49ers are Starting to Place Trust in Their Rookies

Slowly but surely the 49ers are starting to place trust in their rookies. They showed it in their Week 4 win against the Patriots.

Aug 23, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; San Francisco 49ers safety Malik Mustapha (43) against the Las Vegas Raiders in the first half at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

There was one intriguing takeaway from the 49ers' Week 4 win against the Patriots.

That takeaway was the amount of playing time that their rookies had in that game. Safety Malik Mustapha made his debut start with Talanoa Hufanga out with an ankle injury. The 49ers were going with George Odum as the starter before Hufanga made his return.

"We thought he was ready for it," said Kyle Shanahan on Mustapha starting. "When him and G.O. were going, we started rotating him a little, I think the second week. He's been doing awesome in practice. We started to mix him in there in game two. I think Huf came back in game three, so we didn't need to do it. But when we found out Huf couldn’t play today, we knew he was next man up."

They are ready to turn the page to the younger and more promising talent. The same can be said at cornerback. Isaac Yiadom had been the starter for the 49ers when they went to their nickel packages. However, rookie Renardo Green saw 23 snaps on defense versus Yiadom's 16.

The 49ers are starting to place their trust in their rookies. Initially, it made it seem like the 49ers were correcting their mistakes. Starting Odum and Yiadom over Mustapha and Green was foolish. While that is certainly true, it could have also been the 49ers' way of bringing those two rookies along slowly.

Thanks to having Odum and Yiadom, there was no rush to get Mustapha and Green into the fold. Before Week 4, the 49ers had been integrating Mustapha and Green a bit. The fact that they saw the most playing time this season against the Patriots shows that the 49ers can trust them because they are ready.

But it also is at least partly because Yiadom and Odum aren't adequate starters. The 49ers are better off letting the younger talent get in there and develop to ascend over their predecessors. The 49ers trusting their rookies isn't just with Mustapha and Green. It is also with offensive lineman Dominick Puni.

For them to have Puni as a starter is incredible. Of course, injuries allowed Puni those opportunities and he took advantage of them. But it shows that he is proven enough for the 49ers to place their trust in him. The same goes for wide receiver Jacob Cowing as a punt returner and running back Isaac Guerendo backing up Jordan Mason.

The 2024 draft class is trending to be the 49ers' best in the last five years and possibly ever under Shanahan and John Lynch.

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