Before we let go of the draft completely, I wanted to solicit the opinion of a legitimate draft-watcher. Rob Rang, head evaluator for NFLDraftScout.com, is a guy I’ve relied on in the past for honest, insightful analysis. I talked to Rob today and checked off his opinions of the 49ers’ maneuvers.
Here’s a nice piece of work by the Niners Nation blog, which contacted another blogger who covers Rutgers football and which now appears on, uh, my blog. (Mind-bloggling, isn’t it?) Anyway, the Rutgers guy presents a mixed view of first-round draft pick Anthony Davis, but it mostly sounds encouraging to me.
The first Trent Baalke-Mike Singletary draft is complete with the 49ers selecting eight players during the three-day session. Yes, we write that it was a Baalke-Singletary draft . . . because that’s exactly what it was.
The 49ers’ final draft pick of the day was cornerback Philip Adams, a 5-10, 192-pounder from South Carolina State. The pick was in the seventh round, the No. 224 overall pick.
The 49ers picked up wide receiver Kyle Williams of Arizona State with the club’s final sixth-round pick, No. 206 overall.
The 49ers came back with their second pick in the sixth round to select tight end Nate Byham of Pitt. He’s 6-4, 265 pounds and considered a blocking specialist.
The 49ers got their third running back with their first selection on Saturday, selecting Mississippi State running back Anthony Dixon.
Get out your 49ers pre-draft checklist. OK, here it is. Now, let’s see what the 49ers would like to accomplish on THE final day.
After two days in the draft, the 49ers have added four players. On Thursday, they focused on the offensive line with the additions of tackle Anthony Davis and guard Mike Iupati in the first round. On Friday, the 49ers’ focused shifted to defense, where the 49ers took safety Taylor Mays of USC and linebacker Navorro Bowman of Penn State, aka Linebacker U. “I feel very good about what…
The 49ers selected Penn State linebacker Navorro Bowman, a 6-foot, 240-pounder, with their pick in the third round. It was the No. 91 overall selection.
The second round has just opened with the Rams selecting offensive lineman Rodger Saffold. But 49ers running back Frank Gore is still quite pleased with the performance of his team in the first round.
The 49ers might have been prudent to check for structural integrity of the stage in the press conference room before allowing Anthony Davis and Mike Iupati to be introduced today in Santa Clara. After all, we’re talking about 650-plus pounds of manhood between the two youngsters.
After the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday, that seems to be one certainty for the 49ers: They are not going to take an offensive lineman in the second round. Well, at least we don’t think they will.
Some observations from Santa Clara after the first round of the NFL draft: –The 49ers might not hire a general manager, per se, to replace Scot McCloughan, but it sure looks as if Trent Baalke has put himself in position to be the organization’s top personnel man – regardless of what the position is called.
Wow, is it already time for the draft to begin? Where did the time go? Follow the pick-by-pick intrigue right here . . .
OK, who can read lips? The 49ers have live streaming video on the website of their draft room. If you look at the video screen (it’s not on all the time), the black curtain on the left side of the screen is the bottom of the 49ers’ draft board.
In my feeble attempt to confirmation that I was 100-percent accurate in my rankings of the first 14 players on the 49ers’ draft board, I placed a call to a team spokesman in Santa Clara just moments ago. On the other end of line was uproarious laughter. “No, I can’t confirm that,” I was informed, followed by more uproarious laughter. And that was followed a “click” and an ear-piercing…
In trying to reconstruct the 49ers’ draft board that I saw in a dream last night, the first 10 names came off relatively easy. This is where it gets difficult . . . just as the 49ers are ready to make a selection with the No. 13 overall pick.
Imagine for a moment that your job is to cover the San Francisco 49ers. You’re walking through the team offices when the door to the mysterious draft room swings open just wide enough to catch a complete glimpse of the board on the other side of the room. The image is fleeting, but you can decipher several names. Those names are listed in order of the 49ers’ draft preference….
OK, this is it. This is my final mock draft . . . until there’s a major trade today and this sucker instantly becomes obsolete. * * *
