Robert Beal led country in key statistic for San Francisco 49ers

Robert Beal always seemed to fly under the radar at Georgia. An unassuming sack leader on the generational defense full of first round talent in 2021, Beal grew as an all around outside linebacker in 2022. That turned him into an NFL Draft pick himself, going in the fifth round to the San Francisco 49ers.

Still, you might not expect Beal to be the top player in the country for any specific category. That’s not the case according to 49ers general manager John Lynch. He said that according to his analytics team, Beal ranked first in the country in ‘G.T.F.O.’ We’ll let you decipher what that one means.

“We talk a lot about, if you watch Kris Kocurek coach he’s always telling his guys, ‘Get off!’ It’s about that initial, when the ball is snapped, he wants that quick trigger. He wants guys getting off,” Lynch said. “Our guys have come up with a stat with an interesting acronym that I’ll leave alone, it goes to that initial get off. It’s about your two-yard explosion, your first two steps and how quick. We measure that, and Beal had the top one in college football this year.”

“He’s incredibly long. He’s a 6-foot-3 player but he’s like 34-and-5/8 (inch) arms and he ran a 4.47 so he’s a gifted player,” he continued. “Had a lot of intel out of there. Kirby Smart’s been good to us. I went down to Georgia this year to watch them practice and got to see Robert there. Got more and more convicted on him. We think he’s going to be a tremendous addition, add some speed and versatility to our defensive front.”

RELATED: What Kirby Smart said on Georgia NFL Draft prospects at UGA Pro Day

Beal finished his super senior season at Georgia by playing in all 15 games with eight starts. He had 26 total stops and 20 quarterback pressures. Two of Beal’s best games came down the stretch as he had a season-high four tackles including a sack in the SEC Championship Game against LSU. Just over a month later with the national title on the line, he came up with his only other solo sack of the season as a part of a three-tackle performance in the Bulldogs’ win over TCU.

“Beal’s a really, really gifted athlete,” Lynch said Saturday, speaking to reporters in San Francisco after the draft. “You rely a lot on relationships in this thing, and Kirby Smart’s been good to us. He’s got a lot of players. Kirby was a safety, and we kind of bonded over that. Kirby said, ‘Someone’s going to get a really gifted and talented player if they just let this guy go hunt QBs and set edges,’ and when he said that, that’s exactly what we do. He’s not really good at going back and all that stuff. He could do it, but what Kirby said there really resonated and our eyes saw the same thing.”

Lynch added that Beal gives the 49ers value on special teams. With as many defensive linemen that they like to dress, a guy that can play physically on the line of scrimmage while also being able to run up and down the field for special teams is important.

Beal started his career at Georgia in 2017 and after redshirting, he almost always was on the Bulldogs’ special teams units. Beal forced a fumble on kickoff coverage against Auburn in 2018 and played in seven of 10 contests in 2020 on the kick coverage units. He would finish out his career by playing in all 15 games each of his last two seasons on campus, starting a total of 10.

“The versatility that he brings and the ability to stack against blocks, quick to disengage, he’s got really good transition off of blocks and is quick to go make plays. I thought his instincts at times, there were some false steps and things like that, but as a pass rusher he flashes because he’s got the strength and length and speed that you need,” ESPN’s Todd McShay said about Beal during the draft process. “He’s a hard worker. His work ethic, he puts in the time in the weight room. I think the one area is getting him to understand concepts and working with him in that regard. But if you just turn him loose, he’s got a chance to out play where he gets drafted.”