Editor's note: Catch Matt Maiocco's full interview with Deommodore Lenoir on the upcoming "49ers Talk" episode, dropping Sunday night.
SANTA CLARA — Deommodore Lenoir was not sure exactly what to expect during the 2021 NFL Draft.
But this was definitely not it.
More than 30 cornerbacks were selected, and Lenoir did not have a lot of hope after his senior season at Oregon in which he was selected second-team Pac-12 All-Conference.
“There were teams calling (about being) an undrafted free agent,” Lenoir said in an interview this week with NBC Sports Bay Area.
“Nobody was saying they were going to pick me. And there were still two rounds left.”
Lenoir said it was during that time that he began to believe his football dream was over and he would never again step on the field.
San Francisco 49ers
“I was about to stop playing football, honestly,” he said.
“I feel like I dedicated a lot of my time to it and just for that moment if it didn’t happen how I wanted it to happen, then I felt like the mission was over.”
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Three-and-a-half years later, Lenoir can still feel those thoughts of uncertainty about his future.
“Coming out of college, you’re going to see all the mock drafts,” he said. “I was seeing my name a lot, so that’s what led me into having hope. But on draft day when I didn’t get called in the round I thought I was going, it was life after football.”
The 49ers ended Lenoir’s wait when they selected him in the fifth round of the draft with the No. 172 overall pick.
Lenoir had a prominent role in the 49ers’ defense early in his rookie season before tumbling down the depth chart.
But from his second season on, he showed steady improvement to earn a role with the 49ers for the foreseeable future.
Lenoir, 25, has achieved financial security with his second contract.
The 49ers and Lenoir agreed to a five-year contract extension that is worth $88.8 million, according to Pro Football Talk, with $15.4 million in fully guaranteed money.
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