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Why Georgia LB Jalon Walker Could be Perfect for the 49ers in Round 1

The 49ers have so many issues to address in the upcoming draft, and Jalon Walker can fix two of them.
Grant Cohn|
Dec 30, 2023; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Georgia Bulldogs linebacker Jalon Walker (11) reacts after scoring a touchdown against the Florida State Seminoles during the first half in the 2023 Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Dec 30, 2023; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Georgia Bulldogs linebacker Jalon Walker (11) reacts after scoring a touchdown against the Florida State Seminoles during the first half in the 2023 Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

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San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers have so many issues to address in the upcoming draft, and Jalon Walker can fix two of them.

The 49ers need someone to replace Dre Greenlaw at linebacker and Leonard Floyd at defensive end, and Walker can play both of those positions. That's exactly what he did at Georgia. On first and second down, he played linebacker. And on third down, he rushed the passer as a defensive end.

He's perfect for what the 49ers need.

Walker is 6'1", 243 lbs, so he's a bit small to play defensive end full time. Setting edges against tight ends and offensive tackles would be tough. But he has shown he has more than enough speed and agility to play linebacker. He would be a terror next to Fred Warner. He has all the speed and violence Greenlaw has.

And on third down, Walker would be the 49ers' most explosive pass rusher. He'd be the first one in the backfield and he would force the quarterback to slide and hold the ball a beat longer than he wants to.

Remember, the 49ers wanted to re-sign Greenlaw and tried to match the Broncos' offer to him at the last minute, but he rejected them. In addition, when they released Floyd, they tried to sign Joey Bosa but he decided to sign with the Bills instead.

So the 49ers expected to have a starting linebacker and a starting defensive end at this point in free agency. They're in a tough spot. Walker can bail them out.

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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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