He didn’t come out and directly say it, but Albert Breer highlighted all things between the 49ers and top draft prospect Walter Nolen.
The San Francisco 49ers are at a provocative point in the final days leading into the 2025 NFL Draft.
Not surprisingly, considering the relative weakness of this year’s class, reports are coming in about the Niners wanting to trade down from No. 11 overall, which makes sense in light of their numerous roster holes.
If they stay put, the speculation doesn’t cease either. San Francisco has been linked to cornerbacks, offensive linemen and a variety of defensive linemen, too, so it’s tough to say exactly what general manager John Lynch wants to do.
However, there’s a rising chorus from insiders who are pointing the 49ers in the direction of Ole Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen, who grew up a Niners fan and has seemingly been high on San Francisco’s radar ever since the NFL Scouting Combine last March. In early April, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco highlighted Nolen as San Francisco’s top pick in a 32-selection mock draft.
Now, the eyebrow-raising speculation has gone national with one prominent NFL insider bluntly suggesting the 49ers as draft suitors.
Albert Breer all but declares Walter Nolen to the 49ers
In a Sports Illustrated piece for the MMQB, insider Albert Breer suggested Nolen as a draft-day riser, likely to be selected much earlier than expected, which for point of clarity is probably somewhere in the late teens or early 20s, currently.
On top of that, Breer pretty much circled the Niners without making any sort of official statement on the suggestion:
“Ole Miss DT Walter Nolen may go higher than you think. Some teams believe he projects better to the NFL than Graham. The character/entitlement question is what you have to get past. But if you have solid infrastructure, as well as locker room and defensive line room, the payoff could be big. So if the San Francisco 49ers are willing to take a swing …”
Granted, this could be Nolen’s agent trying to feed Breer some fuel to get his client drafted earlier than anticipated, which is common this time of year.
But, Breer’s insights are pretty reliable.
There is the whole red-flag issue, yes, and San Francisco has largely stayed away from prospects with character concerns since getting burned by linebacker Reuben Foster after drafting him in Round 1 way back in 2017.
However, that was the first year of the 49ers’ regime under Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan, and Breer’s sentiments about the Niners’ infrastructure being in much better shape now holds a lot of merit.
Now, will Breer’s not-so-subtle hint ultimately come true?
