Over the weekend we began our look at 49ers GM Trent Baalke's film sessions with local media. Baalke sat down with the media and provided his thoughts on each of the 49ers draft picks, while running folks through some of the film on each player. I was unable to attend, but 49ers.com has been posting video from the session. On Saturday we discussed S Colin Jones. On Sunday we discussed WR Ronald Johnson.
Today we move on to offensive lineman Daniel Kilgore. As most folks already know, Kilgore played offensive tackle in college but will likely move inside at the NFL level. Baalke confirmed in the video that as he pointed to Kilgore's size and arm length as reasons he needs to move inside to the guard or center position. Baalke indicated the team was confident Kilgore could make the move based on his athleticism, balance, strength and mental make-up. The team feels he can handle the inside where things can move a little faster than out on the island of the tackle position.
Kilgore attended Appalachian State, which can raise some questions about his performance against higher level competition. Baalke pointed to his performance against Florida in 2010 as an indication that he can step up against higher levels of competition. It's only one game so we'll have to wait and see. There were similar questions about Mike Iupati, but Idaho is Division I-A, while Appalachian State is I-AA. Lower level players have made the transition so it's not some kind of impossible task. However, it will be a challenge for the young offensive lineman.
When the pick was first made, there was some discussion that Kilgore could conceivably end up as the center of the future. Baalke acknowledged he might move all the way into center, but did not get specific as to where he would compete this season. Much of this will depend on whether the 49ers sign David Baas to a long term deal. Whatever the case, where do you see Kilgore ending up long term?