49ers have awful injury news to handle on defense, and that explains why they made one of their draft picks
When Talanoa Hufanga left the San Francisco 49ers in free agency to sign with the Denver Broncos, most 49ers fans were calm. After all, the team had Malik Mustapha as an obvious replacement after a strong rookie season. Well, things might not be so smooth.According to ESPN's NFL insider Adam Schefter, Mustapha actually tore his […]
When Talanoa Hufanga left the San Francisco 49ers in free agency to sign with the Denver Broncos, most 49ers fans were calm. After all, the team had Malik Mustapha as an obvious replacement after a strong rookie season. Well, things might not be so smooth.
According to ESPN's NFL insider Adam Schefter, Mustapha actually tore his ACL during the final game of last season. The news hadn't been reported, but the 49ers were working with this understanding throughout the draft process.
Malik Mustapha, last year's fourth-round pick, had an impactful rookie season with the Niners, exactly because Hufanga missed 10 games with multiple injuries. Mustapha ended up playing 70.85% of the defensive snaps and 17.11% of the special teams snaps in 2024.
The rookie finished his first NFL season with 46 tackles, nine stops, and allowing a 64.0 passer rating when targeted.
Draft move
Mustapha's injury helps explain why the 49ers drafted off-ball linebacker/strong safety hybrid Nick Martin, from Oklahoma State, in the third round.
Announced as a linebacker, he's particularly light for the position, but can also play as a de facto strong safety. His physical profile is similar to Malik Mustapha's.
"He's a run and hit player," explained 49ers general manager John Lynch. "He fits our style of physicality and playing the game the right way. Two-time captain at Oklahoma State, just had our type of player all over it. You know, swarms to the football and you feel him on the field, not the biggest guy but has long arms that kind of mimics Dre Greenlaw in a lot of ways. So, that's high praise and he's got a long way to go to show that he can be like that, but that was a guy that was reminiscent of that."
Being a player who the 49ers can use right away, especially under these complicated developments regarding Mustapha, is a big plus for the rookie. And he will be needed from the jump.
The 49ers also drafted Marques Sigle, a safety from Kansas State, in the fifth round.