Earlier today, we heard from Matt Miller that Arik Armstead is firmly on the San Francisco 49ers radar at the No. 15 pick. The San Francisco 49ers have frequently been connected to Armstead, and have a potential long-term need along the defensive line. Plenty of people would not like the pick, but it might not be the most shocking of picks.
However, now we have some other information that makes this a little more puzzling. Arik Armstead was planning on attending the draft, but recently he apparently changed his mind. NFL.com analyst Gil Brandt reported that Armstead would not be in attendance at the draft, and it appears to be for an intriguing reason.
I did not hear Brandt's radio segment, but if the above tweet is completely accurate, that is at least a little bit interesting for the 49ers. It is possible they were not prepared to give Armstead any sort of guarantee about the first round for a couple reasons. The first is that they are not in fact certain they want him (or even want him at all). The second is they don't want that kind of information leaking in case it might impact potential trade negotiations.
Whatever might be happening, it is an interesting little development.