49ers News: PFF ranks the 49ers' defensive line No. 2 in the NFL for 2024
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Pro Football Focus (PFF) has ranked the San Francisco 49ers' defensive line as the second-best in the NFL for the upcoming 2024 season. Despite losing key contributors during the offseason, PFF remains confident in the 49ers' front, placing them just behind the New York Jets' highly regarded defensive line.
Here is what Sam Monson of PFF wrote about the 49ers defensive line:
"Even with the loss of Arik Armstead this offseason, the star power from this defensive line is too good to ignore. Nick Bosa is a perennial Defensive Player of the Year candidate, racking up 95 quarterback pressures in the 2023 regular season. Javon Hargrave is close to as good as it gets as an interior rusher, and the team added Leonard Floyd as a complement on the outside opposite Bosa."
"Depth is an issue, but the top end of this group is outstanding."
The 49ers underwent significant changes this offseason, parting ways with Erik Armstead, Javon Kinlaw, Chase Young, Clelin Ferrell, and Randy Gregory. However, the front office believes they have strengthened their lineup through strategic acquisitions. The team signed edge rushers Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos in free agency and acquired defensive tackle Maliek Collins from the Houston Texans. They also added interior defender Jordan Elliott from the Cleveland Browns.
Embracing youth and enhancing run defense present an optimistic perspective for the upcoming season, and the 49ers' retooling efforts on the defensive front promise a potential return to their assertive defensive stature.