The San Francisco 49ers have questions on both sides of the ball, and with 12 draft picks and $57 million in salary cap space, they will have the opportunity to address a lot of concerns. Chip Kelly will need some toys for his offense, but the defense will need replenishment both from the 2015 offseason departures, and due to Kelly's offense leaving the defense on the field that much more.
Matt Miller, a long-time friend of the site, put together his latest 2016 NFL mock draft, and his two-round mock focuses on the 49ers offense. He has the 49ers using a first round pick on Cal quarterback Jared Goff, and a second round pick on Stanford offensive guard Joshua Garnett.
Here is how the first six picks go in Miller's mock:
1. Tennessee Titans - Laremy Tunsil, OT, Ole Miss
2. Cleveland Browns - Carson Wentz, QB, North Dakota State
3. San Diego Chargers - Ronnie Stanley, OT, Notre Dame
4. Dallas Cowboys - Myles Jack, LB, UCLA
5. Jacksonville Jaguars - Jalen Ramsey, DB, Florida State
6. Baltimore Ravens - Joey Bosa, DE, Ohio State
Here is what he had to say about the Goff pick:
If quarterback Colin Kaepernick wants traded, as NFL Network's Rand Getlin reported, then the San Francisco 49ers have to come up with a plan at quarterback. Jared Goff is a pretty good plan to have.
Goff isn't the biggest or strongest armed quarterback, but he's silky smooth in the pocket and wins with his football IQ and poise. And even at 6'4" and 215 pounds, the recently 21 year old Goff has room to fill out his frame, which could in turn add more strength to an already solid right arm.
In Chip Kelly's offense, Goff's experience in the Cal Bear Raid offense, which allowed him to make audibles and checks at the line of scrimmage, will come in handy. He's a quick-strike quarterback with enough pocket mobility to extend the play or pick up yards as a runner. And once teams get a chance to meet Goff, don't be surprised if teams are trying to trade in front of the 49ers to get him.
There is plenty of talk about body and hand size and whether Chip Kelly would be interested in that. And of course, Kelly and Trent Baalke could decide they want to land a quarterback later in the draft. I'm just not sure I see a quarterback happening in the first round. It could be similar to the 2011 draft, where the 49ers went defensive player early, and then found their quarterback.
As for Garnett, I do see the 49ers adding some depth to the line in the draft. I still don't know what exactly to make of the line. We don't know what the plan is with Anthony Davis, and he hasn't even formally applied for reinstatement. Even if he does, where does he fit in with Trenton Brown, Erik Pears, Marcus Martin, and the various other options? Selecting an offensive lineman in the first two days of the draft would certainly tell us something.