There is always the possibility that the 49ers are offered a trade back deal too good to pass up. If that happens, there will still be options at the cornerback position toward the back portion of the first round in this year's draft.
It is hard to picture the Niners not taking at least two cornerbacks in the draft considering that they have twelve picks all together (assuming there is no trading). General Manager, Trent Baalke demonstrated that he is not afraid to pull the trigger with trades as he traded up to get Anthony Davis.
Cornerback Nate Clements may have to restructure his contract to stay in the red and gold. If not, there is a possibility that he is given an outright release. If that happens, the 49ers, unless they acquire another free agent will be left to play a bunch of average veterans or rookies which would not be an ideal situation.
Tarrel Brown has not been the most sturdy piece as the nickel corner, so it may be possible that the second corner if the 49ers draft two, would push Brown for that spot.
Recently, Mike Mayock assessed some of the top corners coming out. Cornerback Brandon Harris got conflicting reviews from both Mayock and NFL analyst and former GM, Charlie Casserly. Mayock thinks that Harris had starting capability while Casserly thought Harris to be nothing more than a fourth corner on whatever team's roster that draft's him.
After the jump, we'll look at more of Harris and what he did in college...
The first two plays here illustrate what Harris has done throughout a majority of his career. In the first play, he comes up and stuffs the run from the other side of the field which otherwise could have been an easy first down. In the second play, he was covering Bey Bey Thomas and went up to make a great play on the ball to break it up. Although no player is perfect, Harris has some of the natural instinct to play at a high level at any level.
Here's a look at his stats:
Stats Overview
Tackles
Misc
Interceptions
YEAR
TOT
SOLO
AST
SACK
STF
STFY
FF
BK
INT
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
PD
2008
30
22
8
1
0
0
0
0
1
25
25.0
25
0
0
2009
55
39
16
1
0
0
2
0
2
10
5.0
10
0
0
2010
44
29
15
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0.0
0
0
0
2010 Regular Season Game Log
Tackles
Misc
Interceptions
DATE
OPP
RESULT
TOT
SOLO
AST
SACK
STF
STFY
FF
BK
INT
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
PD
9/2
Florida A&M
W 45-0
4
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
9/11
@Ohio State
L 36-24
7
6
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
1
9/23
@Pittsburgh
W 31-3
3
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
10/2
@Clemson
W 30-21
6
4
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
1
10/9
Florida State
L 45-17
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
10/16
@Duke
W 28-13
5
4
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
10/23
North Carolina
W 33-10
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0.0
0
0
1
10/30
@Virginia
L 24-19
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
1
11/6
Maryland
W 26-20
2
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
2
11/13
@Georgia Tech
W 35-10
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
1
11/20
Virginia Tech
L 31-17
4
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
1
11/27
South Florida
L 23-20
4
1
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
2010 Postseason Game Log
Tackles
Misc
Interceptions
BOWL
OPP
RESULT
TOT
SOLO
AST
SACK
STF
STFY
FF
BK
INT
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
PD
HYUNDAI SUN BOWL
Notre Dame
L 33-17
3
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
2
Summary: Most people have Harris rated as a top five corner in the draft. Some have him slightly lower and some have him very high. Some even have him being selected as early as the back half of the first round. There's no way to tell for sure, but usually a general consensus of a player is a good indicator as to where he will most likely end up. Harris' tangibles are there. He has some mechanics problems as far as getting turned around consistently, but his instinct is there. Once he is in the NFL doing that full-time, he has a very high ceiling.
PREDICTION: Late 1st Round - 2nd Round. There is a very slight chance that he could last till the 3rd, but I wouldn't bet on it even if the odds were 100/1.