It’s safe to say Mike McGlinchey was a good pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. He’s been a mauler and done nothing besides keep people out of Jimmy Garoppolo and C.J. Beathard’s grill for the most part. While his pass-blocking has been prone to the (expected) rookie mistakes, it’s his run blocking that has been absolutely filthy:
Not only did #49ers rookie Mike McGlinchey make our PFF Team of the Week, his 86.4 run blocking grade on the season now ranks No. 1 among all tackles.
— Jeff Deeney (@PFF_Jeff) October 10, 2018
Ok, so that’s a rookie and he’s number 1 for run blocking. Send it! Overall, McGlinchey is the best-rated offensive lineman on the 49ers roster at the moment.
The biggest reason for the McGlinchey pick and subsequent Trent Brown trade was because Kyle Shanahan wanted a dedicated run-blocker. Brown was an excellent pass-blocker, but his run-blocking was suspect, especially in Kyle Shanahan’s zone schemes. It didn’t help matters that Brown would show up to training camp overweight.
It looks like McGlinchey is doing just what Shanahan wants—get the run going. While his pass-blocking will still need development, it hasn’t been awful (far away from anything bad) and is something he can build on. For a rookie, McGlinchey is showing all sorts of promise.
The big question will be if he is moved to left tackle or if the 49ers elect to draft or sign a left tackle once Joe Staley retires. McGlinchey struggled at the position in college and the 49ers may not want to tinker with the right tackle position at all since McGlinchey has that taken care of for the foreseeable future.