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Bucky Brooks Says 49ers S Ji'Ayir Brown Will Have a Breakout Season

Brown started seven games last season -- five in the regular season and two in the playoffs. And in total, he recorded 5 pass breakups and three interceptions. Extremely impressive for a rookie who played fewer than 500 snaps on defense.
Grant Cohn|
Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; San Francisco 49ers safety Ji'Ayir Brown (27) makes a catch against the Kansas City Chiefs during the third quarter of Super Bowl LVIII between Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; San Francisco 49ers safety Ji'Ayir Brown (27) makes a catch against the Kansas City Chiefs during the third quarter of Super Bowl LVIII between Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports | Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

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San Francisco 49ers

One of the only bright spots for the 49ers during their Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs was rookie safety Ji'Ayir Brown.

He intercepted Patrick Mahomes on the first possession of the second half and gave the 49ers offense the ball in Kansas City territory. Of course, the 49ers somehow managed to punt a few plays later and blow a second-half lead, but Brown wasn't the one to blame.

Now NFL.com analyst Bucky Brooks expects Brown to have a breakout season in 2024.

"The ball-hawking safety lived up to his reputation in Year 1. Brown notched a pair of regular-season interceptions and a postseason pick as a part-time starter who was thrown into the fire following Talanoa Hufanga's season-ending injury. The INTs showcased his range and ball skills, adding a dimension to a defensive backfield that feasts on tipped passes and overthrown balls down the field. With the 49ers expected to return to a scheme that places a premium on turnovers, the second-year pro could become a household name as a takeaway specialist on an elite defense."
Bucky Brooks, NFL.com analyst.

Brown started seven games last season -- five in the regular season and two in the playoffs. And in total, he recorded 5 pass breakups and three interceptions. Extremely impressive for a rookie who played fewer than 500 snaps on defense.

Brown should be the starting free safety all season, and he showed that he has great instincts range in the deep middle of the field. Now he needs to show that he can make plays at and behind the line of scrimmage, too. Last season, he recorded no sacks or tackles for loss. This season, he might get more opportunities to make those plays under rookie defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen.

Expect Brown to have a big, big season.

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Grant Cohn
GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.

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