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ESPN Ranks 49ers 15th in Post-NFL-Draft Power Rankings

Should be an interesting season.
Grant Cohn|
Apr 1, 2025; Palm Beach, FL, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan answers questions from the media during the NFL Annual League Meeting at The Breakers. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
Apr 1, 2025; Palm Beach, FL, USA; San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan answers questions from the media during the NFL Annual League Meeting at The Breakers. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

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San Francisco 49ers

People don't know what to make of the 49ers this year.

Their offense is good when healthy, but it's old and injury-prone. Meanwhile, the defense got Robert Saleh back but could start five rookies including three on the defensive line. So there's a wide range of potential outcomes for the 49ers next season.

That's why ESPN ranks them pretty much right in the middle of the pack at 15th overall in their latest post-draft power rankings.

"The 49ers didn't spend much in free agency, but the defensive line should regain its former dominance if their draft picks pan out as expected," writes Wagoner. "San Francisco used selections on edge rusher Mykel Williams and two defensive tackles (Alfred Collins and CJ West). All three might be starters in September after the Niners said goodbye to edge Leonard Floyd along with tackles Javon Hargrave and Maliek Collins in March. That rookie trio joins stalwart edge Nick Bosa, giving the 49ers some much-needed juice at a position group they've long prioritized."

They also drafted linebacker Nick Martin and nickelback Upton Stout in Round 3, and those two most likely will start as well.

The success of the defense largely will depend on those five rookies.

The success of the offense will depend on the health of Christian McCaffrey, Trent Williams, George Kittle and Brock Purdy. All four missed multiple games last season.

If all four of those players stay healthy and all five of those rookies play well, the 49ers will be Super Bowl contenders.

If veterans get injured and the rookies struggle, the 49ers could miss the playoffs despite an easy schedule.

Should be an interesting 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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