5 Things to Know: Offensive Lineman Dominick Puni

Rookie Dominick Puni is stepping into an exciting opportunity, with many speculating whether the third-round pick can contend for a starting position on the San Francisco 49ers offensive line. The team was so intrigued by Puni that it traded up eight spots, securing his arrival in the Bay Area. ESPN analyst Matt Miller, a longtime 49ers fan, recently shared his enthusiasm for the Puni pick, lauding the offensive lineman's physicality, athleticism, and versatility. "I think he'll be a guard," Miller said on the "No Huddle" podcast. "I don't see any chance of him playing tackle unless it's a little bit of a

Jarrett Kingston was born in Anderson, a city in Northern California. However, his immediate family lives in Southern California, leading Kingston to become a fan of the Los Angeles Rams and USC Trojans, where he would eventually play his final collegiate football season. The San Francisco 49ers drafted Kingston in the sixth round, which has forced the offensive lineman to shift his NFL allegiance. He acknowledges that his family and friends in Anderson are thrilled about his opportunity with the Bay Area team. "I have a bunch of—pretty much all my high school buddies are all 49ers fans," Jarrett told reporters on Thursday. While smiling, he noted, "Now, I'm a huge 49ers fan." Reflecting on his past Rams fandom, Kingston explained,

Shakel Brown was among several players who participated in a tryout in front of coaches during the San Francisco 49ers' rookie minicamp last week. Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 reports that the team was impressed enough with the defensive lineman to sign him. Defensive lineman Shakel Brown @TROYUnews signed with #49ers after rookie minicamp tryout per a league source

It's not a shock to anyone who looks back at the past two NFL seasons to contemplate that the San Francisco 49ers' offense has finally stepped out of the shadow cast by the team's ever-imposing defense. Since their 2019 Super Bowl run, players like Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, Dre Greenlaw, and former 49ers Richard Sherman and Jimmie Ward have garnered most of the attention when talking about the team. That was indeed the case until 2022, when future Hall-of-Fame running back Christian McCaffrey, who came to San Francisco in a mid-season trade with the Carolina Panthers, changed the conversation. The 49ers' offense was suddenly seen not just as a semi-capable complement to a sterling defense, but rather as a unit that could put up some points, and in a dramatic way. With the