The 49ers clearly see something special in Penn State safety Ji'Ayir Brown.
It's why San Francisco general manager John Lynch traded up 12 spots in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft from the No. 99 overall pick to No. 87 to select him.
Penn State safeties coach Anthony Poindexter highlighted a single play from the Nittany Lions' 35-21 victory over Utah in the 2023 Rose Bowl to illustrate what makes the 23-year-old worth the 49ers' investment.
"[In] the Rose Bowl, [Brown] missed one signal -- he didn’t peel on the blitz -- so I think something might be wrong with him," Poindexter told The Athletic's David Lombardi. "And the next play he gets a pick. And I’m like ‘OK.’ He made a play to end the drive and basically seal the game.
"He’s just special that way. He doesn’t bust a lot of coverages, but he’s got an uncanny way of getting picks."
At the time of Brown's interception, Penn State led Utah by seven points midway through the third quarter. The Nittany Lions took care of business the rest of the way.
It was Brown's 10th career interception, which ranks 12th in the storied program's history. He also was named the Rose Bowl Defensive MVP.
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Brown debuted for Penn State in the shortened 2020 season after transferring from Lackawanna College in Scranton, Pa. along with fellow safety Jaquan Brisker. While Brisker was selected in the second round by Chicago last year and started 15 games for the Bears as a rookie, Brown returned for another season in State College, Pa., and notched 74 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and four interceptions.
He built a reputation as one of the best ball hawks in college football, all while bringing his A-game every single day to practice.
"He practiced like he played," Poindexter told Lombardi. "You hear a lot of people say that, but this guy loves playing football. He put pride into practice. And you get nicked all season long, guys don’t want to practice. But he loves to practice and he loves competition.
"I tell all my group this: You only get 12 games, you can’t waste one. I think they get that idea, but he didn’t want to miss one opportunity to get better at practice. The game is just fun to him. The best players, you treat it like it’s a game. When you watch his tape, you can just feel energy coming off the tape."
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Brown doesn't arrive in the Bay Area without flaws. His 4.65-second 40-yard dash time at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine concerned scouts and likely is the biggest reason why he fell to the third round.
But if anybody has an eye for safeties, it's Lynch, who owns real estate in a bronze bust at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton.
“He’s a baller,” Lynch said on the night of the draft. “I think he’s got the components of what I think makes up a Niner. We had a consensus, from coaches to scouts, it was all around the building. He really solidified that with this tape, but then he came here on a 30 visit and he’s just got this infectious personality.”