San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan have done a considerable job turning the franchise into a perennial contender during their time together. However, former NFL offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth revealed one area the duo lacks that could hurt their club's long-term future: Investing premium draft capital in the offensive line.
The Lynch-Shanahan braintrust hasn't used a first- or second-round pick on a lineman since Aaron Banks went No. 48 overall in 2021. The only other lineman taken in the first round since 2017 was Mike McGlinchey in 2018, who also departed in free agency after seven season.
While this hasn't hurt the 49ers' offensive line as a whole (the team still fields a top-eight unit by consensus rankings), Whitworth believes NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco that the 49ers' reluctance to use high-end draft capital underscores a lack of faith in their ability to identify top-tier talent. And, the former three-time Pro Bowl tackle and Super Bowl champion believes that decision will ultimately become a problem for the franchise when their star tackle Trent Williams is no longer protecting the blindside.
“When you’re going to allocate a first-round pick or second-round pick to an offensive lineman, a lot of people love that theory, but you better be ****** good at picking it," Whitworth said. "Because when you hit on an offensive lineman, it can be unbelievable for your franchise early in the draft because a great offensive line, a great D-line is the story to successful football teams. But when you miss on a high pick like that … you draft an unproductive lineman, you are cooked because now you’re getting a second, third, fourth-tier lineman who’s going to have to play."
The 49ers have deployed a different approach in their offensive line construction. Their anchor player is Williams, who was a seven-time Pro Bowler before San Francisco traded for him in 2020. The rest of the unit was added with Day 2 or Day 3 picks, while centerJake Brendel was a free agent who went undrafted in 2016 before joining the team in 2021.
The Lynch-Shanahan braintrust hasn't used a first- or second-round pick on a lineman since Aaron Banks went No. 48 overall in 2021. The only other lineman taken in the first round since 2017 was Mike McGlinchey in 2018, who also departed in free agency after seven season.
While this hasn't hurt the 49ers' offensive line as a whole (the team still fields a top-eight unit by consensus rankings), Whitworth believes NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco that the 49ers' reluctance to use high-end draft capital underscores a lack of faith in their ability to identify top-tier talent. And, the former three-time Pro Bowl tackle and Super Bowl champion believes that decision will ultimately become a problem for the franchise when their star tackle Trent Williams is no longer protecting the blindside.
“When you’re going to allocate a first-round pick or second-round pick to an offensive lineman, a lot of people love that theory, but you better be ****** good at picking it," Whitworth said. "Because when you hit on an offensive lineman, it can be unbelievable for your franchise early in the draft because a great offensive line, a great D-line is the story to successful football teams. But when you miss on a high pick like that … you draft an unproductive lineman, you are cooked because now you’re getting a second, third, fourth-tier lineman who’s going to have to play."
The 49ers have deployed a different approach in their offensive line construction. Their anchor player is Williams, who was a seven-time Pro Bowler before San Francisco traded for him in 2020. The rest of the unit was added with Day 2 or Day 3 picks, while centerJake Brendel was a free agent who went undrafted in 2016 before joining the team in 2021.
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