The 2026 NFL Draft is here. While the San Francisco 49ers were loaded with capital last offseason, they made a number of trades with their picks this year. They moved their fifth-round pick for Bryce Huff, their sixth-round pick for Brian Robinson Jr., and their seventh-round pick for Khalil Davis.
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NFL Draft prospects rate themselves on Madden
USAT’s Chris Bumbaca asks some of the top NFL Draft prospects what they would rate themselves in Madden after their rookie year.
Sports Seriously
That’s a wrap for the 2026 NFL Draft. Three days of the top football prospects yearning to actualize their dreams of making it to the NFL, are in the books.
The San Francisco 49ers concluded their selection after adding eight new players through the draft including Mississippi receiver De’Zhaun Stribling, Texas Tech edge Romello Height and Indiana running back Kaelon Black.
All of the 49ers players were selected in the second round or later, after the team traded the No. 27 overall pick for extra selections.
“Our gut was to stay and pick. We really like De’Zhaun Stribling. Everything that he stands for. The player, the person. We have a deal, the highest standard as a 49er in our draft process is called the gold helmet. It’s checking every box, on the field, off the field, athleticism. De’Zhaun was one of the 16 that we gave this year,” 49ers general manager John Lynch said. “So to make that your first pick at wide receiver, the way that he plays, his physicality that he plays with, his speed, his size. We just love the whole package and it kept growing and growing to the point where we were proud to make him a 49er.”
The full list of 49ers draftees includes Oklahoma defensive tackle Gracen Halton, Washington offensive lineman Carter Willis, Washington defensive back Ephesians Prysock, Louisiana linebacker Jaden Dugger and Kansas offensive lineman Enrique Cruz Jr.
While some players in the draft immediately earn starting jobs on their new teams, the newest 49ers most likely won’t be. Between key starters returning and splash offseason signings, San Francisco’s incoming rookie class will look to earn time on the field starting as second- or third-string players.
Here’s a look at the projected depth chart for the 49ers following the 2026 draft:
Here’s a look at the San Francisco 49ers projected depth chart for the 2026 season, following the conclusion of the 2026 NFL Draft. Projected starters names are listed in bold, non-starters will have their respective string. *= 2026 draft class
Offense:
Quarterbacks
- Brock Purdy
- Mac Jones (2nd)
- Kurtis Rourke (3rd)
- Adrian Martinez (4th)
Running backs
- Christian McCaffrey
- Jordan James (2nd)
- Kaelon Black* (3rd)
- Isaac Guerendo (4th)
Wide receivers
- Mike Evans
- Ricky Pearsall
- Christian Kirk
- De’Zhaun Stribling* (2nd)
- Demarcus Robinson (2nd)
- Jordan Watkins (2nd)
- Jacob Cowing (3rd)
- Malik Turner (3rd)
- Colton Dowell (3rd)
- Junior Bergen (4th)
- Brandon Aiyuk (4th)
Tight ends
- George Kittle
- Jake Tonges (2nd)
- Luke Farrell (3rd)
- Brayden Willis (4th)
Fullbacks
Offensive linemen
- Trent Williams (LT)
- Carver Willis* (2nd)
- Vederian Lowe (3rd)
- Austen Pleasants (4th)
- Robert Jones (LG)
- Brett Toth (2nd)
- Connor Colby (3rd)
- Nick Zakelj (4th)
- Jake Brendel (C)
- Drake Nugent (2nd)
- Dominick Puni (RG)
- Colton McKivitz (RT)
- Enrique Cruz Jr.* (2nd)
- Brandon Parker (3rd)
- Isaac Alarcon (4th)
Defense:
Defensive edge
- C.J. West (left)
- Sebastian Valdez (2nd)
- Osa Odighizuwa (right)
- Gracen Halton* (2nd)
Defensive tackle
- Alfred Collins
- Evan Anderson
Linebackers
- Nick Bosa (WLB)
- Sam Okuayinonu (2nd)
- Romello Height* (3rd)
- Andrew Farmer II (4th)
- Dre Greenlaw (LILB)
- Luke Gifford (2nd)
- Garret Wallow (3rd)
- Nick Martin (4th)
- Fred Warner (RILB)
- Tatum Bethune (2nd)
- Jaden Dugger* (3rd)
- Jalen Graham (4th)
- Mykel Williams (SLB)
- Keion White (2nd)
- Cameron Sample (3rd)
- William Bradley-King (4th)
Defensive backs
- Deommodore Lenoir (LCB)
- Jack Jones (2nd)
- Darrell Luter Jr. (3rd)
- Eli Apple (4th)
- Renardo Green (RCB)
- Nate Hobbs (2nd)
- Ephesians Prysock* (3rd)
- Tre Tomlinson (4th)
- Ji’Ayir Brown (SS)
- Marques Sigle (2nd)
- Malik Mustapha (FS)
- Darrick Forrest (2nd)
- Derrick Canteen (3rd)
- Upton Stout (NB)
- Siran Neal (2nd)
Special Teams
- Eddy Pineiro (PK)
- Corliss Waitman (Punter, holder)
- Jacob Cowing (PR)
- Isaac Guerendo (KR)
- Jon Weeks (LS)
The 49ers weren’t done at the conclusion of the 2026 NFL Draft. San Francisco continued to build their roster by signing undrafted free agents.
Here’s a list of their undrafted free agent signings:
- Duce Chestnut, S, Syracuse
- Khalil Dinkins, TE, Penn State
- Mikhail Kamara, Edge, Indiana
- Will Pauling, WR, Notre Dame
- James Thompson, DT, Illinois
You can follow the complete team-by-team list for all 32 here.
NFL draft’s best undrafted free agents
USA TODAY Sports’ Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz provides a ranking of the top 10 best available undrafted free agents after the NFL draft.
San Francisco even got additional capital from the Jordan Mason trade last offseason, where they acquired a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick from the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for the running back.
However, they also moved that sixth-round pick during the season for New England Patriots defensive lineman Keion White.
With the draft here, let’s go back and revisit that Mason trade with all of the moving pieces.
Original terms of the Jordan Mason trade
- Minnesota Vikings receive: RB Jordan Mason
- San Francisco 49ers receive: 2025 fifth-round pick (No. 160 overall) and 2026 sixth-round pick (No. 198 overall).
What did the 49ers do with the picks from the Jordan Mason trade?
San Francisco used the first of the two picks on Kansas State safety Marques Sigle last offseason.
Then, as mentioned above, they traded the second of the two picks for defensive line help, acquiring Keion White at the trade deadline from the New England Patriots.
Who won the Jordan Mason trade?
This is still a wait-and-see, as both of the 49ers contributors still have time to develop in San Francisco.
Sigle was a contributor as a rookie for the 49ers, playing 15 games while making seven starts. He had 52 tackles, two pass breakups, and one tackle for loss.
While there were certainly flashes from the rookie safety, including his closing speed and willingness to hit, there were also some major learning moments that showed Sigle wasn’t quite ready to start last year. He’s still got a ways to improve in coverage and with his tackling, which will be points of emphasis this season.
Still, there’s the potential there to be a starting safety for the 49ers in the future.
White, on the other hand, was arguably San Francisco’s most disruptive pass rusher last year, at least on the interior after coming in during the trade deadline. He was a versatile piece, being used both on the edge and the inside, and had 24 pressures in 11 games, ranking third overall on the team.
White’s 12.5 percent pass rush win rate was third among defensive linemen behind Yetur Gross-Matos and Bryce Huff, and he also had more than one year of team control.
He’s got a cap hit of just $1.8 million for the upcoming year, and should fit in better in more of a rotational role for the 49ers this season.
Jordan Mason was a key piece for the Vikings last year, emerging as their starter, as he rushed for 758 yards and six touchdowns on 4.8 yards per carry. He was better than the 49ers No. 2 running back last year, but the two-year, $10.5 million price point was likely too high for San Francisco.
NFL Draft prospects rate themselves on Madden
USAT’s Chris Bumbaca asks some of the top NFL Draft prospects what they would rate themselves in Madden after their rookie year.
Sports Seriously
The San Francisco 49ers selected Indiana running back Kaelon Black with the No. 90 overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft on April 24.
Black is a 5-foot-10, 210-pound scat back who ran a 4.45 40-yard dash at the NFL combine. In his 2025 season at Indiana, Black ran for 1,040 yards and led the Hoosiers with 10 rushing touchdowns. Black averaged 5.6 yards per carry.
San Francisco is hoping that Black can come in and earn his way to taking some of the wear-and-tear off veteran star running back Christian McCaffrey.
Here’s how USA TODAY Sports grades the 49ers’ third-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft:
San Francisco 49ers draft grade for Kaelon Black
- The grade: C+
- Why? Black goes from a combine snub to a third-round pick. No one will confuse him for Christian McCaffrey, but he can be a reliable inside runner for San Francisco. – Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
Expert takes on Kaelon Black
- “Compact runner with ideal contact balance for early-down runs but lacks breakaway speed and receiving skills.” – Ayrton Ostly
- “A 1,000-yard runner for the national champs last season has the goods to take some snaps off Christian McCaffrey’s overloaded meter.” – Nate Davis
- “Teams scouting Indiana in the Rose Bowl will likely kick the tires on Kaelon Black. The running backs’s contact balance and powerful run style — he’s a known weight room warrior who squats 500-plus pounds — broke Alabama’s will in the 38-3 win. He always finds a way to fall forward and will fight for tough yardage. He didn’t get a combine invite, but shined on Pro Day with an impressive 4.4-second 40-yard dash and 37.5 vertical jump.” — Michael Niziolek, The Herald-Times
49ers 2026 NFL Draft picks
- 2nd Round, No. 33 overall: De’Zhaun Stribling, WR, Mississippi
- 3rd Round, No. 70 overall: Romello Height, DE/OLB, Texas Tech
- 3rd Round, No. 90 overall: Kaelon Black, RB, Indiana
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