The San Francisco 49ers invested a third round pick on outside linebacker Eli Harold, and his rookie season has been up and down. His playing time has been inconsistent, but injuries and Corey Lemonier's inability to really develop into a significant pass rush threat has opened the door for more opportunities. He got the edge in snaps over Lemonier in Week 15, and with two weeks left, I would hope he will continue to see more work.
The offseason is fast approaching, and one thing Harold will be doing this offseason is adding some weight. He weighed in at 247 pounds at the 2015 NFL Combine. We don't know his weight right now, but Jim Tomsula said on Monday the team wants Harold to add some muscle to his frame. Tomsula had this to say:
"He's a little small right now and not as strong as we want him to be, but he works at it. When he strikes you, he strikes you with everything he's got. So, we figure we pack on a little bit more muscle and a little bit more weight, he's going to be striking with everything that he puts on."
In player availability, Harold echoed that statement, with Ryan Sakamoto suggesting the team wants him up around 255 or 260 pounds. I'm a little surprised they did not have him putting on weight this past offseason. They have always had their outside linebackers in that 255-265 range. I suppose given that it was his rookie year, they wanted to work him in slowly. It is not entirely clear, but that's the only reasoning I can think of at this point.