The San Francisco 49ers are all but certain to draft a quarterback in the 2017 NFL Draft, but who and when remains a bit of a mystery. The team is unlikely to use the No. 2 pick, so that leaves a lot of questions about who will be there at No. 34 or later.
Draft analyst Tony Pauline released his latest 2017 NFL mock draft, and he had an intriguing change at the QB position. He had the 49ers selecting Stanford defensive lineman Solomon Thomas in the first round, and then getting Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson in the second round. Pauline went three rounds and the 49ers then grabbing Clemson tight end Jordan Leggett in the third round.
Watson has been going in the first round of virtually every mock draft, coming off the board after Mitchell Trubisky. In Pauline’s mock, Watson is the third quarterback off the board, after Trubisky and Patrick Mahomes. Trubisky goes to the Cleveland Browns at No. 12, and Mahomes goes to the Houston Texans at No. 25.
I’d lean towards spending the second on an immediate impact player, but if Watson was sitting there, it might be hard to pass him up. At the same time, this would potentially put the 49ers in prime position to trade down from No. 34 and acquire more picks if they are not sold on Watson. What would you do at No. 34 if Watson was sitting there?