SANTA CLARA — The 49ers’ offseason addition that has been the least talked about, might make a decisive impact on San Francisco’s 2025 season.<\/p>\n
Luke Farrell was the 49ers’ most expensive free agent signing, agreeing to a three-year $20.25 million contract<\/a>. Offensive line coach and run game coordinator Chris Forester and tight ends coach Brian Fleury are excited to see how the former Jacksonville Jaguar fits into San Francisco’s offensive scheme<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI love him,\u201d Foerster said this week. \u201cHe\u2019s one of the best run-blocking tight ends I\u2019ve seen in a long time. Obviously [George] Kittle is outstanding. Luke, his tape was very, very impressive. He literally has an impact on defensive ends. When he blocks or hits a defensive end, there\u2019s movement, you see things with him that you don\u2019t see with a lot of tight ends, he\u2019s really cool that way.\u201d<\/p>\n The 49ers have had several tight ends that have been solid backups for George Kittle as blockers and pass protectors, but they often have had short stints with San Francisco. Garrett Celek,, Levine Toilolo, Charlie Woerner and Eric Saubert have all been solid contributors, but Fleury believes Farrell is an anomaly.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s just a different skill set,\u201d Fleury said of Farrell. \u201cHe\u2019s being asked to do a lot more different things within our offense than what he was asked to do in Jacksonville. They were primarily a gap-scheme team, and they played on the line of scrimmage which is very different than what we are asking him to do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Farrell, who was a fifth-round draft pick by the Jaguars in 2021, spent four seasons in Jacksonville, appearing in 66 games \u2014 20 starts. Not utilized much in the pass game, the Ohio State product has 36 NFL receptions for 318 yards. \u2028<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019d love to have a guy who is somewhat a replacement for George running routes, but is still is that quality of a blocker,\u201d Foerster said. “There\u2019s always that back and forth of how do we use a true blocking tight end that is not as much down field but I think he\u2019s a quality down the field player. He just not going to stretch the field, but he can catch and [doesn\u2019t have] rock hands.\u201d<\/p>\n As if on cue, both coaches made reminders that it\u2019s not \u201creal football\u201d yet, watching players in the un-padded practices of OTAs. For all intents and purposes the on-field sessions are like walkthroughs, but the coaches are still getting a good sense of what they have in their most expensive free agent.<\/p>\n \u201cSo far what we\u2019ve been able to see, and we are working without pads mind you, we\u2019re very excited.\u201d Fleury said. \u201cAnd we can\u2019t wait to see how he can grow within the offense. He\u2019s already gotten a lot better just within the four weeks we\u2019ve spent together, So I anticipate that\u2019s going to continue to be the case.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n According to Pro Football Focus, Farrell earned a 58.1 overall grade in his final season with the Jaguars including a 49.6 run blocking and 67.6 pass blocking grade allowing three pressures \u2014 two sacks and one hurry.<\/p>\n For comparison, Kittle earned a 92.1 overall grade \u2014 62.8 in pass protection and 70.8 in run blocking.<\/p>\n “The potential is there,\u201d Fleury said. \u201cHe\u2019s going to grow. His skill set was so undervalued and under utilized that we are really excited to see where he can go, especially having him under more of a long-term contract than some of the other guys on one-year deals. I think it will be unfair to judge him early on, it will continue to evolve.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n