What Could Come Next for Upton Stout in Year 2 with the 49ers

San Francisco 49ers slot cornerback Upton Stout had a promising rookie season with 82 tackles as a full-time starter in the slot. Stout fell to pick 100 in the draft because he is undersized. It is rare that players drafted in his range and at his size produce as much as he did as a rookie.

What are the expectations for Upton Stout with the San Francisco 49ers?

He had the second most tackles of any rookie defensive back who was under 5’10” and drafted after pick 75. The most was Alterraun Verner in 2010. Verner played at a time when the slot was not as relevant, which arguably makes it more impressive, considering he only played in the slot part-time and still produced.

When looking at cornerbacks in that draft range, at that height, and with at least 40 tackles, there are 28 players since 2000. You can see the adjustment to slot cornerbacks being needed more because there were 11 players who were productive from 2000 to 2010. From 2011 to 2020, there were nine players. Then, from 2021 to 2025, there are eight players to hit these marks. This decade is on pace to double the past two in smaller, yet productive players.

The list of names comparable to Stout is not excellent in recent history, though. Jarvis Brownlee was traded and is fighting to start. Tykee Smith, Mike Edwards, and Elijah Molden started in the slot but shifted to safety. Kei’Trel Clark, Brandon Echols, and Michael Carter start at times, but are mostly strong fourth cornerbacks. Then, there are D.J. Reed, Desmond King, and Jourdan Lewis.

Reed has mostly played on the outside, but the other two were drafted late, played in the slot as rookies, and went on to have successful careers as starters in the slot. Still, it is interesting to note that despite teams giving more chances to these players early on, the last legitimate hit in the slot was back in 2017.

This is worth noting because the 49ers have a new defensive coordinator who did not draft Stout. That has been the case for a lot of these players who saw things change after their rookie season. Whether Morris views Stout similarly to Robert Saleh could go a long way in determining if Stout is closer to Lewis, a long-term starter, or Brownlee, who got traded during his second NFL season.

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