The 49ers are pounding the rest of the NFL over the head with their draft strategy.
General manager John Lynch used the team’s first five picks in the 2025 NFL Draft to continue to provide defensive coordinator Robert Saleh with personnel.
The 49ers selected defensive tackle C.J. West of Indiana in the fourth round with the No. 113 overall pick.
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It was a move foreshadowed a few moments earlier when CEO Jed York wrote a light-hearted post on social media.
“Maybe we should do something a little different here,” York wrote. “Oops, Saleh just walked in the war room.”
It is the first time since 1981 that the 49ers have used each of their first five selections on defensive players. It worked out well for the 49ers that year, as they rode their rookie class all the way to the organization’s first Super Bowl. Ronnie Lott, John Harty, Eric Wright, Carlton Williamson and Lynn Thomas were the 49ers’ top picks in 1981.
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This year, the 49ers have stocked up with defensive end Mykel Williams, defensive tackle Alfred Collins, linebacker Nick Martin and nickel back Upton Stout before their selection of West.
West (6-foot-1, 316 pounds) transferred to Indiana after attending Kent State for four seasons. He registered 42 tackles with two sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss.
West helps the 49ers replenish a thin group of defensive tackles after the club parted ways with Javon Hargrave and Maliek Collins in cost-cutting moves.
West, like Collins, supplies the 49ers with a run-stuffing two-down interior lineman for the middle of Saleh’s defense.
West and Collins join a defensive tackle group that includes Jordan Elliott, Kevin Givens, Kalia Davis and Evan Anderson.
The 49ers aim to improve in all areas of their defensive line play. The 49ers were tied for 30th in the league, allowing 24 rushing touchdowns. They were middle of the pack in the NFL, allowing 4.4 yards per rushing attempt.
The 49ers have added to their defense with all five of their selections thus far. They still have six scheduled picks.