49ers' greatest weakness is found in the uncertainty of the interior defensive line
Pro Football Focus rated the defensive line as the biggest weakness on the team.
It is hard to imagine the position the San Francisco 49ers went out and spent money on is still a weakness, yet, according to Pro Football Focus, that is the reality.
In a recent article published on PFF, the interior defensive line was listed as the area of primary weakness heading into the offseason workouts and the 2023 NFL season.
Here is a look at PFF's rationale for stating the interior defensive line is a problem moving forward:
"It's hard to find weaknesses on this team, but the 49ers' interior defensive line struggled all year, and it came to a head when the Eagles ran all over them in the NFC title game. Arik Armstead had a down year, and Javon Kinlaw hasn’t lived up to his first-round billing yet. The 49ers ended 2022 with the third-lowest-graded interior defender unit in the NFL. They’re hoping big-money free agent Javon Hargrave fixes those issues, but there still isn’t much behind him. Hargrave’s high overall grade is also primarily carried by his pass rushing."
On the surface, Hargrave's presence gives the 49ers a legitimate inside pass-rush threat to go along with Nick Bosa, the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, on the outside.
He is also joining Arik Armstead and Javon Kinlaw along the interior of the 49ers' defensive line. But Kinlaw has struggled with injuries since joining the Niners and Armstead isn't a slam dunk in bringing interior defensive pressure.
So though the names on the defensive line look intriguing, there are still far more questions than answers at that position. But with Bosa, the 49ers' defense will always be in relatively decent hands. And with the season, still, a few months away, there is still time for the Niners to beef up the interior defensive line.
