The 2018 NFL Draft is fast approaching — or at least that’s the lie I’m telling myself while San Francisco 49ers football isn’t being played. Mock drafts, positional rankings, trade talks and so much more are going to be a big part of our lives over the next couple months.
That said, there’s always time to go back and ask, “What if?” Re-drafts are all the rage these days, especially small ones that are a little more focused. ESPN recently put out a re-draft of the 2017 top five picks, which is relevant to us here because the 49ers held the second overall pick in 2017.
The 49ers wound up trading that pick to the Chicago Bears, who moved up to draft Mitchell Trubisky out of North Carolina. The 49ers then picked at third overall, selecting Stanford defensive end Solomon Thomas.
In this re-draft, the 49ers are back at number two, and instead of the Cleveland Browns taking Myles Garrett out of Texas A&M at first overall, they have them drafting quarterback Deshaun Watson. That’s a hard pick to argue with, despite how great Garrett is.
Speaking of great, they have the 49ers taking Garrett at second overall. This is what they have to say:
Sando: Knowing the 49ers were able to land Jimmy Garoppolo from New England for a second-round choice made it easier -- more defensible, at least -- to bypass a quarterback in this re-draft. It’s not just me saying they might be able to find a QB another way. We all know they did exactly that, even though they could not have known how things would shake out when they traded back from the second overall spot on Day 1 of the 2017 draft.
Garrett was one of the most talented players in the class. Selecting him did not require much justification. He was there; I took him. Alvin Kamara and Marshon Lattimore were the other players from the draft who stood out in my mind as alternatives. The 49ers already have a good running back, and they’re running a system that has succeeded in the past with quite a few backs with varied pedigrees. Lattimore’s injury history was still a slight concern in my mind, even though he played more games than Garrett did this past season.
They mention Lattimore, and personally, he’s the player I’d rather have. But if we’re talking about Garrett vs. Solomon Thomas, I’d much rather have Garrett.
I think Thomas has a ton of upside and all the potential in the world to put in the work and fix the holes in his game — but for now, I’m extremely underwhelmed by his array of pass-rushing moves. He failed to get push despite not being double-teamed.
The other picks in the draft: the Bears take Trubisky at third overall, for one. Then they have the Jacksonville Jaguars taking Patrick Mahomes II, which seems questionable because I don’t think he’s shown enough to warrant that. It seems like a very reactionary pick.
The Tennessee Titans, at No. 5, take Lattimore, a player I’d spend the first-round pick on, holding problems and all. What do you guys think of this re-draft?