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2024 was pretty much a disaster for the San Francisco 49ers. The team was expected to make another deep playoff run. However, injuries, inconsistency, and the loss of key personnel contributed to a 6-11 campaign. As head coach Kyle Shanahan and GM John Lynch retooled their roster, it was clear that this year’s draft would likely have a defensive focus. Now, as the team prepares for its first preseason game on Saturday, NFL insider Albert Breer opined that defensive coordinator Robert Saleh’s unit could have as many as five rookies playing significant roles on defense in 2025.
“Taking a hard look, I’d say at least five rookies are trending toward significant roles on the defense,” wrote Breer Monday. “The youth is most obvious on the line, where revered position coach Kris Kocurek has his work cut out for him. The good news is the three rookies that will play a lot (DE Mykel Williams, and DTs Alfred Collins and C.J. West) were taken in the first four rounds and have talent. Meanwhile, linebacker Nick Martin could be part of the equation in replacing Dre Greenlaw, and fellow third-rounder Upton Stout may be the starting nickel.”
Williams is expected to team with star edge rusher Nick Bosa to provide headaches for opposing quarterbacks. Collins and West should help strengthen a defensive tackle rotation that sorely needed more talent last season. If Martin can take over Greenlaw’s old spot, and Stout clinches the nickel, then things will certainly look different in 2025. How exactly will the 49ers defense change with Saleh back in charge following an almost four-season stint as head coach of the New York Jets?
While Saleh was away, it was apparent that San Francisco’s defense missed him. DeMeco Ryans was an excellent replacement in 2021 and 2022, but he left to take the Houston Texans’ head coaching role before the 2023 season. One season stints for Steve Wilks (2023) and Nick Sorensen (2024) didn’t exactly pan out for Shanahan and Lynch. Now, with Saleh back in the fold, as well as Kocurek still running the defensive line, don’t be surprised to see the Niners look a lot like they did between 2017 and 2020.
Williams and the other rookies look to make their mark on Saleh’s scheme. It will certainly be a learning curve, as San Francisco’s schemes can sometimes be among the most complex in the NFL. However, Saleh, Kocurek and the rest of the 49ers staff have a reputation of being good teachers. Can this latest batch of first-year players be a part of the next San Francisco defensive core?
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