How Many 49ers Rookies Will Actually Make an Impact in 2026--and Where

One of the goals of the San Francisco 49ers was to get players in the 2026 NFL draft who would get on the field right away and help the team win a Super Bowl with their aging core of players. So, it will be interesting to see how many of these players can make an impact in year one. What are the first-year expectations for these rookies?

Round 2: De’Zhaun Stribling, WR, Ole Miss

This will mostly depend on the health of Mike Evans and Ricky Pearsall. He will clearly slot in after those two and would be a third receiver who plays a little more than a third of the snaps. However, both Evans and Persall are coming off of injury-plagued seasons, so it is probably fair to set his rookie snap rate at close to 50%.

Round 3: Romello Height, Edge, Texas Tech

Assuming Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams are fully healthy, the only snaps that Height will play are obvious passing downs. He will play third down and long, he will play in two-minute situations and he will play when the team starts to gain a lead late in games. So, he should get on the field for around 35-40% of the snaps.

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Round 3: Kaelon Black, RB, Indiana

Brian Robinson Jr. is gone, and he had 92 carries for the team last season. Beyond that, the team wants to take a little bit of work off the load that Christian McCaffrey had last year. Black will compete with Jordan James, but James showed nothing as a rookie. He could get over 100 carries as a rookie easily.

Round 4: Gracen Halton, DT, Oklahoma

With Osa Odighizuwa, Alfred Collins, and CJ West in the mix, Halton may only get five or fewer snaps per game until injuries occur.

Round 4: Carver Willis, OL, Washington

The 49ers drafted Willis so that he could start at left guard. He may not win that job by Week 1, but if he does not get a long look, he did not live up to expectations.

Round 4: Esphesians Prysock, CB, Washington

This is an upside pick and he is unlikely to play at all as a rookie. He may even start the year as a healthy scratch.

Round 5: Jaden Dugger, LB, Louisiana

Dugger will have to earn a special teams role to avoid joining Prysock as an early season inactive.

Round 5: Enrique Cruz, OT, Kansas

It seems as though the team drafted Cruz to develop him to be a successor to Trent Williams down the road. With that in mind, he is likely to start the year inactive as well.

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