DeForest Buckner will have a Huge Domino Effect on the 49ers' Defense

The San Francisco 49ers traded a fourth-round pick for former draft pick DeForest Buckner. The All-Pro is going to immediately start and give the 49ers a massive boost up front. Which players on the 49ers are most impacted by the trade?

4 San Francisco 49ers impacted most by DeForest Buckner Trade

Gracen Halton

With Alfred Collins and C.J. West injured, the 49ers have called on rookie fourth-round pick Gracen Halton to start for the majority of the season. He has still been in a rotation, but his snaps are going to drop dramatically with Buckner in the mix, and Halton will no longer be a starter.

Halton has played at least half of the 49ers' defensive snaps in four games this season. Now, he is unlikely to eclipse the 50% mark the rest of the way.

Sebastian Valdez

The rookie UDFA has been a role player on the 49ers' front since Week 3 when West went down. He was a practice squad call-up, but the Buckner trade might have him right back down to the practice squad.

He was called up due to the lack of depth. However, they just got James Thompson back last week, and West should be back in a few weeks. With Buckner added to the mix, he is going to drop two spots from recent weeks, and when West is back, he will be three spots down in the depth chart. The odds are that the team will try to release him and get him back on the practice squad.

Mykel Williams

Williams was drafted because he could set the edge on the outside and then rush from the interior. That was in a Robert Saleh defense. Now, he is mostly playing the edge. That will continue with the addition of Buckner. Moving him inside is to get more speed along the interior, where bigger bodies typically play.

However, not many interior lines will have the pass-rush juice that Buckner and Osa Odighizuwa bring. Williams will get a chance here and there, but the talk of him as an interior rusher is over.

Fred Warner

If you thought Warner was playing well before, wait until you see him with an easier role. The 49ers' addition of Buckner, a healthier Williams and soon-to-be-getting Bosa back will make life a lot easier for Warner. Look for him to make a run for Defensive Player of the Year.

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