SANTA CLARA -- The 49ers used their final third-round pick Friday night to add a tight end to learn from and work behind All-Pro George Kittle.
With the No. 101 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft, 49ers general manager John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan selected Alabama tight end Cameron Latu.
Latu (6-foot-4, 242 pounds) was a reliable target for No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young in the pair’s final two seasons with the Crimson Tide. The tight end registered 56 catches for 787 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Latu is a former linebacker who is physical and a solid route runner, but he has been knocked for his need to increase his explosiveness and ability to break tackles.
Now, Latu will have the ability to learn from Kittle, the best at yards after contact.
The star of the 49ers' tight end group for the long run still undoubtedly is Kittle, who was second in receiving in 2022, only to Brandon Aiyuk. San Francisco's star tight end will not lose any time on the field, but because of his physical style of play, the 49ers need an insurance policy, and they found that in the draft.
Kittle finished the 2022 season catching 60 of his 86 targets for 765 yards and 11 touchdowns, and he far and away was the leader of the pack. Ross Dwelley caught three of his five targets for 105 yards, and Charlie Woerner was targeted twice without a completion.
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Along with receiving production, the 49ers require solid run blocking from their tight ends, and Kittle is the master at it. He routinely overpowers linebackers to open up holes and takes over as a lead blocker for the ball carrier. So, Latu will learn from one of the best to do it.
To start, however, Latu likely will be asked to contribute on special teams, as both Woerner and Dwelley have done in the past. Both veterans were on the field for the majority of all special-teams snaps in 2022. Dwelley was on the field for 75 percent of special-teams plays, and Woerner participated in 371 special-teams plays (85 percent).
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Most of all, with Latu's selection, the 49ers are ensuring their future. Dwelley, whose snap counts had dwindled toward the end of the 2022 season, was brought back on a one-year deal. Woerner is on the final year of his rookie contract that he signed as a sixth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.