Many of us dream that Von Miller and/or Patrick Peterson will be available at No. 7 in the 2011 NFL Draft, which may actually happen. However, we have to prepare for the likely scenario that both are off the board, and the 49ers would be stuck in an unenviable situation. What would you do if that scenario played out? Trade down, that is right trade down! The 49ers cannot afford to sit on their hands and make a reach pick at #7, instead they must be pro-active, and that means either trading up, or trading down. At this point i wouldn't give up a 2nd and 4th round pick to move into the top five and grab Patrick Peterson.
So we are left with the following options....
The 49ers could trade the 7th pick to the New England Patriots for the 17th and 33rd picks. This works perfect in the NFL trade value chart, and would help both teams. First, the Patriots could get one of the top DE's/OLBs available in the draft, a position that they are said to be coveting in the draft. With 6 picks in the first 3 rounds, New England could afford giving up an additional 2nd rounder to get that highly coveted Defensive End/Outside Linebacker. The 49ers, on the other hand, would pick up an additional 2nd round pick, and still be able to get a quality player at 17.
49ers Get: 17th pick (DE- Cameron Jordan), 33rd pick (CB- Jimmy Smith, QB- Jake Locker, QB- Ryan Mallett)
Another option would be the 49ers trading the 7th pick to Minnesota for the 12th pick and Sidney Rice. Minnesota is in desperate need of a QB, that much is obvious. Cameron Newton seems like he would be a decent fit in their system, and the Vikings cannot guarantee that he would be available at 12. Carolina, Buffalo, Arizona, Tennessee, Washington and maybe Cincinnati (depending on the Carson Palmer situation) are all in need of a QB. It is possible, even highly probable, that both Blaine Gabbert and Cameron Newton are off the board before the VIkings select. Trading down 5 spots from 7 to 12 represents 300 points on this trade value chart,which would be the equivalent of a 3rd and 4th round pick; pretty much the best value that Minnesota is going to get for Sidney Rice.
49ers Get: 12th pick (LB- Von Miller, CB- Prince Amukamara, CB- Brandon Harris, DE- Cameron Jordan) and WR- Sidney Rice
These are the two options that played out in my head when considering trade down scenarios, and they both are extremely possible. New England has 6 picks in the first 3 rounds, they can afford to swap a 2nd rounder in order to receive a top ten player. I know that it goes against their previous philosophy of trading for more picks, but at some point they need to start adding top level draft talent, not just mid-tier players. Minnesota is in a tough position right now, they have no QB of the future and have a wide array of free agents, including Sidney Rice. At this point I would assume that Rice would be the odd man out. He would cost a lot of money, just came off an injury, and really isn't a need position player for Minnesota. If that is the case, it would only make sense for them to attempt to acquire something in return for for his services. San Francisco offers them an intriguing option with the 7th pick in the form of Cameron Newton or Blaine Gabbert.
So, what do you think? Give me some other scenarios that you could come up with.