NFC Championship Game: San Francisco 49ers roster, starters by position

The San Francisco 49ers have the chance to reach their second Super Bowl in the last three seasons when they take on the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game at SoFi Stadium on Sunday (9:40pm ET).

49ers roster: San Francisco find hidden gems in the draft

In recent drafts, the 49ers have had a knack for finding diamonds in the rough in the latter rounds. The most recent example is Elijah Mitchell, a running back recruited in the sixth round of the 2021 draft. He has registered fantastic numbers in his first season in the NFL to nail down a starting berth in the team. Ambry Thomas, drafted in the third round, has become the first-choice cornerback in the last six games, including the Niners’ two Playoff clashes.

In 2020, the 49ers picked up two wide receivers who’ve been hugely useful in the system operated by head coach Kyle Shanahan, in the shape of Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings. They were drafted in the first and seventh round, respectively.

The 2019 draft appears to have been the most successful of the Shanahan era, as San Francisco brought in defensive end Nick Bosa in the first round, versatile wide receiver Deebo Samuel in the second, punter Mitch Wishnowsky in the fourth and the linebacker Dre Greenlaw in the fifth.

Fred Warner was found in the third round of the 2018 draft, the second with Shanahan at the helm of the team. Another good piece of recruitment was the safety Marcel Harris, who has played 52 games in four years in San Francisco after being chosen in the sixth round.

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The first of the hidden gems picked up by Shanahan was the tight end George Kittle, recruited in the fifth round of the 2017 draft. In the following round, the 49ers snared DJ Jones, a defensive tackle who has shown real durability in the last three seasons with the franchise.

The cornerback Jimmie Ward is the 49ers’ longest-serving player, having been picked up in the first round of the 2014 draft. He is followed by defensive tackle Arik Armstead and safety Jaquiski Tartt, both selected by the Niners in the 2015 draft.

San Francisco have also reaped rewards from their recruitment of undrafted players, such as cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, signed in 2018 after playing for the University of Tennessee; linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, who arrived in 2019 from Florida Atlantic; and running back JaMycal Hasty, a Baylor product signed in 2020.

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Free agents and trades

Trades and free agency signings have played a major part in the construction of the 49ers' offensive line. Trent Williams is one of the best offensive tackles in the NFL right now, and was snapped up by the Niners in a trade with the Washington Football Team in 2020. The guard Laken Tomlinson was also traded to San Francisco, joining from the Detroit Lions in 2017.

In the most recent free agency period, the 49ers closed up a big hole in the centre of their offensive line with the signing of Alex Mack. Mack has played 100% of the team’s offensive plays. The guard Daniel Brunskill arrived from San Diego State, as a free agent not selected in the draft 2019. A year later, the tackle Tom Compton moved to Levi’s Stadium after the expiry of his contract with the New York Jets.

The offensive line has been built to prevent quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo from suffering more injuries that would threaten his San Francisco career. The 49ers’ franchise quarterback was traded from the New England Patriots in 2017, in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2018 draft.

Robbie Gould has shown himself to be an extremely competent kicker since being acquired as a free agent in 2017.

49ers' projected starters for NFC Championship Game