The San Francisco 49ers’ run to Super Bowl 58 saw them deal with problems on both sides of the trenches. One issue they were able to survive, the other proved fatal.
In his latest mock draft for A to Z Sports, Destin Adams addressed both for San Francisco.
With the 31st overall pick in the first round, he has the Niners selecting Arizona offensive lineman Jordan Morgan.
In this scenario, the 49ers then follow that up by selecting Ohio State defensive tackle Michael Hall Jr. with the 63rd overall pick in the second round.
Morgan’s high upside
Morgan is viewed as a fringe first-round pick and has a wealth of experience at tackle at the collegiate level. However, that experience all came at left tackle. The 49ers’ need at tackle is on the right side.
Additionally, there is a school of thought that Morgan’s below average arm length might force him to move inside to guard at the next level.
Such concerns might give the 49ers reason for pause but, regardless of what position he plays, Morgan could provide a pass protection upgrade for a San Francisco offensive line that played a substantial role in the Niners’ loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl with the right side’s struggles to protect Brock Purdy.
Morgan had the seventh-highest Pro Football Focus pass blocking grade among tackles in the 2024 draft, demonstrating extremely impressive footwork and a thick lower half that aids him in helping shut down pass rushers. He is still very inconsistent as a pass blocker, but his movement skills would make Morgan an excellent fit for the 49er run game. His selection would require a position switch, yet there’s plenty of reason to believe the 49ers would be very interested in making it.
Hall can have high impact
Hall is a prospect whose reputation appears to be on the rise, and the numbers illustrate why. Among interior defensive linemen with at least 200 pass rush snaps, only Byron Murphy had a better PFF pass rush win rate than Hall’s 18.2% in 2023.
The former Buckeye would help the 49ers replace the interior pass rush they lost with the departure of Arik Armstead. Hall can push the pocket with a leveraged bull rush but has also consistently shown the ability to win with hand quickness, which is also crucial to his prowess in the run game.
Hall plays with excellent leverage against the run to hold his ground at the point of attack. Additionally, he shows great vision to the ball-carrier to make run stops, while his proficiency for breaking into the backfield through his impressive hand usage and quickness allowed him to rack up 7.5 tackles for loss in his penultimate college season in 2022.
San Francisco’s run defense became a stunning albatross for a team that had previously long since excelled in that area, though it stiffened significantly in the Super Bowl.
The Niners have made moves to address it in free agency, but Hall can be a long-term impact player as a pass rusher against the run. He is a very well-rounded prospect and would be a huge value add at 63rd overall.
