49ers worked out D-II cornerback DaQuan Holmes

The San Francisco 49ers have been doing their share of work looking into prospects that are likely to go undrafted. The latest is American International College defensive back DaQuan Holmes. Yahoo! Sports NFL writer Eric Edholm is reporting the 49ers worked out the D-II product last week.

This year’s draft class is considered particularly deep in the secondary, and the 49ers have plenty of need at the position. Holmes is likely going to go undrafted, so as we mentioned with offensive lineman Kofi Amichia, the 49ers will get some work in on these under-the-radar prospects so they can get UDFA signings done as quickly as possible after the draft.

Holmes took part in Harvard’s Pro Day on March 13, and put together some solid numbers. He measured in at 5’10, 187 pounds, ran a 4.45 40, with a 36 1/2” vertical jump that would have been eighth among Combine participants.

Holmes has done some interviews this offseason, and in a chat with NFL Draft Diamonds, he compared himself to New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler.

“Malcolm Butler, both small school kids, same size. The way he plays I try to resemble with how he plays the ball, he plays with passion like me, and he is very fluent with his motions.”

When asked what separates him from other cornerbacks, he talked about his speed and football IQ.

“My speed and IQ. Playing football for so long certain situations you just see and learn how to react to them, plays when people ask how you did that you can’t really explain and as a DB learning how to play certain situations helped me take advantage of anytime a QB threw my way. My speed allows me to stay toe to toe with WR’s and if I get beat I am able to recover to make many plays on the ball.”

A Los Angeles Rams blog recently took a look at him, and offered the Butler comparison. They talked about his ability to dominate at a lower level, and the potential to build on that at the next level.

Say what you will but if you turn on Malcolm Butler's college tape there is a clear resemblance to Daquan Holmes. One thing that stood out was how much faster and quicker they both looked than the rest of the players on the field. Men among boys, Butler is a perfect example of going from rags to riches. Why can't Holmes do the same? Butler is another one of those guys that started off with his back against the wall as an undrafted free agent and ended up winning the Patriots the Super Bowl by making the biggest play of his life. After that Butler just continued to get better and now he is one of the best cornerbacks in the league. If Holmes has the work ethic, determination and the passion Butler has, all you need to do is put together his physical gifts and you will have yourself a future NFL cornerback. Remember the name Daquan Holmes, because before you know it he could end up being the next Malcolm Butler.

It’s not as simple as turning into Butler, but with speed and athleticism, he at least has some of the tools to build from. He would be expected to contribute extensively on special teams early in his career. UDFAs are frequently competing for a practice squad opportunity, but his combination of speed and athleticism would seemingly put him in a better position to earn a special teams role, and build from there.

Holmes recently posted this video of some highlights.