Examining the fit: 49ers 2022 Draft Class

By Scooter_McG

The 2022 NFL Draft is in the books, and the 49ers have added nine new players to the 90-man roster. For the first time in the Shanahan/ Lynch era the team stayed pat at all nine picks with no trades up or back, as they were happy to let the draft fall to them. 

So lets take a look at the players the 49ers took and their potential fit.

Pick #61. Drake Jackson, Edge, USC

Big things were expected of Jackson heading into the 2021 college season, with some draft media believing prior to the season he could be a top 10 pick in the 2022 draft. However, while Jackson showed flashes of his talent in 2021, it was overall a somewhat disappointing season relative to expectations. Even so, leading up to the draft Jackson was a player that some draft media folk still thought was a potential late first/ early 2nd round pick.

Watching the film it is easy to see the potential and upside Jackson possesses. He's a little on the shorter side at around 6'3", but has long arms that he uses to keep OL off his body. He's also very athletic with nice explosion, speed and agility. He played 2021 at under 250lbs and strength looked to be an issue at times during the season. But part of that was because he was asked to play as a LB by the USC caoching staff rather than his more natural DE position. As a freshman he played with his hand in the dirt and was closer to 275lbs, a position and weight that allowed him to burst onto the scene looking like a future star. 

John Lynch outlined the plan with all of their players is to have them find the weight that keeps then as light as possible while retaining their power. For Jackson, that definitely looked to be a weight closer to 270lbs than 250lbs. And Jackson had already brought his weight back to 273lbs at his pro day, where he showed he still had his explosion and agility at that weight. 

He will need refinement of this technique, but so do almost all draft picks. And there is no better coach to get the best out of DL than Kocurek. 

The fit with Jackson is then easy to see. The team repeatedly outlines their philosophy of building the defense front to back, and while they already had a nice stable of DEs in the rotation the team hasn't had a consistent high end pass rush threat opposite Bosa since Ford's back injury flared up. They also didn't have any edge player on contract for 2023 other than Bosa. Jackson provides them a high end talent to develop opposite Bosa over the next four years.  

Pick #93. Tyrion Davis-Price, RB, LSU. 

RB may not have been high on the list of 49ers needs for the majority of fans, but with the number of mid round RBs the team brought in for visits it really shouldn't have come as a surprise they took one in round 3. Especially when you consider the attrition the team experienced last year (and in prior years) which led to the 49ers needing to use Deebo Samuel as a pseudo-RB for much of the second half of the 2021 season. 

Ty Davis-Price isn't your typical 49ers RB either. He's a big bodied, bruising RB that will run over defenders with a full head of steam. And that steam comes at you in a hurry. While he is listed at 211lbs, he played closer to 230lbs at LSU, but also had a 1.53s 10 yard split at the combine and sub 4.5s 40 yard time. Once he commits to a hole he hits it quickly with nice burst and has the long speed to take it the distance. In many ways he runs like Deebo Samuel. He is also a little bit like a Derrick Henry or Jonathan Taylor type RB, with size, power, quick feet and good straight line speed. 

Importantly he is also a decent blocking RB which means he is a guy that can see the field quickly and not be a liability in protection. 

The fit here is where it gets interesting. Yes, he adds depth to a position that has seen a lot of attrition in recent years. But as a player his traits are similar to last year's 3rd round RB, Trey Sermon. It will be interesting to see whether both players end up making the roster. Also, while he has the speed to be capable of getting the edge, much like Mitchell and Sermon, he is more of an inside runner than outside. The recent RB choices for the 49ers may suggest the team is looking to move to using inside zone and power a little more often. 

Pick #105. Danny Gray, WR, SMU. 

The Danny Gray pick is such a Kyle Shanahan pick I'm embarrassed I didn't have this one written in ink before the draft. He was a name a lot of 49ers media had linked to the 49ers and it is very easy to see why. 

At a shade under 6'0" and around 185-190lbs, he's not a big WR but has sufficient size to play any of the WR spots. And he is FAST! He had a 4.33s 40 at the combine but more importantly he plays to that speed. He immediately becomes the field stretcher that Shanahan has been seeking, replacing Travis Benjamin (and prior to him, Marquise Goodwin). He has also shown that despite his size he doesn't mind playing through contact to make contested catches down field, incuding some nice acrobatics to contort his body making some difficult catches. 

But that in itself isn't enough to make him a Shanahan type WR. Adding to his value he is a natural playmaker with the ball in his hands, consistently showing excellent instincts after the catch to turn short passes into big gains. Welcome to the YAC Bros, Danny!

He does have areas he needs to clean up, in particular his route running can be sloppy. But overall, there really isn't much not to like about this pick. I don't think there is much more to outline in terms of fit... other than, "like a glove"? 

Pick #134. Spencer Burford, OT/OG, UTSA.

It came as something of a surprise that no OL was taken by the 49ers on day 2. But part of that was guys the team had met with were being taken just before their selection. You can argue they should have been more aggressive in going up and getting one, but the reality is if the team really felt that strongly about any of these players they would have. 

Instead they were happy to sit back and wait and in the end it paid off as they got (in my opinion) good value at pick 134 in Spencer Burford. Burford has nice athleticism and length for the position while also providing significant starting experience in college and showing the versatility to play four of the five OL positions. 

Burford also brings some nasty to the OL. As he said in his conference call with 49ers media, he plays "balls to the wall", not taking any plays off and consistently playing to the whistle. He does need to add some strength and refine his technique to hold up better against power, but the physical and mental traits are there. 

In terms of fit, he has plenty of experience at OG and OT in zone based offensive schemes and could easily be used at either. Burford will likely come in and compete right away for one of the OG spots or the swing tackle position.

Pick #172. Samuel Womack, CB, Toledo.  

Womack isn't a player I had anywhere near my radar, but after reading up on him I can see why the 49ers like him. He's on the small side at around 5'9" and under 190lbs, but he has excellent athleticism and a real nose for the football. He finished with 45 PBUs during his college career, leading the MAC in PBUs for three straight years, to go with 5 INTs. 

His closing speed is excellent and a key factor in leading the MAC in PBUs the past three years. He is also a feisty and scrappy competitor that looks to maintain connection with this receiver and is happy to come up and make the tackle.  

In terms of fit, Womack will step right into the competition for the starting slot CB position to replace K'Waun Williams. 

Pick #187. Nick Zakelj, OG/OT, Fordham. 

Zakelj is a big bodied OL at around 6'6" and 315-320lbs, that also has nice foot quickness and athleticism for his size. He was a four year starter at OT in college but got snaps at OG at the Senior Bowl and he said in his conference call he expects to be competing at OG with the 49ers. The move makes sense as Zakelj has arms on the shorter side for an OL and he can struggle in pass pro on the perimeter against edge players that threaten with speed. 

Zakelj has technique issues that led to some wildly inconsistent play in college, but the high end plays showed there is talent there if the consistency can be unlocked. Zakelj also brings a nasty demeanour, often looking to finish his blocks through the whistle and bury his man where able. 

The 49ers really do love finding OL on day 3 that bring plenty of starting experience and a mean streak, and Zakelj fits the mold. He'll be in the competition at OG this season though he likely needs a year on the sidelines to clean up his technique.    

Pick #220. Kalia Davis, DT, UCF.

Davis was a player both razor and I highlighted as a potential good value pick on day 3. He's on the shorter side at 6'1" but is stocky at a shade over 300lbs. He shows good athleticism and agility for a guy his size and has a nice ability to anchor in part due to his height giving him a natural leverage advantage. 

His calling cards are his power and explosiveness. He looks to knife through gaps quickly and then has the power and strength to pull through and make plays. He also has the upper body strength to knock OL backwards when taking them head on.

Davis opted out of 2020 and then hurt his knee in 2021, so he hasn't played much football the past two years and it is unclear as to how quickly he may be ready to contribute for the 49ers. But his playing style reminds me a lot of DJ Jones, another 6th round pick for the 49ers. And like Jones I can see Davis as a nice rotational piece early in his career while working his way up the depth chart each year playing both the 1T and 3T.

Pick #221. Tariq Castro-Fields, Penn State.

Castro-Fields brings good size (6'0", 197lbs), speed (4.38s 40), explosiveness (37" vertical) and agility (7.05s 3-cone) to the table, as well as plenty of starting experience at CB as part of one of the better college defenses in college at Penn State. Throughout his time at Penn State he showed flashes of his ability but also struggled with consistency which is part of why he fell in the draft. An injury in 2020 may also have contributed.

Castro-Fields is a physical player and can get a little too grabby at times. But the physical traits are there as is the competitive toughness. He's seen by many in the draft media as something of a boom or bust prospect that tantalises with the high end ability but frustrates with the low end plays.

Of note, Castro-Fields played FS in high school and excelled in that position before being switched to CB at Penn State. If he doesn't pan out at CB there may be potential for a switch back to safety with the 49ers.

Pick #262. Brock Purdy, QB, Iowa State.

At one time Purdy was considered a potential future high draft pick after impressive 2018 and 2019 campaigns, but he never took his game to the next level in the following seasons. As a result, Purdy finds himself with the dubious honour of being the 2022 NFL Draft's Mr Irrelevant. 

Still, there are things to like about Purdy. He's a four year starter at a Power 5 school that set school records in touchdowns and passing yards. He's at his best in a play-action style offense that likes to get the ball out fast to its playmakers (hello 49ers), but doesn't really have the arm to be a consistent downfield passer. 

This pick is clearly about adding depth to the QB room which will in all likelihood lose Jimmy G prior to training camp. But with Trey Lance on the roster, Purdy's most realistic path to the 49ers roster is to work his way up to the backup QB spot over the next four years. 

Summary 

Prior to the draft there was a lot of fan chatter about what the team needed, with the common thoughts being some combination of interior OL (especially center), safety, edge, slot CB and potentially WR needed as early picks. So when the 49ers came away with an edge, RB and WR on day 2, there was understandably some level of head scratching on the part of fans. 

But there shouldn't be. This is a team that (a) has an already strong roster with in-built potential solutions to fill perceived "holes" courtesy of roster moves made in the draft last year and FA this year and (b) showed last year they are happy to use the draft to build competition for spots with more of a focus on future years than perceived "immediate needs". 

Day 3 saw the team add competition to the OL, which is now looking like a real dog fight for both starting and backup spots. It is interesting that a center was not brought in early, and neither of the OL added have center experience. To me this suggests the team believes Alex Mack is coming back... or has something lined up with a replacement in FA. Of note, JC Tretter and Alex Mack are the NFLPA together. 

It was also interesting to see no safety brought in. However, it needs to be kept in mind that Tarvarius Moore was expected to be the starter last year before his injury, the team added Odum in FA, and they drafted Hufanga last year. Also, Tartt remains a FA and the 49ers have leverage in signing him as they can offer him a four year qualifying contract, paying him $1.25M more than the vet minimum while only having the vet minimum count against the cap. 

Overall the 49ers have added three players that have a chance to contribute as rookies on day 2, as well as a number of guys that have a chance to compete for playing time on day 3. But as with the 2021 draft, this looks to be far more about 2023 and beyond than about 2022.