49ers considered one of the 'most complete' teams in the NFL
The San Francisco 49ers are getting praise for how the front office constructed the roster.
As the offseason chugs along, the San Francisco 49ers are earning praise for building one of the most complete teams in the NFL.
Eric Edholm of NFL.com put together a list of the 10 most complete teams heading into the 2023 season, and the 49ers made the official cut. San Francisco is slotted at No. 3 behind the top-ranked Philadelphia Eagles and the reigning Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs.
If not for untimely injuries in the NFC Championship game, the Niners may have taken on the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. But why did Edholm label the Niners as the No. 3 ranked team? Let's take a look at Edholm's reasoning.
"The 49ers’ biggest question right now could end up being a relative strength," Edholm writes. "Quarterback remains a concern of sorts following Brock Purdy’s elbow injury, which keeps his timeline to return to action murky. If Purdy can come back and prove that his late-season run was no fluke, the 49ers will be in great shape.
"Trey Lance’s trajectory has changed wildly in the past nine months or so, but he’ll still have a chance to rewrite his path and start if Purdy can’t go Week 1. There’s also Sam Darnold, who has 55 career NFL starts to his name, which is pretty good insurance.
"There are no gaping holes on the roster, but that’s not to say there aren’t things to sort out. Right now, Colton McKivitz is the top candidate to replace Mike McGlinchey at right tackle. But that’s one of the few major concerns until proven otherwise. The OL depth across the board might be a tad shaky and too dependent on some unknown pieces and projections, but it should be a solid group."
During free agency and the 2023 NFL Draft, the Niners brought in defensive lineman Javon Hargrave, who spent three seasons in Philadelphia. Hargrave is coming off a career year, registering 60 tackles, a career-high 11.0 sacks, 16 quarterback hits, 10 tackles-for-loss, two fumble recoveries, and a forced fumble. His 11.0 sacks ranked fourth amongst all NFL defensive tackles.
The Niners added nine new players in the draft that include safety Ji'Ayir Brown to further bolster the secondary. Brown played at Penn State, where he racked up 10 interceptions over the last two seasons. Another attention-grabbing pick was kicker Jake Moody, who was taken in the third round. Moody was the consensus best kicker of the 2023 draft class and could round out the 49ers specialist trio with punter Mitch Wishnowsky and long-snapper Taybor Pepper.
Overall, the Niners have difference-makers at every position. And if the team can sort out the quarterback position sooner rather than later, the rest of the NFL will be in some serious trouble.
