Why the 49ers Signed Isaac Yiadom

The 49ers signed veteran cornerback Isaac Yiadom on Friday. How did he get on their radar?

The past few years, the 49ers assistant general manager was Adam Peters, and he did lots of the 49ers' homework on players. Now he's the Washington Commanders general manager, so someone else has to do the 49ers' homework in the front office.

And on defense, the person finding the players seems to be assistant head coach Brandon Staley.

First, the 49ers signed Leonard Floyd, who played for Staley in 2020 when Staley was the Rams defensive coordinator. Then the 49ers agreed to a contract with Eric Kendricks, who played for Staley on the Chargers last season, but Kendrick backed out of the deal. 

And now, the 49ers have signed Yiadom, who was with the Broncos in 2019 when Staley was their outside linebackers coach. So they know each other personally, even though Staley didn't coach Yiadom directly.

It can't be a coincidence that all three of these players worked with Staley in the past and now play for the 49ers. That's not to say these players aren't good, but they probably wouldn't be here if Staley hadn't vouched for them.

Last year, the 49ers hired Steve Wilks to be their defensive coordinator, and let him pick a few players as well. He seemed to vouch for Isaiah Oliver in free agency and Darrell Luter Jr. in the draft. Oliver was an abysmal flop, and the 49ers released him recently, while Lurer Jr. let a punt bounce off his leg in the Super Bowl.

We'll see if Staley has better results with his hand-picked players.