The early rumblings of the 2026 NFL season are already here as teams have begun rookie minicamps and OTAs, getting an early look at incoming talent to each roster. The San Francisco 49ers are looking to bounce back after a respectable run in the playoffs last season, but a Super Bowl has become the standard in the bay area and maximizing the roster they have.
The 49ers held eight picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, four of which were used on offensive and defensive lineman. The clear focus has been building protection around Brock Purdy and finding athletic blockers to help Christian McCaffrey lead the league in all-purpose yards as he’s capable of doing.
The squad is putting in work at OTAs 🔥#49ers || #FTTB
Via: @49ers pic.twitter.com/kaZUlwdFkX
— OurSF49ers (@OurSf49ers) May 27, 2026
This biggest offseason news for the 49ers has been the acquisition of future Hall-of-Famer Mike Evans after 12 seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The two-time All-Pro joins an already stacked offense highlighted by McCaffrey, Georgie Kittle, and the recent addition of WR Christian Kirk, fully building around Brock Purdy and the potential of this offense.
However, as is the case with most NFL rosters, there’s a few hidden gems scattered throughout that are just waiting for their opportunity to shine. We’ll take a look at two players in particular with ton of potential to do exactly that with the San Francisco 49ers.
LB Jalen Graham receives praise from coach KJ Wright.
Jalen Graham enters his fourth season with the 49ers listed fourth on the depth chart at the RILB position. The starting slot is occupied by none other than franchise legend Fred Warner who’s looking to have a big bounce back season following a season-ending ankle injury. In front of Graham are teammates Tatum Bethune and Jaden Dugger, all led by former ‘Legion of Boom’ Seahawks linebacker KJ Wright as their positional coach in his first year.
KJ Wright spoke with SI’s Grant Cohn regarding the linebacking corps and had some particularly high praise for Graham.
“Look out for Jalen Graham, he’s a guy that can play all three positions. Right now, he’s at the Mike-backer because Luke [Gifford] got the concussion. Jalen Graham has look phenomenal – the way he bends, the way he’s seeing the game, his footwork. He’s doing an outstanding job for us this OTAs.”
Wright went on, “I love Jalen, his background – he played nickel in college. So, I love Jalen.”
It’s quite high praise from the linebackers coach and KJ Wright could see a little bit of himself in Jalen Graham given his strong, yet versatile and fluid ability to play the position. While he hasn’t seen much playing time over the last three seasons, expect Graham to have a strong presence in the linebacking room and with his play on the practice field.
RB2 is wide open for rookie RB Kaelon Black
The 49ers selected National Champion Indiana Hoosiers RB Kaelon Black in the third round (PK90) to add depth to a running back room that’s led by arguably the NFL’s best in Christian McCaffrey. Black is listed third on the current RB depth chart behind second-year back Jordan James who failed to play any snaps in 2025 after being a healthy scratch for most of the year.
While head coach Kyle Shanahan is still optimistic about James being the main support behind McCaffrey, the former Oregon Duck has dealt with a number of injuries and hasn’t been able to capitalize when healthy. The 49ers clearly liked Black in the draft and felt as though going out and getting him could add to the competition in the RB room.
Shanahan admitted on the Rich Eisen show, “We had him as the second-rated back on the board, that’s just our evaluation of him.”
Christian McCaffrey also praised Kaelon Black on his performance during OTAs, saying, “He’s been every you would want in a rookie, super attentive in meetings, does everything right, has a bunch of talent and complements our room really well.”
It seems as though there will be some competition for the RB2 role behind McCaffrey and although it’s likely both Jordan James and Kaelon Black will see equal snaps to start, this could be Black’s role for the taking if he continues building upon the strong impression he’s making as the season looms.
The early rumblings of the 2026 NFL season are already here as teams have begun rookie minicamps and OTAs, getting an early look at incoming talent to each roster. The San Francisco 49ers are looking to bounce back after a respectable run in the playoffs last season, but a Super Bowl has become the standard in the bay area and maximizing the roster they have.