The 49ers might have experienced some opportunities and near-misses to select offensive linemen during the first two days of the 2025 NFL Draft.
But it finally lined up in the seventh round for general manager John Lynch to select Iowa guard Connor Colby with the 249th overall selection.
“We think he's a really good scheme fit,” Lynch said. “The great thing about Iowa is they run a very similar (system). They run a lot of outside zones, so you get to see a guy like him do things that we do and he does them well.”
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SIGN UP HERE Colby (6-foot-5, 310 pounds) played right guard at Iowa over his final two seasons. Second-year 49ers guard Dominick Puni appears entrenched as the starter on San Francisco's offensive line.
In 2022, Colby started seven games at left guard and six at right tackle. The 49ers return four starters on their offensive line. The only opening appears to be at left guard, where Aaron Banks left in free agency to sign a lucrative contract with the Green Bay Packers.
It figures to be a relatively simple adjustment for Colby to fulfill the requirements of the 49ers’ blocking scheme.
“There are a lot of parallels, but there is a lot of stuff I need to get better on to provide value to this team in whatever way I can,” he said.
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“I’ve been mostly just reviewing the playbook and seeing the parallels between (the offense) at Iowa and the 49ers playbook, and just relating words to what I know and just try to transfer over that language.”
The 49ers had some opportunities throughout the draft to add offensive linemen, but the team opted to go in different directions until the selection of Colby.
Lynch suggested that the 49ers would have taken an offensive player if Georgia defensive end Mykel Williams were not available at No. 11 overall. The 49ers expected the New Orleans Saints to select Williams at No. 9. Perhaps, the 49ers would have taken Texas offensive lineman Kelvin Banks, whom the Saints drafted.
In the second round, the 49ers went with Texas defensive tackle Alfred Collins. The team had him rated ahead of Minnesota tackle Aireontae Ersery, whom Houston selected five spots later.
In the third round, the 49ers selected nickel back Upton Stout at No. 100 overall after Las Vegas took offensive linemen Caleb Rogers and Charles Grant back-to-back at Nos. 98 and 99.
“There were a number of times Kyle (Shanahan) and I were talking about (offensive linemen), and at the end that just didn't align,” Lynch said. “It’s one of those deals where you don't want to force things. And so it wasn't our time for that other than Connor, and we'll move forward.”
The 49ers filled some spots on the offensive line to round out their 90-man offseason roster after the draft. The team signed undrafted rookie Drew Moss of Colorado State.
The 49ers also added two veteran free-agent offensive linemen: Andre Dillard and Nicholas Petit-Frere.
Although it was widely reported two weeks ago that the 49ers also added veteran offensive tackle D.J. Humphries, multiple sources told NBC Sports Bay Area that no agreement has yet been reached.