The San Francisco 49ers

Another year and another falling just short season for the 49ers. It’s not the same but it feels like the Bills 91-94 seasons where they just could not win the big one. Let’s look at their first four picks and see if they can help the 49ers get over the hump and of course discuss expectations for the 49ers.

Grabbing Ricky Pearsall (WR) at 31 set the tone of the future for the 49ers and the chances of paying Aiyuk. Pearsall standing about an inch taller than Aiyuk brings a similar style of play with good speed and crisp route running ability. Getting better each year in college Ricky hauled in 900+ yards this past year and brought in 4 touchdowns. He will fit right in to the 49ers just like everyone else.

Pick 64 Renardo Green (CB) is someone I thought was brought in to be on the opposite side of Ward and eventually reprise his role being the CB1. Renardo was a part of a good secondary at Florida State and only allowing 4 touchdowns over the span of 800 coverage snaps is why Green was grabbed in the second round. He should rise the ranks quickly and will be seeing some time on the outside.

A huge steal at 86 with Dominick Puni (OT). His two years in college, one at OT and one at LG Puni did not allow a single sack. Puni was selected because Trent Williams is getting older and his experience at LG can put pressure on starting LG Aaron Banks. Either way Puni is eventually going to be starting and it’ll be a cheap option if Trent calls it a career after 2024.

The 124th is a great grab for depth and possibly some solid reps in the slot with Malik Mustapha (DB). Having over 170 tackles in 35 games played Mustafa is not shy about finding the ball and sticking his nose in there. He will be a great piece to have in the box with Warner and Greenlaw if they want to play some 4-3. I’m excited about this pick and look forward to seeing his growth.

As I said before the 49ers are close every year and have a top 2 roster from top to bottom. They just cannot close it out and hopefully this class can help them get over that hump and raise the Lombardi. Overall I would give this draft class a good B+. The future of the 49ers is simple, get to the super bowl and win. I think that is a possibility this year and needs to be the year with certain players going to be looking for extensions and new contracts.