The 49ers made one big jump up from No. 12 to No. 3 in this year’s draft, but they could be poised to make more moves up the board. General manager John Lynch explained in his press conference following the trade that the impetus for the move was the club’s success in retaining their own free agents and signing some others. That same logic could apply when it comes to making more trades in the draft.
They went into the offseason needing to hold onto their picks to restock their roster after what was sure to be a mass exodus in free agency. The free agency period dominoes fell in their favor though, and left them with a little bit of wiggle room to walk away from the draft with six or seven picks instead of nine-plus.
Here are San Francisco’s selections going into the draft:
Round 1, Pick 3
Round 2, Pick 43
Round 3, Pick 102 (Compensatory)
Round 4, Pick 117
Round 5, Pick 155
Round 5, Pick 172 (via New Orleans)
Round 5, Pick 180 (Compensatory)
Round 6, Pick 193
Round 7, Pick 229 (via New York Jets)
While they hold nine picks, they only have four in the top 150, and two in the top 100.
It wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see the 49ers try and maneuver their way up in the third and fourth round to try and target some higher-quality players who could serve as depth this year before taking over as starters in 2022 when they could once again be facing a free agency crunch as a slew of one-year deals expire.
They also don’t have a first-round pick next year, and have extensions for Fred Warner and Nick Bosa both coming in a year or two. The 49ers need to capitalize now and start finding starting-caliber players who’re cost-controlled.
On the other hand, the argument could be made that San Francisco needs as many darts to throw at the board as possible. That would involve holding on to all their picks and perhaps trading back once or twice to come away with a 10-plus player draft class.
Given the team’s roster and their readiness to compete for a championship though, simply filling the roster with lower-end draft picks may not behoove them in the present or future. They’re in a spot where they can afford to make a couple moves up, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them do that.
