‘Criminally Underrated’ 49ers Defender Predicted for First All-Pro Nod

Getty Melvin Gordon loses the ball against the 49ers on September 25, 2022.

One of the best free agent additions of the 2022 offseason belonged to the San Francisco 49ers. But it ended without a Pro Bowl appearance.

Now, Heavy senior reporter Matt Lombardo believes the “criminally underrated” Charvarius Ward is out for this title: All-Pro, a first for his career.

Lombardo wrote down Ward’s name on Thursday, June 15 in predicting the NFL’s next first time All-Pros at each position — a list that included NFC champion quarterback Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles and Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle. Lombardo, though, believes this is the year the Super Bowl winner with the Kansas City Chiefs finally gets the breakout season he’s been due for.

“The San Francisco 49ers boast one of the most talented defenses in the league, and the best defensive back on the roster might be Charvarius Ward, who is criminally underrated outside the Bay Area,” Lombardo wrote.

Ward Showed Reasons Why the 49ers Lured Him in

When the 49ers signed Ward in March 2022, a then-talented 49ers defense was still missing a true CB1 to challenge and eliminate the opponent’s top wide receiving option.

Emmanuel Moseley was establishing himself as a potential No. 1 CB but missed late action with a high ankle sprain. The Niners also had Jason Verrett on injured reserve with a torn ACL and two corners considered raw at the time in 2021 rookies Ambry Thomas and Deommodore Lenoir.

And in a division that featured Super Bowl 56 Most Valuable Player Cooper Kupp, the Seattle Seahawks Pro Bowl duo of Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf plus had De’Andre Hopkins with the Arizona Cardinals at the time, the Ward signing was a no-brainer for S.F.

Ward became just that for the 49ers — a true lockdown cornerback who became one of the cornerstones of the NFL’s top defense.

“Opposing quarterbacks managed only an 88.2 passer rating when targeting Ward last season, and receivers had little room to operate, averaging just 11 yards per catch,” Lombardo wrote.

Reasons Why This Could be the Year Ward Becomes All-Pro

Again, Ward became one of the closet top free agent signings of the 2022 season.

Ward ended up producing new career-highs: His 11 pass deflections were one more than his previous best in 2019 and 2021 with the Chiefs. He also produced career-bests across the tackles category from total stops (87), solo tackles (59) and tackles for a loss (three). And, per Pro Football Reference, Ward only allowed a completion percentage of 56.8% to opposing quarterbacks. Lastly, in 16 of his 19 games including playoffs, Ward surrendered less than 50 yards his side.

Of course, it helped Ward greatly that a fierce and deep pass rush led by the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa parlayed into his stellar ’22 season. But with a distinguished defensive back mind in Steve Wilks now on board and Ward returning to this 49ers defense, signs point to an even better 2023 for the corner entering season two with the Niners.

“Given the combination of the 49ers’ ferocious front-seven and Ward’s prowess in man coverage, the stage could be set for the 27-year-old to have a career year in 2023,” Lombardo said.