SANTA CLARA — On a day when 51 players hit the field for rookie camp on Friday, the real news for the San Francisco 49ers was back inside the building as they continue to address the biggest miss in their recent draft: the offensive line.
The Niners signed seventh-year offensive tackle Andre Dillard, a 2019 first-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles, and former Tennessee Titans tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere. This comes a week after they signed veteran tackle D.J. Humphries. They can foreseeably all take a crack at right tackle Colton McKivitz’s starting job or the swing tackle role after the 49ers didn’t draft a tackle two weeks ago.
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Among the moves the 49ers made to make room for Dillard and Petit-Frere was releasing defensive end Drake Jackson, the team’s 2022 second-round pick. Jackson missed all of last season with a knee injury and recently failed a physical. He finishes with six sacks, an interception, and nine pass breakups in 23 games.
It was only a first impression on Friday, but Mykel Williams made it look like no one will remember Jackson’s name. The first-round pick looked the part at 6-foot-5, 267 pounds and threw around tryout linemen and coaching assistants. (Defensive tackle Alfred Collins, the team’s second-round pick, watched from the sidelines as he is getting over a minor calf injury.)
When the team reconvenes in a couple of weeks for an organized workout, maybe Dillard and Petit-Frere will get a crack at Williams.
Dillard (6-5, 315) was the No. 22 pick in 2019, but started only nine games in four seasons for the Eagles and missed the 2020 season with a torn biceps. The Titans gave him a three-year, $29 million deal because, hey, he was a high draft pick, only to move on a year later. Dillard spent last season as a backup in Green Bay.
But beggars can’t be too picky, and they also avoid analytics. Petit-Frere, 25, allowed 11 sacks last season and his 10 percent career pressure rate allowed is the second-highest among tackles with at least 500 pass-blocking snaps, per TruMedia.
(Brock Purdy’s ask in contract negotiations just went up.)
The 49ers did draft another quarterback in the seventh round this year, but Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke is not all the way back from a knee injury and sat out Friday’s proceedings. Tanner Mordecai, a practice squader last year out of Wisconsin, was QB1 for a day and he had some nice throws considering … he was the only one on the field who knew the plays.
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Rourke, who along with a great run defense led the Hoosiers to the College Football Playoff, should be ready by training camp. Mordecai will have his hands full in the battle for the No. 3 spot behind Purdy and Mac Jones.
Rourke “is a big, strong thrower,” 49ers offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak said on Thursday. “A guy who stands in the pocket and goes through progressions and he’s got a really good arm. So, all those things you look for as far as the talent. He was very, very tough. He played injured through this whole year.
“And so just all those things combined, the physical tools, the toughness, the leadership … he’s a winner. We think we got a really good player.”
Jordan James, the fifth-round pick out of Oregon, was the eighth running back drafted in a very deep class and also might be a really good player. He showed off some good hands at Friday’s camp, as well as a nice burst. The same goes for undrafted free agent running back Corey Kiner out of Cincinnati.
It’s all baby steps for the 49ers right now, but this team needs its rookies to walk before they can run as it tries to bounce back from a 6-11 record.
“It’s exciting to get just the injection of youth to go along with a lot of the veterans that we have on this football team,” defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said. “It’s going to be fun to work with them.”
(Top photo of Mykel Williams: Tony Avelar / Associated Press)
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