Are the 49ers looking for a starting safety?
When the offseason began, most analysts expected Ziair Brown and Talanoa Hufanga to be the 49ers’ starting safeties in 2024.
However, Mike Silver recently reported that Talanoa Hufanga does not have a permanent place in next season’s starting lineup after suffering a torn ACL.
Additionally, free safety Rayshawn Jenkins met with the 49ers during free agency before ultimately signing with the Seahawks.
So are the 49ers looking for a starting safety? They appear to have questions and concerns about Hufanga’s future after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament.
He wasn’t all that fast before his injury, but now his lack of speed could become an even bigger problem.
Additionally, Hufanga was an All-Pro in 2022, so he could be very expensive next season when he becomes a free agent.
Some team might really like him and pay him a lot of money. So don’t be surprised if the 49ers spend one of their top draft picks on a safety this year.
Currently, only three players are guaranteed to be on the 53-man roster: Hufanga, Brown and George Odum.
A fourth person is absolutely necessary. They could sit him down for a year in the draft and make him the starter next year when Hufanga becomes a free agent.
Alternatively, the 49ers could move the immediate starter to safety and trade Hufanga once he fully recovers from his ACL injury.
Either way, safety appears to be one of the 49ers’ biggest remaining needs simply because they only have two healthy players at the position.