2021 NFL Draft: 49ers’ remaining picks going into Day 3

The San Francisco 49ers selected two offensive players with their first two picks of the 2021 NFL Draft.

It was no secret the Niners would take a QB after trading up to acquire the No. 3 overall pick from the Miami Dolphins. Head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch elected to go with North Dakota State’s Trey Lance to be the franchise’s QB of the future.

San Francisco originally held the No. 43 overall pick but wound up making a deal with the Las Vegas Raiders to move back five spots to No. 48, which cost them the opportunity to draft cornerback Asante Samuel Jr., who went one 47th to the Los Angeles Chargers.

The 49ers used the selection to beef up the interior of the offensive line by going with Notre Dame guard Aaron Banks.

Here is Pro Football Focus’ report on Banks:

Aaron Banks was heavily recruited as a four-star offensive lineman out of California’s El Cerrito High School. He received more than 30 scholarship offers, including Notre Dame, Michigan, Oregon, Arizona and Arizona State, among others. He earned multiple first-team honors following his senior season in 2016 and paved the way for an El Cerrito offense that averaged 29.4 points per game.

Banks broke into the starting lineup for the Irish midway through the 2018 season and was a mainstay at left guard ever since. He’s a big boy who’s going to be a guard only at the NFL level despite being Notre Dame’s emergency tackle. While he has three years of quality pass protection under his belt, he doesn’t have the foot speed or anchor to think that will continue at the NFL level. Even at his size, you rarely see him moving guys off the line of scrimmage. I struggle to call anyone capped out, but with as technically sound as Banks is already, I’m not sure where he goes from here.

Lynch then decided it was time to trade up. The Niners sent their own fourth-round selection plus the fourth-round pick they obtained from the Raiders to the Los Angeles Rams for the 88th selection.

San Francisco elected to bolster its backfield by selecting Ohio State running back Trey Sermon.

Lynch and Shanahan finally decided to address the secondary with their compensatory pick at No. 102. The 49ers went with cornerback Ambry Thomas out of Michigan.

Here is The Draft Network’s scouting report on Thomas:

Ambry Thomas projects as a potential starting cornerback for an NFL franchise. You certainly wish you had that chance to observe Thomas play in 2020, but the Michigan product opted out before the start of the season amid the uncertainties of the Big Ten season and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Thomas was most effective in coverage playing in press and disrupting route releases inside the contact window—he’s a physical player who does well when able to get his hands on the receiver and upset the timing of patterns. Thomas also flashes quite a bit in shallow spaces as a flat defender in zone coverage; showcasing good awareness of plays developing underneath to drive back to the football. Thomas’ ceiling in the draft will be directly tied to how comfortable teams are with a “redshirt” 2020 season and him standing on his tape from the previous year.

Here is a complete list of the 49ers’ draft picks:

• Round 1, Pick 3: North Dakota State QB Trey Lance
• Round 2, Pick 48: Notre Dame guard Aaron Banks
• Round 3, Pick 88 (via Rams) Ohio State RB Trey Sermon
• Round 3, Pick 102 (Comp pick) Michigan CB Ambry Thomas
• Round 5, Pick 155
• Round 5, Pick 172 (via New Orleans, Kwon Alexander trade)
• Round 5, Pick 180 (Comp pick)
• Round 6, Pick 193

The 49ers are scheduled to make four picks on Saturday. That could certainly change given the fact we usually see a ton of movement on Day 3.

Which remaining players do you want to see San Francisco target in Rounds 4-7?