49ers Day 3 Draft: DT Halton, OL Willis, CB Prysock, LB Dugger, OT Cruz cap class
SANTA CLARA — Three days, five trades and eight drafted players later, the 49ers’ roster looks almost set for their next Super Bowl push.
Not one of their rookies should be seen as a savior or the missing piece for a championship. After all, the 49ers moved out of Thursday’s first round to instead buy in bulk the ensuing four rounds.
This 10th draft class under coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch still could deliver gems and long-term starters. At the very least, it appears to fill the roster’s final holes, create competition, and add depth.
Shanahan called it a “really neat” outcome, adding: “We did really good in free agency so it will be a challenge for all eight of these guys to make our team. A couple of them have a chance to start, and a number have a chance to start two years from now.”
Wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling, this class’ top pick atop the second round, was one of 16 “gold helmet” designees on the 49ers’ draft board.
“There are some guys I already knew of from watching the games, but I’m definitely excited to be in this room, learn from the vets, and just add to my game,” Stribling said Saturday, upon flying in from his native Hawaii for a photo shoot as the 49ers’ top draft pick (second round, No. 33 overall).
Stribling’s confident, chill, and determined demeanor comes with the speed and physicality the 49ers sought to infuse throughout their roster, all in efforts to dethrone rival Seattle and end a 31-year Lombardi Trophy drought.
“Hawaii’s football is very physical,” Stribling added, “and I believe in establishing dominance on the field.”
Day 3 discoveries have proved a staple of the Shanahan-Lynch success, and Saturday netted a five-player huddle, starting with defensive tackle Gracen Halton, guard Carver Willis and cornerback Ephesians Prysock in the fourth round. Linebacker Jaden Dugger and offensive tackle Enrique Cruz Jr. came in the fifth round to cap the class.
Friday’s crop yielded Stribling and the third-round duo of defensive end Romello Height and running back Kaelon Black.
ANOTHER D-LINEMAN
Halton (6-foot-2 1/2, 293 pounds) played four seasons at Oklahoma, transitioning from defensive end to an interior presence. “I didn’t expect the 49ers but it’s a blessing getting the call from somebody that believes in me,” said Halton, who started just 10 of 47 games played. He tallied 3 1/2 sacks and 30 pressures last season as a team captain.
Halton joins a defensive tackle crew led by last month’s acquisition of Osa Odighizuwa from the Dallas Cowboys, along with 2025 draft picks Alfred Collins and C.J. West. Halton described himself as an explosive play-maker who can be a dog in a dog-eat-dog world.
O-LINE HELP, FINALLY
The 49ers avoided the offensive line through the first three rounds before drafting collegiate tackles in Willis (No. 127) and Cruz (No. 179).
Projected to move inside at guard, Willis (6-foot-5, 303 pounds) was Washington’s starting left tackle last season upon transferring from Kansas State, where he spent five years, the last two of which as a starting right tackle.
“It’s a different game inside. Things get on you quicker, and guys are a little bit bigger. That adjustment will be interesting,” Willis said. “(The Senior Bowl) was the first time I’ve ever played guard, so it was fun, I enjoyed it a lot and I got better through the week.”
Left guard is essentially the 49ers’ only open starting spot, and Willis should compete with Robert Jones, Brett Toth and Connor Colby. Playing amongst left tackle Trent Williams excites Willis, stating: “One of the first things I said to my family when I got drafted is, ‘I can learn from Trent,’ so I’m excited about the ability to go do that.”
Cruz (6-6, 313) also raved about Williams as one of the best tackles ever. Benched in his fourth and final season at Syracuse, Cruz started at right tackle last season for Kansas . “My style is I’m a great guy, I do what I’ve got to do, I hustle all the time, and I’m always trying to finish the play,” said Cruz, whose speed and athleticism wowed the Niners.
AIYUK UPDATE
Estranged wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk remains on the roster but Lynch reiterated that the 49ers eventually will move on from him, just “not anytime soon, not right now,” Lynch said. The end of the draft does not create extra urgency, as further financial ramifications don’t kick in until September.
ANOTHER UW PICK
The 49ers’ next selection after Willis was one of his Washington teammates, cornerback Ephesians Prysock, at No. 139. The 6-foot-3, 196-pound Prysock was a two-year starter at Washington after transferring from a two-year stint at Arizona. He played at Bishop Alemany High-Mission Hills, and he said his older brothers went to high school with 49ers cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, who made an Instagram post welcoming Prysock to the 49ers.
FIFTH-ROUND TREND
Dugger’s 6-foot-4 1/2 frame could make him ripe for strongside linebacker duty or other roles. He grew anxious as the draft unfolded, and right when he started thinking he might go undrafted, the 49ers surprisingly called at No. 157 overall. “Depending how teams use me in schemes, I can fit into anything,” said Dugger, who played safety at Georgetown for two seasons before playing outside and inside linebacker the last two years at Louisville.
Other fifth-round finds in recent 49ers’ history: tight end George Kittle (2017), defensive back D.J. Reed (2018), linebacker Dre Greenlaw (2019), right tackle Colton McKivitz (2020), and, Lenoir (2021).
SATURDAY’S TRADE
The 49ers executed at least one trade each day of the draft, and Saturday’s came when they shipped the No. 133 pick to Baltimore for a fifth-rounder (No. 154) and a 2027 sixth-rounder.
This was the first draft since 2007 in which the 49ers don’t close with a seventh-round pick, barring a trade of a current player or future pick to get into that last-round action.
Second round, No. 33 overall:
Wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling
Third round, No. 70:
Defensive end Romello Height
Third round, No. 90:
Running back Kaelon Black
With the Miami Dolphins:
The 49ers sent a first-rounder (No. 27) and fourth-round pick (No. 138) to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for a first- (No. 30) and third-round pick (No. 90).
With the New York Jets:
The 49ers sent a first-rounder (No. 30) to the Jets for a second-round (No. 33) and a fifth-round pick (No. 179).
FRIDAY’S TRADES
Linebacker Dee Winters to the Dallas Cowboys for a fifth-round pick (No. 152)
The 49ers sent a second-rounder (No. 58) and fifth (No. 152) to the Cleveland Browns for a third-rounder (No. 70) and fourth-round pick (No. 107).
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This story was originally published April 25, 2026 at 9:54 AM.