Toledo’s Darius Alexander is an intriguing option for the 49ers in the second round
The pre-draft visit, where the San Francisco 49ers host a wide receiver from Washington State with a familiar name, seems like a redundant pick. The Niners drafted Jacob Cowing in the fourth round a year ago, and Kyle Williams doesn’t do anything differently or above and beyond what Cowing can do.
The same cannot be said for the next prospect visit. According to Justin Melo from The Draft Network, the 49ers have a pre-draft visit with Toledo defensive tackle Darius Alexander.
Alexander had four sacks and eight QB hits in 2024, but did boast an elite pass rush win rate percentage of 12.9. You can see Alexander’s upper echelon jumps from the NFL Combine show up when it’s time to unleash his power.
Alexander has a go-to pass rush move in an arm-over. It’s how he primarily wins. Alexander is also plenty athletic for a 305-pound man. You can see his athleticism with the amount of ground Alexander covers when he’s changing direction or the ground he covers on a euro step move.
Alexander has consistently lined up as a 3-technique during his time at Toledo. Consistent is an apt way to describe him. You know what you’re getting; the production is there every game. Alexander’s ceiling may not be the highest, but you’re getting a player who won’t get moved on run plays, will occasionally make run stops, but is overall a plus run defender. As a pass rusher, you can count on Alexander to have a couple of disruptive plays a game.
If Robert Saleh is interested in moving away from the smaller, finesse-type defensive tackles and gravitating toward the ones that win with brute force, Alexander is an ideal option.
According to the NFL mock draft database, Alexander is getting drafted 49th. If that’s accurate, Alexander would need to be the 49ers’ second-round pick at No. 43 overall.