The San Francisco 49ers have been connected to Cashius Howell in the 2026 NFL draft. Does he fit with the team, and would he be the best pick at 27th overall?
Where Cashius Howell translates to the NFL
Howell is a pass-rushing winner. He has great snap anticipation and can get off the football with a quick, initial burst. Howell stays low to the ground while he turns the corner, which can be troubling for bigger and slower tackles. He also has a variety of moves, including a strong spin move. He can come into the NFL ready to rush the passer.
How Cashius Howell must improve in the NFL
There are legitimate concerns about his run defense. He does not appear to have the anchor to set the edge. Beyond that, he has outlier-level short arms. This shows up at times on tape, which means it will only get worse at the NFL level, as Howell cannot grow out his arms.
Bigger tackles can get a hold of him, and it can disrupt the number of counters he develops as a pass rusher. He will mostly be a speed rusher with the inability to convert or counter to power.
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NFL Comparison for Cashius Howell
A good comparison, physically and stylistically, would be Dee Ford. Ford was a pass-rushing specialist and a good one when he had his moments. Ford was better than Howell against the run, and this may be an upside comparison, but there is a question of whether you could get the value of a player like Ford where Howell is selected. Would you take it?
The issue is that Ford also had much longer arms than Howell. It is hard to find any legitimate comparisons at the NFL level who succeed as physically limited as Howell. One cautionary player is Chase Winovich, who fell to round two due to his shorter arm length. He flamed out of the NFL relatively quickly, despite being a refined pass rusher.
Is Cashius Howell a fit for the San Francisco 49ers?
Howell goes 33rd overall on most mock draft consensus boards. So, if the 49ers want him, they have to draft him in the first round. That feels rich given his outlier ability and one-track skill set. He has a chance to be a great pass rusher, but even that would be a specialist role. Then, the chances of him not being physically capable of even hitting that ceiling make it hard to justify.