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Per the league’s transaction wire on Tuesday, September 20, the San Francisco 49ers held tryouts for 14 different players — all in the wake of some key injuries through the first two games of the season.
While one of the visits came from former North Carolina tight end Garrett Walston as noted by Heavy senior NFL reporter Matt Lombardo, turns out the towering 6-foot-4 Walston wasn’t the only TE visitor to Santa Clara.
In fact, one of the players who performed in front of the 49ers brass happens to come from a 49ers household.
Bay Area Product had Father Who Won a Super Bowl with San Francisco
Former San Jose State tight end Derrick Deese Jr. was among the 14 visitors — and part of the group of five tight ends all vying for a spot with injuries riddling the TE unit.
George Kittle has missed the last two games due to a groin injury, Jordan Matthews is out for the season with his torn ACL and newcomer Tyler Kroft is also injured with a sprained MCL.
But regarding Deese, if the surname sounds familiar to longtime 49er fans, he’s the son of someone who once blocked for Joe Montana, Steve Young and played for former 49ers head coach George Seifert.
Deese’s father is Ex-NFL offensive lineman Derrick Deese — who lined up at offensive tackle for the 49ers. The native of Culver City, California first came to the 49ers in 1992 out of USC. That ’92 season was also the final campaign for the four-time Super Bowl winner Montana before eventually signing with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Deese’s first 49ers season witnessed a 14-2 mark and clinching the NFC’s top seed. However, the Dallas Cowboys ended up tripping up the 49ers in the NFC title game at a rainy and saturated Candlestick Park. Deese and the 49ers would return to the conference championship game the following season in Dallas only to fall again. But in season three, the tackle Deese got the chance to experience Super Bowl winning euphoria down in Miami following the 1994 season — winning the title with Young, Jerry Rice, Deion Sanders, Ken Norton Jr. and others over the San Diego Chargers.
Deese played until the 2004 season, which was with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. According to Pro Football Reference, Deese started in 116 games for the 49ers. He also played guard and left tackle for S.F.
Younger Deese Became Bay Area Star
The 6-foot-4, 235-pound Deese Jr. immediately worked his way into the tight end rotation in the Silicon Valley.
In 2019, he led all Spartan tight ends in receptions, yards and touchdowns. But 2020 was the season he saw his numbers, and SJSU, ascend. Deese went on to catch 20 footballs for 240 yards and scored 5 touchdowns in the truncated COVID-19 year. But that was also the year the Spartans steamrolled through their Mountain West Conference competition on their way to the MWC title. One highlight catch by Deese came against traditional MWC powerhouse San Diego State.
NFL Draft Diamonds labeled Deese as one with “some Antonio Gates in him,” referring to the eight-time Pro Bowler for the Chargers.
Deese went undrafted in the 2022 session. But with a depleted 49ers TE room, he became the second from his family tree to set foot inside the 49ers’ facility. Now it’s a question of can he become a second generation 49er.
Other tight end tryouts outside of Walston and Deese were Erik Krommenhoek (who played at Deese’s father’s alma mater USC), Briley Moore (Kansas State) and Jace Sternberger (Texas A&M).
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