The 49ers leapt over the Miami Dolphins, acquiring the Denver Broncos 11th pick of the draft, in exchange for #13 and their 4th round pick. With that the 11th pick, the 49ers selected Rutgers offensive tackle, Anthony Davis. I know a lot of folks are wondering why they made the move up to get him when either Davis or Bulaga was potentially going to drop to 13. I'm curious to hear what football ops has to say about this move up and the pick of Davis.
At ESPN.com, Davis gets exceptional for awareness and pass protection, but average for toughness and run-blocking. For those wondering, Davis was 11th on our Big Board, while Bulaga was 5th.
After the jump I've posted some in-depth details on Davis, courtesy of the NFL.
Considered to be one of finest athletes in the 2010 NFL Draft, Davis has the long wingspan, large hands, balance and body control teams look for in a quality pass protector. With his ability to come off the snap at a low pad level, along with his lateral agility, some professional teams are also considering him as a potential pulling guard at the next level.
Davis has drawn comparisons to Jacksonville's Eugene Monroe, due to his athleticism. He has shown flashes of brilliance on the football field, at times. Teams just hope that as he matures, both on and off the field, that he will begin to show the consistency that his athletic potential displays. He has made more of an effort in recent years, especially in controlling his weight issues.
Davis originally joined the Rutgers program as a 363-pound freshman, but worked hard prior to the 2009 to maintain his weight, pleasing teams when he arrived in Indianapolis for the NFL Scouting Combine and checked in at 323. Still, most teams felt that he could have used another year of experience at the collegiate level mastering the art of playing the demanding left offensive tackle position.
Davis attended Piscataway High School, where he was a three-year starter on the offensive line. He was named first-team All-American by USA Today and competed in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl after his senior season. He received a four-star recruit rating from Rivals.com, as that recruiting service rated him the fifth-best offensive guard in the nation and the top prospect in the state of New Jersey.
When Davis chose to enroll at Rutgers instead of accepting a scholarship offer from Ohio State, he became the first top prospect from the state of New Jersey to perform for the Scarlet Knights during head coach Greg Schiano's tenure. As a true freshman, he played in every game, moving into the starting lineup vs. Syracuse, where he remained with the first unit for the final eight contests.
Davis was named Freshman All-American first-team by the Football Writers Association, Rivals.com and The Sporting News. He was also selected Freshman All-Big East Conference by Rivals and was a third-team All-Big East pick by Phil Steele's in 2007.
As a sophomore, Davis shifted to left offensive tackle, earning second-team All-Big East Conference accolades. He started 12 contests, as he produced 80 knockdowns and twelve touchdown-resulting blocks.
Even though he was not the team leader in blocking consistency grades (82.58%), knockdowns (89) or touchdown-resulting blocks, his reputation as an athlete saw the Walter Camp Foundation honor him with All-American second-team honors in 2009. The league coaches only named him to the All-Big East second-team.
Niners Nation Big Board
1. Eric Berry, S, Tennessee - Kansas City Chiefs - #5
2. Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State - Seattle Seahawks - #6
3. Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska - Detroit Lions - #2
4. C.J. Spiller, RB, Clemson - Buffalo Bills - #9
5. Bryan Bulaga, OT, Iowa
6. Joe Haden, CB, Florida - Cleveland Browns - #7
7. Gerald McCoy, DT, Oklahoma - Tampa Bay Buccaneers - #3
8. Mike Iupati, OG, Idaho
9. Trent Williams, OT, Oklahoma - Washington Redskins - #4
10. Anthony Davis, OT, Rutgers - San Francisco 49ers - #11
11. Earl Thomas, S, Texas
12. Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma - St. Louis Rams - #1
13. Rolando McClain, ILB, Alabama - Oakland Raiders - #8
14. Kyle Wilson, CB, Boise State
15. Taylor Mays, S, USC
16. Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma State
17. Brandon Graham, OLB, Michigan
18. Bruce Campbell, OT, Maryland
19. Charles Brown, OT, USC
20. Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame
21. Sergio Kindle, DE/OLB, Texas
22. Jahvid Best, RB, California
23. Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, South Florida
24. Derrick Morgan, DE, Georgia Tech
25. Dan Williams, DT, Tennessee
26. Terrence Cody, DT, Alabama
27. Devin McCourty, CB, Rutgers
28. Golden Tate, WR, Notre Dame
29. Maurkice Pouncey, C, Florida
30. Ryan Mathews, RB, Fresno State
31. Nate Allen, S, South Florida
32. Roger Saffold, OT, Indiana
33. Patrick Robinson, CB, Florida St.
34. Brandon Spikes, ILB, Florida
35. Vladimir Ducasse, OG, Massachusetts
36. Jared Odrick, OT, Penn St.
37. Carlos Dunlap, DE/OLB, Florida St.
38. Dexter McCluster, RB, Mississippi
39. Jerry Hughes, OLB, TCU
40. Sean Weatherspoon, OLB, Missouri
41. Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford
42. Everson Griffen, DE, USC
43. Mardy Gilyard, WR, Cincinnati
44. Jared Veldheer, OT, Hillsdale
45. Brian Price, DT, UCLA
46. Jon Asamoah, OG, Illinois
47. Demaryius Thomas, WR, Georgia Tech
48. Kareem Jackson, CB, Alabama
49. Colt McCoy, QB, Texas
50. Chad Jones, S, LSU
51. Arrelious Benn, WR, Illinois
52. Koa Misi, DE/OLB, Utah
53. Morgan Burnett, S, Georgia Tech
54. Tyson Alualu, DT, California - Jacksonville Jaguars - #10
55. Chris Cook, CB, Virginia
56. John Jerry, OG, Mississippi
57. Jermaine Gresham, TE, Oklahoma
58. Brandon Ghee, CB, Wake Forest
59. Daryl Washington, OLB, TCU
60. Joe McKnight, RB, USC
61. Javier Arenas, CB, Alabama
62. Jonathan Dwyer, RB, Georgia Tech
63. Mike Johnson, OG, Alabama
64. Damian Williams, WR, USC
65. Jordan Shipley, WR, Texas
66. Perrish Cox, CB, Oklahoma State
67. Jacoby Ford, WR, Clemson
68. Tim Tebow, QB, Florida
69. Navarro Bowman, OLB, Penn State
70. Sean Lee, ILB, Penn State
71. Reshad Jones, S, Georgia
72. Ricky Sapp, DE, Clemson
73. Ciron Black, OT, LSU
74. Dominique Frank, CB, Oklahoma
75. Brandon LaFell, WR, LSU
76. Akwasi Owusu-Ansah, CB, Indiana (PA)
77. Selvish Capers, OT, West Virginia
78. Kyle Calloway, OT, Iowa
79. Eric Norwood, OLB, South Carolina
80. Corey Wooton, DE, Northwestern
81. Mitch Petrus, OG, Arkansas
82. Dan LeFevour, QB, Central Michigan
83. Cam Thomas, DT, North Carolina
84. Lamarr Houston, DT, Texas
85. Tony Pike, QB, Cincinnati
86. T.J. Ward, S, Oregon
87. Rob Gronkowski, TE, Arizona
88. Ben Tate, RB, Auburn
89. Greg Hardy, DE, Mississippi
90. Amari Spievey, CB, Iowa
91. Matt Tennant, G, Boston College
92. Taylor Price, WR, Ohio
93. Thaddeus Gibson, LB, Ohio State
94. Eric Decker, WR, Minnesota
95. Montario Hardesty, RB, Tennessee
96. Alex Carrington, DE, Arkansas State
97. Torrell Troup, DT, Central Michigan
98. Jamar Chaney, LB, Mississippi State
99. Marshall Newhouse, G, TCU
100. Jeremy Williams, WR, Tulane