The 49ers have plenty of bodies along the defensive line, but are they good enough to bring the defense back to its heyday?
San Francisco 49ers Rookie Minicamp | Michael Zagaris/GettyImages
As is often the case, the San Francisco 49ers have stockpiled players for their defensive line entering 2025 with 15 players currently on the roster. History tells us that roughly five or six of those players aren't going to make it to the initial 53-man group.
We do know the defensive line is going to be the largest position unit that head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch keep once the roster is solidified, so that is good news for most of this group.
Unlike in past years, there aren't as many locks, so that makes this one of the key training camp battles to watch once it begins in late July. And it also opens up the door to suggest the Niners' D-line is awfully topheavy, lacking proven commodities down the depth chart.
There are a few names who are penned in, however, and they'll serve as the starters and key depth.
From there, it feels like there will be as many as three or four openings up for grabs.
49ers' starting defensive line
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For the purpose of this exercise, the "starters" are the base defensive line. But, given how much defensive coordinator Robert Saleh and defensive line coach Kris Kocurek like to rotate their players, it's likely the majority of the guys who make the roster will see snaps throughout any given game.
So the "starting" designation isn't so much the group that will see the most snaps, just the 4-3 base:
DE Nick Bosa
DT Jordan Elliott
DT Kevin Givens
DE Mykel Williams
There is always a chance that one of the rookie defensive tackles supplants either Elliott or Givens or both as the season goes along, but the assumption would be that the veterans will get the nod out of the gate.
Williams could also not be the starter off the bat, although he'll definitely be a big part of the rotation.
49ers' defensive line depth
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DE Bryce Huff
DE/DL Yetur Gross-Matos
DT Alfred Collins
DT CJ West
DE Sam Okuayinonu
DE Robert Beal
As previously mentioned, there are plenty of bodies here, but in order for this group to be successful, the Niners will need to see several players step up and play bigger roles than they have in the past.
The main questions surround the edge depth outside of Huff, whom the 49ers [just acquired](https://ninernoise.com/niner-noise-podcast-49ers-trade-bryce-huff-otas-more) from the Philadelphia Eagles, where Okuayinonu and Beal are being counted on for an awful lot of production here. Essentially, those two are now assuming greater roles than they've ever been tasked with up to this point, potentially creating some problems.
The defensive tackle group looks solid, but if there is a place where San Francisco can add, it would be at edge rusher.
Otherwise, it'll take [some Kocurek magic](https://ninernoise.com/bryce-huff-turn-49ers-steal-kris-kocurek-works-his-magic), but this group has a chance to be a good, if generally unspectacular, unit.
Hopefully, it doesn't underwhelm.
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