Third-year defensive end Robert Beal Jr. had to heed notice when the San Francisco 49ers bade farewell to their top pick from the 2022 NFL Draft, defensive end Drake Jackson, after he failed a physical entering 2025 offseason workouts.
After all, if Jackson could be on the chopping block, Beal's own status as a roster member had to be in jeopardy, too.
Jackson, the Niners' fifth-round draft choice in 2023 out of Georgia, was viewed as a raw-but-promising prospect upon going pro, someone who'd need the tutelage of defensive line coach Kris Kocurek.
Yet that maturation process has been slow, hampered by landing on injured reserve for much of his rookie season, although Beal notched his first and only sack once he returned for the final four games of his first year.
Despite seeing the field in 14 contests his sophomore year, Beal scantly made an impact, primarily spending time on special teams and notching 17 tackles in the process.
Now, amid the flurry of defensive-focused roster moves entering 2025, will the soon-to-be 26-year-old defender finally turn a proverbial page and secure a role for himself with San Francisco?
It'll be difficult, that's for sure.
49ers' offseason moves create uncertain future for Robert Beal Jr.
The 49ers clearly weren't happy with their D-line in 2024, which prompted significant changes up front once coordinator Robert Saleh returned to the ranks from his tenure as the New York Jets' head coach.
Jackson, defensive end Leonard Floyd, and interior linemen Javon Hargrave and Maliek Collins were all jettisoned at various points, and the Niners spent significant draft capital to influse some much-needed youth, onboarding linemen like Mykel Williams, Alfred Collins and C.J. West. Tack on the trade for former Jets and Philadelphia Eagles edge rusher Bryce Huff, and it's pretty evident Beal's status as a rotational piece is very much up in the air.
Beal won't challenge Williams or Huff for significant roles this season. Rather, the former is in competition against other fringe defensive ends on the roster, namely Sam Okuayinonu and Yetur Gross-Matos, another player whose roster spot is in question entering 2025.
Should Beal fail to make the 53-man roster, it'd save San Francisco his base salary of $1.03 million against a marginal $61,245 in dead money, according to Over the Cap, which certainly isn't financially obtrusive.
To avoid such a fate, Beal is going to have to beat out either Okuayinonu or Gross-Matos in training camp, both of whom have established a bigger NFL-level pedigree up to this point.
That won't be an easy task, meaning the 49ers are much closer to giving up on Beal's development than they are continuing to pour resources in him.
