SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Observations on the 2003 San Francisco 49ers from training camp practices:

	The 49ers selected Kwame Harris with the No. 26 overall pick in the draft.

1. Rookie left tackle Kwame Harris might be the steal of the first round. He's a 6-foot-7, 310-pound blocker with excellent feet and a nasty attitude. A lot of people wondered about his mean streak because he's a well spoken Stanford student with a Jamaican accent who plays the violin and piano. Harris has had three fights and has an attitude in which he wants to make defensive players hate going against him. Coach Dennis Erickson compares him to Walter Jones, who developed into a Pro Bowl left tackle in Seattle.

2. Fourth-round choice Brandon Lloyd has a long, even stride and could press for playing time by midseason. The three-receiver rotation is set with Terrell Owens and Tai Streets starting and Cedrick Wilson as No. 3. Lloyd, however, could be groomed for long routes. With Owens and Streets free agents after the season, Lloyd has a chance to be the future of the franchise.

3. Cornerback Mike Rumph improved some of his techniques from last year and seems to be in the right frame of mind. Opponents torched him last season. Rumph is still better at playing zone than man, but teams will still go at him until he stops them. With Jason Webster still sidelined following ankle surgery, Rumph might have to start before he's ready.

4. Garrison Hearst will probably go into the season as the starting running back, but Kevan Barlow is finally able to made a solid bid. Barlow is the more explosive, big-play runner, but he needed work on blocking from the one-back set. Barlow has worked hard enough on his blocking that he is finally gaining the confidence of the coaching staff to give him more playing time in one-back sets. Given the chance to start, Barlow could be a 1,200-yard runner, but if he doesn't block consistently, quarterbacks could get hurt.

John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.