Assessing Every San Francisco 49ers UDFA's Chances of Making Final Roster
Each of the past few seasons, at least one rookie undrafted free agent made the San Francisco 49ers' final roster.
Last season, safety L.J. McCray and center Dillon Farrell made the team, and they were rookie undrafted free agents.
In 2013, long snapper Kevin McDermott made the team, and he was a rookie undrafted free agent.
The Niners signed defensive end Tony Jerod-Eddie in 2012. He was a rookie undrafted free agent who spent most of his rookie season on the practice squad. He made the team the following season.
One or more of the 49ers' rookie undrafted free agents probably will make the team next season. And if one does, odds are he will be a wide receiver—the 49ers signed five of them after the draft.
Here is a breakdown of each undrafted free agent’s chances of making the 49ers' final roster.
QB Dylan Thompson
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Dylan Thompson might have a future in the NFL.
He was just a one-year starter for South Carolina, but his one year was productive. He passed for 3,564 yards—tops in the SEC. He also tossed 26 touchdown passes.
Other than Thompson, only seven SEC quarterbacks since 2000 have produced those numbers in a single season: Eli Manning (2003), Rex Grossman (2001), Ryan Mallett (2009, 2010), Johnny Manziel (2012, 2013), Aaron Murray (2012), Tyler Bray (2012) and Andre Woodson (2007).
All but Grossman and Woodson still are in the league. Woodson never made it, but Grossman did. He started 47 regular-season games and one Super Bowl.
Grossman and Thompson have two things in common: Both are on the short side for a quarterback (Grossman is 6’1”; Thompson is 6’1” ¾), and both played for Steve Spurrier. Both are well-coached.
Here’s where they differ: Grossman couldn’t move. He ran a 5.06 40-yard dash when he came out of college.
Thompson ran a 4.68 at his pro day, per Greenville Online's Willie T. Smith III. He can run the rollouts and read-option plays Colin Kaepernick does, meaning Thompson is a good fit for the Niners offense. To make the final roster, all he has to do is outplay Blaine Gabbert during the preseason.
How difficult could that be?
WR Dres Anderson
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CBSSports.com gave former Utah receiver Dres Anderson a higher predraft ranking (No. 112) than the wide receiver the Niners drafted in Round 4—DeAndre Smelter (No. 296).
Anderson caught 53 passes for 1,002 yards in 2013. That same year, Nelson Agholor caught 56 passes for 918 yards. Agholor was the 20th pick this year, and Anderson outplayed him in 2013.
But Anderson tore his meniscus and played only seven games in 2014. That’s probably why no team drafted him.
If he fully recovers, he might take former fourth-round pick Quinton Patton’s spot on the final roster. Patton has caught just six passes during his two-season career. He’s on the bubble.
WR Issac Blakeney
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Compare former Duke wide receiver Issac Blakeney to former seventh-round pick Marques Colston.
Blakeney: 6’4 ⅜", 223 pounds, 4.62-second 40-yard dash, 6.89-second three-cone drill, 36 ½-inch vertical jump, 129-inch broad jump.
Colston: 6’4 ⅝", 224 pounds, 4.54-second 40-yard dash, 6.94-second three-cone drill, 37-inch vertical leap, 123-inch broad jump.
Pretty similar.
Does that mean Blakeney is the next Colston? No, not exactly. Colston started 37 games in college and was ready to produce in the NFL right away. He made 70 catches his rookie season.
Blakeney started only 18 games in college. He lacks experiences and probably won’t dominate early on like Colston did. Blakeney most likely needs a year to develop on the practice squad.
He will have a better chance to make the roster and contribute to the offense in 2016.
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WR DiAndre Campbell
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Former Washington wide receiver DiAndre Campbell is a terrific player to have on the practice squad.
He has NFL size and speed—6’1”, 210 pounds, 4.53-second 40-yard dash. As a member of the scout-team offense, he will give the 49ers defense good looks—meaning he can mimic the type of receivers the starting defensive backs cover on Sundays.
Campbell also played defensive back at Oakland Technical high school. In a pinch, he can play corner or safety for the scout-team defense if he makes the practice squad.
But he has virtually zero chance of making the 53-man roster. He made just 45 catches in 52 games at Washington. How will he produce in the NFL if he couldn’t produce during four years of college?
WR Darius Davis
5 of 9Darius Davis produced in college, albeit against schools like Nicholls State and East Central.
Davis played for Henderson State, a Division II team. And he was unstoppable. He caught 16 touchdown passes and averaged 21.3 yards per catch in 2013, and he caught 18 TD passes and averaged 22.5 yards per catch in 2014.
He looks fast on the field, but he ran a disappointing 4.60-second 40-yard dash at his pro day. He’s 5’11”, 219 pounds—maybe he’ll get faster if he loses weight.
Davis is a dark horse to make the final roster. He probably will have to beat out Quinton Patton and Dres Anderson.
WR DeAndrew White
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Former Alabama wide receiver DeAndrew White is 5’11”, and he ran a 4.37-second 40-yard dash at his pro day.
He has potential to be special.
But he’s injury-prone. He missed the final nine games of 2012 after suffering a torn ACL in his right knee. And in 2014, he missed two games with a separated shoulder and one game with a pulled hamstring.
After the draft, 49ers general manager Trent Baalke spoke in general about injury-prone players: “We wanted healthy guys, guys that had a history of playing and not missing games due to injury,” Baalke said. “Some guys are injury-prone—we wanted to stay away from that as much as we could.”
Until White shakes the injury-prone label, he probably will be a practice squad player.
OL Patrick Miller
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Patrick Miller has essential attributes for an offensive tackle—his height (6’7”) and his long arms (35"). He also has experience, starting 19 games at right tackle the past three seasons at Auburn.
He was a 4-star recruit coming out of high school, per Rivals, receiving offers from Alabama, Florida State and LSU. But he failed a drug test midway through the 2013 season and lost his starting job. And in 2014, he suffered a leg injury and started only five games.
And he’s weak for an offensive tackle. He bench-pressed 225 pounds only 16 times at his pro day. Wide receiver DeVante Parker put up 17 reps at the combine.
Until he gets stronger, Miller probably will be a practice squad player.
OLB Marcus Rush
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Marcus Rush was a defensive end at Michigan State, but he’s too small to play defensive end for the Niners. He would have to play outside linebacker, and he has almost no chance of making the team at outside linebacker.
The Niners already invested in five outside linebackers—Aldon Smith, Ahmad Brooks, Aaron Lynch, Eli Harold and Corey Lemonier. Rush probably won’t beat out any of them.
Perhaps the Niners didn’t draft Rush to play defense. Let’s think outside the box here.
Compare Rush to fullback Bruce Miller, who also played defensive end in college.
Rush: 6’2”, 247 pounds, 4.68-second 40-yard dash, 6.73-second three-cone drill, 24 reps of 225 pounds.
Miller: 6’1”, 254 pounds, 4.67-second 40-yard dash, 6.87-second three-cone drill, 35 reps of 225 pounds.
Maybe when the Niners look at Rush, they see the second coming of Miller. But as long as they have Miller, they probably don’t need another fullback on the roster. So Rush can be Miller’s understudy on the practice squad.
S Jermaine Whitehead
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Of all the 49ers’ undrafted free agents, former Auburn safety Jermaine Whitehead might have the best chance of making the team.
A team didn't draft Whitehead primarily because Auburn suspended him four games in 2014 for arguing with a coach. But he still intercepted six passes last season, including two against Wisconsin in the Outback Bowl. And he excels in man-to-man coverage.
He’s a safety who can cover a slot receiver, such as the 49ers’ 2014 first-round pick, Jimmie Ward. Let’s compare those two (last comparison, I promise).
Whitehead: 5’11”, 197 pounds, 4.48-second 40-yard dash, 6.95-second three-cone drill, 4.11-second 20-yard shuttle, 37-inch vertical jump, 128-inch broad jump, 31-inch arms and 9 ⅜-inch hands.
Ward: 5’11”, 193 pounds, 4.47-second 40-yard dash, 6.89-second three-cone drill, 4.24-second 20-yard shuttle, 38-inch vertical leap, 125-inch broad jump, 31-inch arms and 9 ⅜-inch hands.
It’s almost like they’re the same person.
For Whitehead to make the final roster, all he has to do is beat out L.J. McCray, an undrafted free agent who made the team as a rookie last season.
McCray doesn’t have Whitehead’s safety instincts and coverage ability. He is a special teams player and not a good one. Pro Football Focus gave him a minus-7.5 special teams grade last season—worst on the team.
Whitehead should blow McCray out of the water during training camp.
All quotations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Combine and pro-day information courtesy of NFLDraftScout.com and NFL.com.
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