The Most Underrated Player on the 49ers

Enjoy him while he's still here.

Plenty of players on the 49ers qualify as underrated.

Both Jimmie Ward and Arik Armstead arguably should have been named to a Pro Bowl by now, but neither has. Ward in particular is the best coverage safety in the NFL -- he completely eliminates tight ends from the passing game. He deserves more recognition.

But there's someone on the 49ers even more underrated than those two. Someone who flies so far under the radar, casual football probably don't know who he is:

Azeez Al-Shaair.

He started last season as the third linebacker in the 49ers' pecking order, but a Week 1 groin injury to Dre Greenlaw made Al-Shaair a full-time three-down linebacker, and he turned out better than Greenlaw. In fact, at times last season, Al-Shaair was better than Fred Warner, who has been called the best middle linebacker in football, particularly in pass coverage.

But in 2021, Al-Shaair gave up a lower passer rating than Warner, intercepted more passes than Warner, broke up more passes than Warner, recorded more sacks than Warner, recorded more tackles for loss than Warner, all while playing three fewer games than Warner.

That's nothing against Warner -- he's a good linebacker. But his mastery of pass coverage might have been overstated the past few years. And when it comes to run defense, Warner racks up more tackles per game than Al-Shaair, but Al-Shaair is faster, hits harder, and gets into the backfield more frequently than Warner.

Al-Shaair will be an unrestricted free agent next year. If he stays healthy and puts together the type of dominant season he's capable of producing, he'll be a Pro Bowler and the 49ers won't be able to afford to keep him.

Enjoy Al-Shaair while he's still here.