The San Francisco 49ers recently held their annual rookie minicamp last week, which gave head coach Kyle Shanahan and the rest of the coaching staff an up-close look at the incoming draft class.
The 49ers made a lot of noise in the 2025 NFL Draft, using their 11 picks to fill various holes on their roster. One of the voids San Francisco was looking to fill was at cornerback. In free agency, the 49ers saw Charvarius Ward, Isaac Yiadom, and Rock Ya-Sin sign with different teams for the 2025 season.
Therefore, the 49ers addressed their cornerback room, taking Upton Stout in the fourth round from Western Kentucky. Given the lack of depth in San Francisco’s CB room, Stout could have a path towards starting or at least being an instant contributor in Week 1.
According to Matt Barrows of The Athletic, the rookie cornerback already made himself known at rookie minicamp.
"Stout looked, well, stout. At 5-8 1/2 inches, the Western Kentucky cornerback was one of the shortest players in the recent draft, but there’s nothing frail about him. He has a big personality, he oozes confidence — just like fellow cornerbacks Deommodore Lenoir and Renardo Green — and is solidly built."
This is good to hear, if you are new defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. You want to see the rookie already showing confidence in his skills, as that will help him when the veterans arrive for OTAs and mandatory minicamp.
As things currently stand, the 49ers’ two outside starting cornerbacks are projected to be Tre Brown and Renardo Green, with Deommodre Lenoir in the slot. However, who's to say San Francisco doesn’t put Lenoir on the outside?
Last season, Lenoir had 85 combined tackles, nine pass deflections, and two interceptions. He also possessed a 62.1 completion percentage allowed on targets, a 71.4 pass rating allowed when targeted, and only gave up one receiving touchdown.
If I’m the Niners, the best cornerback trio for the 2025 season might be Lenoir, Green, and the rookie Stout. At 5-foot-8, he’s perfect for the slot cornerback spot. He’s strong, can hold his own in man-to-man coverage, and has the quickness to be utilized as a blitzer off the edge.
The slot cornerback spot doesn’t get much attention on defense. But if Stout can win the job in training camp, it will go a long way in helping this 49ers’ defense get back on track.