How the 49ers’ targeted draft approach addressed their most glaring weaknesses

After months of customary speculation and wild guesses in every which direction, the 49ers ended up following Occam’s Razor in the 2025 NFL Draft.

The simplest course of action was the one that they took. They focused the majority of their capital on their biggest weakness.

With their 11 picks, the 49ers primarily loaded up on defensive players to returning defensive coordinator Robert Saleh’s liking before sprinkling in some selections who should provide needed depth on the offensive side of the ball. By the time the marathon was over, this had become a draft that directly addressed the team’s most glaring needs — poor run defense, atrocious separation in the receiving game and bottom-barrel special teams — which were on ugly display in 2024’s 6-11 season.

The 49ers opened the draft by selecting five straight defensive players, the first time that they’d done that since Bill Walsh’s famed 1981 draft — 44 years ago — that yielded Hall of Fame defensive back Ronnie Lott. It came before the season that netted the 49ers their first Super Bowl title.

The defensive focus dominated Thursday and Friday of this year’s draft before continuing into Saturday morning, when the 49ers selected ferocious Indiana defensive tackle CJ West 11 picks into the fourth round.

“I’m a dog,” West said, applying the same descriptor to himself as the previous 49ers draftee, defensive back Upton Stout. “I’m violent when I play football.”

The 316-pound West, though, weighs nearly 140 pounds more than than the 180-pound Stout, whom the 49ers picked in the third round. Still, it’s fitting that both players — with body types that are polar opposites — applied the canine descriptor to themselves. The 49ers, desperate to fix their run defense, sought vicious physicality across all defensive positions in this draft.

“I just abuse centers,” West continued. “Punch them in the face. Be as violent as possible.”

West seemed to single-handedly turn around Indiana’s run defense after transferring there from Kent State in 2024. Opponents didn’t run into West’s A-gap very often last season — probably because they mustered one of the lowest rushing averages in the nation whenever they tried. At 6-foot-1, West plays with a much lower center of gravity than his new teammate Alfred Collins, a 6-foot-6 defensive tackle whom the 49ers drafted in the second round. Whereas Collins is Saleh’s stab at recreating the 6-foot-7 presence of DeForest Buckner, West is built in the mold of another former 49ers defensive tackle: D.J. Jones.

After the draft, 49ers general manager John Lynch even shared that defensive line coach Kris Kocurek wrote Jones as a comp in his draft evaluation of West.

The parallels don’t stop there. There’s a clear stylistic link between each of the first five picks in this draft and former 49ers players.

That doesn’t mean that these rookies will automatically blossom into the productive veterans who came before them, of course. But it does offer some satisfying symmetry in an offseason that’s already seen the 49ers lure back Saleh, who built the first version of this defense under Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan.

Following the selection of West, the 49ers finally turned to offense with their second fourth-rounder — one of their league-high four compensatory picks. They nabbed speedy Ole Miss receiver Jordan Watkins. He went two picks after the Tennessee Titans nabbed Stanford wide receiver Elic Ayomanor, who had been a potential 49ers pick.

Watkins, who ran a 4.38-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, may immediately be the fastest 49ers receiver. Perhaps Watkins will race second-year man Jacob Cowing during training camp for that designation, but he will certainly compete with Cowing for a spot in the room looking to separate from man coverage more effectively in 2025. The 49ers hope Watkins, who was the only FBS receiver with five catches of 60 or more yards in 2024, can help space out opposing defenses.

The 49ers had acquired two fifth-round picks via trades in the months leading up to the draft and used the one that they received from the Washington Commanders for Deebo Samuel on Oregon running back Jordan James, a physical and dependable runner (he didn’t fumble once in college) who earned the approval of legendary running back Frank Gore — now a football personnel advisor for the 49ers — in the draft room.

The second fifth-rounder, acquired from Minnesota in exchange for running back Jordan Mason, was spent on Kansas State defensive Marques Sigle. A speedster who began his college career as a cornerback at North Dakota State (where he was teammates with quarterback Trey Lance), Sigle’s physical profile resembles those of other physical, fast and small-yet-strong DBs whom the 49ers have added over the past two drafts.

Despite being a late-round selection, Sigle could compete immediately for playing time at the safety position as ESPN reported second-year defensive back Malik Mustapha could miss the start of the season after suffering an ACL injury in the 49ers’ Week 17 matchup with the Cardinals.

After a hiatus in the sixth round, the 49ers netted Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke, Iowa offensive lineman Connor Colby and Montana punt returner Junior Bergen to round out their draft in the seventh.

Those obviously weren’t high-stakes picks, but it won’t be forgotten that Purdy himself rose to prominence from the seventh round in 2022. The 49ers were eager to nab Rourke, who led Indiana to the College Football Playoff last season while playing through a torn ACL, instead of waiting until undrafted free agency to finish filling out a QB room that Shanahan prefers to keep stocked with four passers, one of whom will work with the practice squad.

By spending that draft pick on Rourke, the 49ers were able to secure an extra year of team control on a player at the most valuable position. They did the same with the notably athletic Colby — a four-year starter at Iowa — and Bergen, a potential special teams asset, to close the draft.

Bergen holds the FCS record with eight punt return touchdowns. The 49ers are also overhauling their special teams this offseason, and coordinator Brant Boyer and his assistant both have Montana ties. That’s how they discovered Bergen before delving into undrafted free agency, a process which should net the 49ers about six more rookies before the 90-man roster is full.

At that point, the 49ers will be able to take a breather — but not for long. Rookies will report their introductory minicamp in less than two weeks, and then the offseason program will truly kick into gear. The 49ers have obtained the materials to improve and now, they must take that actual step forward.

“I know we got better this weekend,” Lynch said.