Glenn gives the team another versatile defensive back who has experience playing both safety positions.

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Elected a team captain ahead of the 2018 season, Glenn has the ideal blend of size and athleticism you look for in a safety standing at 6-foot-1 and weighing in at 205 pounds. Look for Glenn — like so many others on this list — to try and earn his roster spot through his special teams contributions.

San Francisco 49ers: A breakdown of the team’s UDFA signings

By Justin Fried | May 5, 2019