The San Francisco 49ers decided to take Washington Husky offensive tackle Carver Willis with their 127th overall pick. The excitement behind Willis is his ability to play all along the offensive line, and he could be a plug-and-play starter in week 1 if needed. He had draft grades all over the board, but it was ultimately Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers that grabbed him.
Shanahan has a clear strategy for how he wants to use Willis and even spoke about how he's going to start Willis at left guard. That depends on the depth chart as OTAs get going. "I think we'll probably start him at guard. Probably the left [guard] starting out just the way our depth chart is, where we need bodies, but we'll see."
He didn't stop there. Shanahan has clearly thought about how Willis fits into the offensive line unit, and even from what he's seen from him in the rookie minicamp. "We think he's a really bright guy. We think he's really versatile. He can actually play center, too. We think he's a guy who has versatility across the offensive line. It'll be fun to see...put him in a starting point and see how he does and just see, you know, where we can move him around to."
The San Francisco 49ers will give Carver Willis a chance to earn a starting spot on the OL
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This is a very detailed plan, but it is also huge for Carver Willis as he clearly has a defined role, starting point, and expectations going into the 49ers camp. The team is already expecting a lot out of him, and the Huskies have prepared him well for the NFL. Shanahan even said that while playing guard there's more moving parts and things tShanahan even said that while playing guard, there are more moving parts and things they have to worry about, but "We're confident he can do it...hey have to worry about, but, "We're confident he can do it...That's why we drafted the guy."
Willis came to Washington from Kansas State, where he primarily played right tackle. He then played a good deal of left tackle for the Huskies. But he projects at the NFL level as more of an interior lineman, yet with his experience, he provides depth at those two tackle positions, too.
The good news for Willis is that the 49ers are going to give him every opportunity to not only compete for a roster spot (that's pretty much guaranteed) but to compete for a starting spot. The depth chart for the 49ers allows Willis to find his way into early playing time, even in week 1.
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