Like the Cleveland Browns, the San Francisco 49ers should turn in a card with a quarterback’s name on it like they just developed the Flash’s super powers. But just like the hapless Browns, they won’t. In this installment of my Perfect 2017 NFL Draft, I make the rest of the 49ers selections in a vain effort to keep them from picking atop the 2018 NFL Draft.
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Round 1, Pick 2: Solomon Thomas, DE, Stanford
2016: 61 tackles, 14 for a loss, 8.5 sacks, one forced fumble, two fumble recoveries
Thomas is probably the most complete defensive linemen in this draft and, on any other team, would be a no-brainer pick at No. 2. But a team with a gaping hole at quarterback will just have to take him as a consolation prize. For those of you who think I’m exaggerating the importance of a quarterback like DeShaun Watson or Mitchell Trubisky over a talent like Thomas, I will just point at the two best defensive linemen in all of football; J.J. Watt and Aaron Donald and the combined number of playoff victories each man has brought his team. And last year’s Texans’ playoff win doesn’t count. Watt didn’t play a down.
Players like Watt and Donald are the best of the best, but in the end all they are is a piece of the puzzle. The way to win a title and be a consistent playoff team is to field a franchise quarterback and until your team finds one, they should expend every possible effort to get him.
Round 2, Pick 34: Patrick Mahomes, QB, Texas Tech
2016: 65.7 completion percentage, 5,052 yards, 41 touchdowns, 10 interceptions
Mahomes was the No. 4 quarterback on my pre-draft rankings and he’s an exciting prospect in Kyle Shanahan’s system. If the 49ers do pass on a QB in the first round, they sure as hell better make the pick in the second. Mahomes has all the arm talent he needs and can make every NFL throw. He’s a potential franchise guy, but nowhere near as ready to play as Trubisky or Watson. Still, it could all work out, but my bet is a pick of Watson/Trubisky at No. 2 and, say, Carl Lawson from Auburn right here will turn out to be a much more effective playoff-winning combo in three years. We’ll just have to see.
Round 3, Pick 66: Danny Isidora, OG, Miami
The 49ers need to beef up the interior of their offensive line. Isidora has played in a pro-style system and if called on can be a first-year starter, probably at right guard.
Round 4, Pick 109: Devonte Fields, OLB, Louisville
2016: 45 tackles, nine for a loss, six sacks, three passes defended, one interception
The 49ers are converting to a 4-3 defense from the 3-4 they’ve run under their last three head coaches. While signing Malcolm Smith takes care of one outside linebacker position for the next couple of seasons, Ahmad Brooks is about to play his 13th season. Shanahan and general manager John Lynch would be smart to bring in some bodies as replacements. Frankly, it wouldn’t surprise me to see the 49ers cut Brooks during the preseason.
Round 4, Pick 143: D’Onta Foreman, RB, Texas
2016: 323 carries, 2,028 yards, 15 touchdowns, seven catches, 75 yards
Carlos Hyde has flirted with being a franchise running back for years, but never quite hit the mark. A lot of the blame for that can go to two straight shitty coaches, but even if Hyde becomes the runner he can be under Shanahan, there’s no reason not to add Foreman to the mix. With the Falcons, Shanahan kept a constant barrage of runners coming at defenses and Foreman brings a lot of the same skills and size Hyde has, if not the potential for more production.
Round 5, Pick 146: Shelton Gibson, WR, West Virginia
2016: 43 catches, 951 yards, eight touchdowns, two rushes, 29 yards
One place Shanahan and Lynch have spent money is at wide receiver. They brought in Pierre Garcon and Marquis Goodwin and re-signed Jeremy Kerley. Gibson won’t come in and steal any of those guys’ jobs, but he’s got all the skills to develop into a solid No. 2 receiver and consistent deep threat.
Round 5, Pick 161: Dan Skipper, OT, Arkansas
Skipper comes from a solid, power-running program and should not only provide depth, but could develop into a solid NFL right tackle in a couple of years.
Round 6, Pick 198: Stevie Tu’ikolovatu, DT, USC
2016: 53 tackles, two for a loss, 0.5 sacks, one pass defense
If you’re converting to a 4-3, you need defensive tackles and Tu’ikokivatu is the best one on the board at this point.
Round 6, Pick 202: Marquel Lee, ILB, Wake Forest
2016: 105 tackles, 20 for a loss, 7.5 sacks, three forced fumbles
Lee’s seventh-round grade is a sin. The guy is 6-3, 240 and put up those numbers in the ACC? The only reason I don’t turn in this card in the seventh round if I’m the 49ers is if some other team wised up and took him earlier in the draft.
UPDATE – Round 7, Pick 219: Montae Nicholson, Safety, Michigan State
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