Programming note: Watch John Lynch's full "49ers Game Plan" interview with Greg Papa tonight on NBC Sports Bay Area at 9:30 p.m. PT.
Rookie safety Malik Mustapha reminds 49ers general manager John Lynch of a proven NFL veteran.
With 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga out for San Francisco’s Week 6 game against the Seattle Seahawks with torn ligaments in his right wrist, Mustapha has another chance to continue demonstrating that.
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Lynch sat down with Greg Papa for NBC Sports Bay Area's "49ers Game Plan," sharing why he believes the 22-year-old, selected in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, has similar qualities to Arizona Cardinals’ six-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time All-Pro safety Budda Baker.
“You’re going to see him full speed all the time,” Lynch told Papa of Mustapha. “[He] reminds me a lot of Budda Baker, who we saw play, just in terms of his one hundred percent effort all the time. There are some things he can clean up in terms of his eyes.
“I think you only do that through playing particularly at that position. There’s a lot going on. There’s an old saying from my old coach Monte Kiffin: see a little, see a lot, see a lot, see nothing. And so I think just focusing, honing his eyes and you only do that through the experience of playing.”
As coach Kyle Shanahan and Co. consider placing Hufanga on injury reserve and with second-year safety Ji'Ayir Brown dealing with an ankle injury, Mustapha's role as the 49ers' No. 1 safety projects to go beyond Thursday's showdown against the Seahawks at Lumen Field.
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Once again, the rookie safety likely will log a substantial amount of snaps, like he did against the New England Patriots in Week 3 and against the Cardinals last Sunday.
Lynch is confident Mustapha will continue to step up through the graces of his qualities, which also remind him of San Francisco’s defensive heartbeat: Fred Warner.
“But he brings a lot to the table,” Lynch added. “He’s a very studious guy. He’s very like Fred Warner: One of the first guys in here, one of the last guys to leave. His body is just sculpted because he works all day long. He does everything the right way. He eats the right way. I’m really excited for Malik.
“Talanoa is a big time player for us, so that’s a big loss. Talanoa did so much in terms of quarterbacking of that back end, but Malik is up for the challenge. It’s nice that we were able to play him some earlier and so it’s not completely new for him. He’s going to have to step up in a big way for us.”
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, 49ers defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen noted Mustapha's noticeable growth throughout the early stages of the season.
“I think his strides have come just because he has played a lot,” Sorensen told reporters. “I mean, we've had a lot of guys play, and I think it's good that guys gain knowledge through getting their snaps.
“And for him, it's just being comfortable being out there. I think I've mentioned before, like with safeties, it's that comfort to communicate and the feel of the game and the flow of the game and how it moves and how you have to be a leader back there behind our backers that you can communicate across the board and be tied in. And I think he's done a good job with that.”
As the weeks go by and the reps keep piling on, Mustapha is acclimating to the game’s pace and San Francisco’s expectations.
Filing in for an All-Pro safety as a rookie might not be the simplest of tasks, but Mustapha, with the support of his teammates and coaches, is growing into the high-caliber player he wishes to be.
"Yeah for sure, I feel like I'm getting more comfortable with the reps these past few weeks and the game's starting to slow down for me, so now it's about how can I take my game to the next level by being more consistent,” Mustapoha told reporters on Tuesday.
“The guys, even though I'm a rookie, the coaching staff and my teammates have enough faith in me and I have that same faith in myself to execute at a high level."
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