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Alfred Collins

49ers Sign Second-Round DT Alfred Collins

July 16th, 2025 at 10:56pm CST by Ely Allen

It’s the 49ers to the rescue! After waiting in a holding pattern since May 9, we’ve finally seen a third second-round pick sign their rookie contract. Texas defensive tackle Alfred Collins is the player to break the standstill after signing his rookie contract with the 49ers, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.

San Francisco doubled down on improving its defensive line after selecting Mykel Williams in the first round the night before. Many expected the 49ers to address the interior of the line on Day 1, but Collins fell to them in the second round all the same. A fifth-year senior (thanks to an extra year of eligibility from the COVID-19 season), Collins made impacts early and often as a contributor on the Longhorns defense.

Despite only starting 12 games in his first four years, Collins found plenty of ways to make an impact with 12.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, and six passes defensed over that time. He became a full-time starter for the first time in 2025 and made the most of his opportunity, setting career highs in tackles (55), tackles for loss (5.5), and passes defensed (7). He serves as more of a run stopper than a pass rusher, but he’s an elite tackler with impressive durability.

The losses of Javon Hargrave and Maliek Collins were a big reason that many expected San Francisco to go for an interior defensive lineman early. Jordan Elliott returns as a starter to the line’s interior from last year, but the spot next to him is currently being manned by Kevin Givens, who started 11 games in 2022 but has only started two since. It didn’t take long for the Niners to express hopes that Collins would be able to step into a starting role next to Elliott soon.

Normally, this post would stop here, after focusing on the 49ers wrapping up their draft class signings and showing how Collins can affect the roster in 2025, but this signing has a bigger impact on the NFL outside of the Bay Area. Collins’ signing could create a domino effect of signings for the other 29 second-round picks who remained unsigned around the league.

After the Texans and Browns awarded Jayden Higgins and Carson Schwesinger, respectively, fully guaranteed contracts, Saints second-round pick Tyler Shough became the rookie to watch. As a quarterback, Shough sought the same guarantees as his fellow second-rounders. This left pick Nos. 35-39, between Higgins and Shough, sitting on their hands, waiting to see if Shough was granted those guarantees, ready to demand the same of their teams as players drafted higher than Shough.

The rest of the second round has been in a holding pattern, as well. In theory, T.J. Sanders, picked just after Shough, would be able to at least try to get the same from Buffalo, if not just under. That strategy would theoretically have continued pick after pick, with each player using the rookie ahead of them as the comparison to work off of. Collins, though, has broken the hold, receiving guarantees for $9MM of his $10.3MM deal, an 88-percent guarantee. Everyone ahead of him will likely continue to wait on Shough, but the rest of the second round can now start to use Collins’ deal as a launching point. This should result in several second-round deals being made in the days to come.

With that out of the way, here’s a final look at the 49ers’ fully signed rookie class:

33 Unsigned 2025 Draft Picks Remain

July 9th, 2025 at 9:19pm CST by Ely Allen

The NFL has hit a logjam and is collectively lagging far behind where it normally is at this point in the offseason. Two years ago, the league hit its last 30 unsigned players before July. Last year, teams were signing rookies as quickly as they were drafting them, and only 10 players remained unsigned by June 17. A couple intriguing situations have caused pens to go quiet in 2025, and as a result, here are the 33 remaining unsigned rookies of the 2025 NFL Draft:

Round 1:

Round 2:

Round 4:

  • No. 107 (Jaguars): Jack Kiser (LB, Notre Dame)

In recent years, a trend has seen second-rounders lasting the longest, but what we’re seeing this year is unheard of. As rookies have been getting a bit of flexibility in negotiating structures of guarantees, getting deals done has become a waiting game of seeing what surrounding picks are getting for comparison. Last year, teams breezed through the issue, but 2025 has seen significantly increased troubles.

Texans wide receiver Jayden Higgins set the tone by signing a fully guaranteed rookie contract, the first ever for a second-round selection. The next day, the Browns were essentially forced to do the same for Carson Schwesinger, picked one slot before Higgins. Shough, the Saints rookie quarterback, is seeking the same deal, hoping that his elevated status as a passer will help convince New Orleans to continue making history. Shough’s efforts have caused every pick between him and Higgins to stand pat, waiting to see if they get to ask for full guarantees from their teams, as well. This would be a drastic development, as last year’s 40th overall pick, Cooper DeJean, received only two fully guaranteed years with only partial guarantees in Year 3.

The biggest story outside of the second round is that of the standoff between Stewart and the Bengals. Stewart has issues with what he perceives as a lack of protection in Cincinnati’s offer that causes a contract default in any year to void any guarantees in all the following years. It’s a new precedent the team is trying to set, and Stewart seems intent on preventing them from doing so.

It will be interesting to see which standoff gets settled first: Stewart’s or Shough’s. The latter standoff ending would likely set off a domino reaction of second-round deals that would help a large number of teams close out their rookie classes. To this point, only four NFL teams have done so.

49ers Hoping Rookie DT Alfred Collins Can Earn Starting Role

May 31st, 2025 at 2:46pm CST by Ely Allen

Many expected the 49ers to address the defensive line in the first round of this year’s draft, but the team surprised many when they addressed the edge instead of the interior, taking Georgia defensive end Mykel Williams on Day 1. Perhaps, they felt comfortable waiting until Day 2 to address the position because, with its next pick, San Francisco drafted Texas defensive tackle Alfred Collins, whom they hope can earn a starting role on the line as a rookie, per Matt Barrows of The Athletic.

Currently, the starting tackle spots on the defensive line are manned by Jordan Elliott and Kevin Givens. Elliott joined the team last year after playing out his rookie contract in Cleveland and started 13 of 15 appearances. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) has never graded Elliot favorably. The former third-round pick out of Missouri has only once graded in the top 100 players at his position in the NFL and that was this past year, when he ranked 97th out of 118.

Givens, too, has struggled in the eyes of PFF’s analytics throughout his six years with the team. His roles have been mostly rotational during that time, and although he earned a starting role in 2022 (11 starts in 13 appearances), he only has three starts in his career outside of that season. Last year, Givens was one of several 49ers to miss time with injuries, sitting for nine of the final 10 games of the season as he dealt with a pectoral tear.

Because of this, San Francisco is hoping to see not only Collins, but also fellow rookie CJ West and last year’s undrafted rookie Evan Anderson, earn significant roles on the line, as well. Anderson, signing with the team out of FAU last year, started one game in 12 appearances last season and graded out most favorably of the interior defenders on the 49ers, per PFF, ranking 49th out of 118 players graded at the position. West was extremely disruptive in four years as a starter in college — three at Kent State before transferring to Indiana. He had nine sacks and 27 tackles for loss in those four seasons. Although a bit undersized, West adds some pass rushing potential thanks to an impressive arsenal of ferocious moves.

Collins, though, is the player that was singled out by the staff with hopes of a starting role, per Barrows. What West lacks in ideal size, Collins makes up for with an exceptional 6-foot-5, 332-pound frame. His wide base and long arms give him impressive length, as well. His size doesn’t do him too many favors as a potential pass rusher, but he’s quick-footed enough at his size to erase gaps across the line in run defense. He’s a sure tackler who’s durable enough to handle the workload of a starter, even as a rookie.

We’ve got about two more months until training camp, but the next two weeks will see the team’s remaining Organized Team Activities workouts and mandatory minicamp. There’s plenty of time for the youngsters to earn more opportunities for bigger roles between now and the preseason. With hopes that Collins will break through as a strong run-defending starter, the team would ideally be looking to pair him with a defender with strong pass rushing potential like Givens, West, or Anderson.