Former Indiana defensive tackle C.J. West made his first appearance with the San Francisco 49ers against the Denver Broncos on Saturday at Levi's Stadium.
The 49ers loss 30-9 but West was impressive and his training camp has been excellent so he will look to impress in the next two preseason games against the Raiders and Chargers.
The 4th round draft selected No. 113 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft, has made a strong case to be a pivotal piece of the 49ers' defensive-line rotation to begin his first pro season.
"This matters to me," the rookie defensive tackle CJ West said after the game. "Every single snap I take out there matters because I want to prove for the team that I can do this, and I want to be here for my teammates. So everything matters to me."
"Just being consistent in my stuff, being consistent in being violent with my strike," West told media. "I've got to continue to just practice on that, and watch over this film, and see where I went wrong, and things that I did good. Take that into the next game and next practice against the Raiders."
The 6-foot-2, 317-pound started his career at Kent State making 39 starts and was named third-team All-Mid-American Conference in 2023.
#49ers rookie DT CJ West splitting the double-team 👀 pic.twitter.com/wJPOcWiIQi
— Alex Tran (@nineralex) August 10, 2025
Here’s what NBC Sports Bay Area reported on Monday:
West was the rookie who stood out the most in 1-on-1s Not only did he win all of his reps, but he seemed to lift 6-foot-5, 313-pound Dominick Puni off the ground at the point of contact. At 6-foot-1 and 316 pounds, West is solid and already knows how to use leverage to give himself an advantage.
West played his senior season at Indiana earning Big Ten honorable mention honors in his lone season as a Hoosier. In 2024, he led Indiana's defense to one of the biggest turnarounds in college football as IU had a top ten defense and went 11-2 making an appearance in the College Football Playoffs for the first time in school history.
West may not have to wait long to get that first career sack against San Francisco as they take on the Seattle Seahawks week 1 at Lumen Field.