We still have roughly a quarter season of football left to play, but that doesn’t mean we can’t start looking at NFL mock drafts.
The San Francisco 49ers are actually going to have a first round pick this year which means they are talked about again by fortune tellers. The good news is that they will most likely use that pick late, if not last. And they go safe in this specific mock draft.
In a three-round mock draft, Luke Easterling of FanNation, a sister website of SI.com, projects that the 49ers will select Miami’s Kamren Kinchens with their first pick in order to play safe.
The 49ers should turn their attention to the defensive backfield, where they require assistance at both levels, if they are unable to find a suitable replacement at right tackle right away. Given their chance to sign Kinchens, the best prospect in this year’s class, the best value in this scenario is safety.
There are two potential issues with this. One, it makes sense that some of you might not be thrilled about the 49ers selecting a safety as their first pick. In the second, the Philadelphia Eagles pick 32nd and the 49ers pick 30th according to Easterling.
That section does make some sense in terms of safety for a few reasons. First, at the end of 2023, Tashaun Gipson’s contract expires. The years listed below are not valid according to overthecap.com. The 49ers will need to be extremely frugal if they hope to retain both Chase Daniel and Brandon Aiyuk at the age of 33 (assuming that’s even possible).
With the salary cap restrictions the 49ers are dealing with, it’s reasonable to assume Gipson will be beyond their budget, regardless of your opinion of his value. When you take him out of the picture, Ji’Ayir Brown and Talanoa Hufanga are left. It’s too early to tell what the 49ers have in terms of the former, who will be starting 2024 after an ACL tear, and the latter, who is filling in during their rookie season.
Nevertheless, Brown has done a good job stepping in. He’s working if you aren’t talking about him. Although he’s made a few rookie errors since joining the team, he’s been very effective. The 49ers will be alright if he can continue playing at that level and cover for Hufanga in the event that Hufanga’s injury necessitates further setbacks. Additionally, he might step in if the 49ers need to make a tough cap decision about Hufanga (sorry, fans, they can’t afford to sign every draft pick).
Now, since Kinchens would be slender at the position, he makes sense if Brown doesn’t pan out and the 49ers employ that aerial view of contracts. Although most of the top prospects in this mock were already gone, I would prefer an offensive tackle. The 49ers may need to make a trade if they want to improve their offensive line.
In the second round, Easterling projects the 49ers to select Kingsley Suamataia of BYU as an offensive tackle. A good choice, but pass protection might need some work on his part. I hope the 49ers place a package in the first round to give Brock Purdy more time to throw the ball, given all the picks they have. I’m okay with it happening in the second round if they are unable to. It was advantageous for all parties that Fred Warner came from BYU.
With their two selections in the third round, they select Michigan wide receiver Roman Wilson and Florida cornerback Jason Marshall Jr. Both are good choices at that position.
Regarding these four players joining the 49ers, what are your thoughts?
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