An undrafted UCLA product who turned into one of the NFL's steadiest centers, anchoring San Francisco's offensive line for six seasons.
Jake Brendel has built a career on reliability, working his way from an undrafted free agent to a fixture at the pivot for a perennial contender. The 49ers center has started dozens of games in a row when healthy, the kind of quiet consistency that keeps an offensive line humming.
Path to the league
Brendel starred at UCLA from 2011 to 2015, becoming the program's all-time leader in career starts by an offensive lineman with 52. Undrafted in 2016, he signed with the Dallas Cowboys before bouncing through Miami, Denver and Baltimore in search of a permanent home.
Career highlights
Brendel found stability with San Francisco, where he was named the starting center in 2022 and started all 17 games that season. He signed a four-year contract extension with the 49ers in March 2023 and later reworked that deal to help the team manage its salary cap. He started for San Francisco in Super Bowl LVIII.
2025 season recap
Brendel started 15 games at center for the 49ers in 2025 after three straight seasons of starting all 17, continuing his run as one of the more durable interior linemen in the league.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Jake Brendel
- Pro Football Reference: Jake Brendel
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Center
- Group
- offense
- College
- UCLA
- Hometown
- Plano, TX, USA
- Age
- 33
- Status
- active
