Key QB on board, but glaring needs to be draft focus
There are questions about Josh Allen’s accuracy, Josh Rosen’s personality, Sam Darnold’s turnovers and Baker Mayfield’s height.
The nice news for the 49ers: They don’t have to figure out the answers surrounding the top quarterbacks in this year’s NFL draft.
The 49ers have Jimmy Garoppolo signed through 2022, but their investigative work this week at the NFL combine in Indianapolis will indirectly involve the QB position.
For example, there is the matter of supporting their $137.5 million investment by fortifying their offensive line and wide receiver corps. Then, there is the issue of stifling their opponents’ QBs: The 49ers have glaring needs for cornerbacks and pass-rushers.
On Feb. 9, the day after signing Garoppolo to his five-year deal, general manager John Lynch said the 49ers had secured a “big piece” while noting the heavy lifting that remained.
“We were 6-10, OK?” Lynch said. “So this is a big day for us, but we have a long way to go. And we're fully aware of that.”
The 49ers have used six of their past seven first-round picks on defensive players, and that trend could continue in 2018.
At cornerback, the cupboard is largely bare beyond starter Ahkello Witherspoon, a 2017 third-round pick who had a strong rookie season, and slot cornerback K’Waun Williams, who received a midseason contract extension.
They are expected to seek an upgrade from starter Dontae Johnson, a pending free agent who was part of a defense that ranked among the NFL’s bottom 10 in interceptions (10), passing touchdowns allowed (27) and opponent’s passer rating (93.9).
With the No. 9 or 10 pick (a coin flip with the Raiders at the combine will determine their draft order), they could be in position to select Ohio State’s Denzel Ward, who is regarded as the draft’s top corner. However, at 5-foot-10 and 191 pounds, the first-team All-American is relatively small. The 49ers prioritize height and strength at a position where they seek players who can excel in aggressive man-to-man coverage.
If there are questions surrounding Ward’s fit in their 4-3 scheme, there’s no doubt the 49ers will address the position this offseason. Last week, they hosted free-agent cornerback Vontae Davis, 29, a two-time Pro Bowl pick who is coming off groin surgery. They also expressed at least token interest in trading for Marcus Peters, 25, a former first-team All-Pro who will be dealt from the Chiefs to the Rams. The 49ers’ interest in Peters, whose volatile personality made him expendable, did not include a trade offer, a source said.
Whoever lines at up cornerback would be assisted if the 49ers could provide more pass-rush pressure after tying for 26th in the NFL in sacks (30). However, a lack of appealing options may prevent the 49ers from addressing the need with
their first pick.
North Carolina State’s Bradley Chubb is viewed as a top-five selection, and ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper sees a “huge drop-off ” from Chubb to his second-rated passrusher, Texas-San Antonio’s Marcus Davenport. Kiper termed Chubb “the best guy by miles” in a draft that doesn’t appear to be teeming with future sack-masters.
“I like Davenport’s potential, but he certainly didn’t wow people at the Senior Bowl practices,” Kiper said. “This is a bad, bad year for down defensive ends.”
Guard Joshua Garnett, the No. 28 pick in 2016, is the only offensive player the 49ers have selected in the first round in the past five drafts. And it’s conceivable they could target another guard, Notre Dame’s Quenton Nelson, to bolster the interior of their offensive line.
It’s rare for teams to use a top-10 selection on a guard, but Kiper thinks Nelson will be taken before the 49ers’ pick and likened him to Steve Hutchinson, a seven-time Pro Bowler who was a Hall of Fame finalist this month. At guard, the 49ers don’t appear to have a slam-dunk starter in a group that includes Garnett, Laken Tomlinson and Brandon Fusco, who is a pending free agent.
For his part, Kiper thinks the 49ers will target Ward or Alabama’s Calvin Ridley, who is considered the draft’s top wide receiver. The 49ers are lacking a No. 1 wideout, although Ridley (6-1, 190) wouldn’t necessarily fill their apparent need for a big-bodied red-zone target.
Of course, with over two months remaining before the draft, there remain plenty of questions.
What needs will the 49ers adequately fill next month in free agency? Will they trade their first pick to a QB-needy team for a second straight year? And Who will vault up draft boards after the combine?
The good news for the 49ers: Thanks to Garoppolo, they don’t have to answer the questions surrounding the prospects who play the NFL’s most important position.