Nebraska Football: Darrion Daniels taking his talents to The Bay

Another Nebraska football alum is going pro.

To conclude what was a busy day for Nebraska football, one more Husker is headed to the National Football League. Defensive lineman Darrion Daniels signed with the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent.

He had the best season of his four-year college career in his one season at Nebraska. The transfer from Oklahoma State had 19 tackles and 1.5 sacks. He also recorded an interception against Purdue.  He had six tackles in three games during the 2019 season.

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Because he transferred in, we didn’t fully get to see what he could do. Head coach Scott Frost and his staff only had one season with Daniels. I would’ve liked to have had a couple more seasons with him. Being named a captain in his first year with the program was very impressive to me. That spoke volumes about what the players thought of him and what the coaches thought of him as well. He seemed to take up space defensively, and in his case, that was a good thing.

Perhaps his best asset was his ability to fill the gaps in the run game. He wasn’t necessarily the most vicious pass-rusher, but he got the job done. He did excel at stopping the run, and he was a nice stop gap for a Nebraska program that needed veteran leadership defensively. I see him fitting in well on a San Francisco defensive line that has a ton of talent.

The 49ers do not need pass-rushers. What they do need is additional players that can stop the run. Daniels certainly fits that description, and he doesn’t need to be anything more than that. The 49ers, who are coming off a Super Bowl appearance, have a stellar pass rush led by Nick Bosa. Their roster is already loaded for the foreseeable future, and they didn’t have to grab impact players in the draft. They did anyway, and they made out like bandits. Daniels is just another example of a player that could help them succeed.

We have seen the 49ers as an organization want to go defense-first. Daniels should be able to help them do that and his experience around the college football circuit should undoubtedly play a part in helping him try to navigate the rigors of the National Football League. I will certainly be rooting for him, and I’m glad he was able to make it to the big show as a member of the Nebraska football program