Rookie Dominick Puni will start at right guard for the 49ers in Week One, and even the man who drafted him is surprised by how quickly he has shown he’s ready to be an NFL starter.
San Francisco General Manager John Lynch said that heading into the draft, the 49ers loved Puni’s versatility and his experience as a 24-year-old who played four years at Central Missouri and two years at Kansas. But when they took him in the third round, they didn’t know how good he was.
“He’s better than even what I thought he might be,” Lynch said of Puni. “Our style, the way we get out and run, it takes a little time, but he just took to it, and he’s still got a lot more in the tank. He’s doing a really good job.”
With left tackle Trent Williams continuing to hold out, there’s some uncertainty on the 49ers’ offensive line. But the emergence of Puni as a player who will be ready to play well against the Jets on the first Monday night of the season makes a difference to the 49ers.