San Francisco 49ers: Pre-Free-Agency 7-Round Mock Draft

The Super Bowl is officially in the books, signifying the end of the 2014 NFL season.  That means it’s time to look ahead to 2015 and the NFL draft.

In truth, the San Francisco 49ers have been in this position for a month now.  With the 15th pick in the draft, they’ll have their highest draft positioning since 2011—that’s the “reward” you get for finishing 8-8 and out of the playoffs.  The flip side of the poor finish, of course, is the chance to draft players who can turn a franchise around.

The last seven players the 49ers drafted with a 15th or earlier pick all became long-term contributors in the league.  This includes Aldon Smith, Anthony Davis, Michael Crabtree, Patrick Willis, Vernon Davis, Alex Smith and Andre Carter.  All but Crabtree and Davis have been Pro Bowlers, with Smith and Willis being among the top at their respective positions.

Will the 49ers' first-round pick this season have a similarly successful NFL career?  It’s slightly unlikely; the history of the 15th overall pick indicates it’s more likely to produce a solid, long-term starter as opposed to a superstar.  There’s always the chance, of course, that it could produce the next Alan Page or Jim Taylor, Hall of Famers for great teams.

Doing a full, seven-round mock draft is insanely early at this point.  For one thing, team needs are still in flux, as free agency can rapidly shift the face of the league.  For another, scouts haven’t had the time to investigate each prospect thoroughly; while the game tape is there, events such as the scouting combine give scouts a chance to look at players outside of the context of the system in which they had success.

It’s especially hard for the 49ers, because we have no idea what impact, if any, Jim Tomsula will have on the draft process.  It’s true that Trent Baalke has control of the final 53-man roster, but surely, he’ll try to acquire the players Tomsula says he needs to succeed.  Without a single offseason under their belt, we have little to go on as to how Tomsula and Baalke will work together.

Just because it’s difficult, however, doesn’t mean it’s not worth doing.  Here’s just one of the many thousands of ways the 2015 NFL draft could shake out for the San Francisco 49ers.

1st Round: Kevin White, WR, West Virginia

Sometimes, drafting is easy.

A team always has to decide whether to fill specific team needs or draft the best players available.  When those happen to fit the same position, it really isn’t that difficult.

Barring the odd case in which Devante Parker falls all the way to number 15—which seems unlikely, with receiver-needy teams such as the New York Jets and Cleveland Browns drafting before San Francisco—Kevin White will likely be the most talented receiver on the board when the 49ers make their first pick.

Receiver almost has to be the first selection.  Michael Crabtree and Brandon Lloyd are likely on their way out of town, Anquan Boldin is aging and Stevie Johnson might be a cap casualty, thanks to his inflated salary.  Bruce Ellington and Quinton Patton are around for the long term, but neither are top-flight receiving prospects.

White might be the most well-rounded receiver in this year’s draft class.  At 6’3”, he’s tall enough to battle with any cornerback in the league.  With a reported 40-yard dash time somewhere around the 4.5 range, according to DraftCountdown.com, he’s got great speed, too—that’s the same basic range as Odell Beckham and Sammy Watkins.

White’s got fantastic hands and is a physical fighter with great strength for a wideout.  He’s also a consistent big-play threat, gaining 1,447 yards in his senior season.  He’s quick enough to get downfield to provide the vertical threat the 49ers have been missing—he’s just about the perfect fit for the 49ers’ needy offence.

Other players considered:
Dante Fowler Jr, DE, Florida
Devin Funchess, WR, Michigan
Devin Smith, WR, Ohio State

2nd Round: Sammie Coates, WR, Auburn

No NFL team has ever drafted a receiver in both the first and second rounds of the draft.  Occasionally, you’ll see a team take two receivers in the second round, like Jacksonville did just this past year with Marqise Lee and Allen Robinson.  It’s unlikely the 49ers would go this way either, but there is a potential scenario in which this could happen.

The 49ers are pressed up fairly tight against 2015’s salary cap, meaning neither Michael Crabtree nor Brandon Lloyd are likely to be kept as free agents.  Furthermore, Stevie Johnson’s cap number is set to be over $6 million for next season, according to Spotrac, which is far too high. 

It’s conceivable that the 49ers could end up cutting him to make room for signing other priority free agents, including Chris Culliver or Mike Iupati.

Even if they keep Johnson, they’ll likely want to add another receiver to the roster.  While this would more likely be a budget free agent like Kenny Britt or Hakeem Nicks, there’s an argument to be made for taking another rookie.  With receivers having such a high hit-or-miss rate, this would be attempting to ensure that at least two of the White/Coates/Ellington/Patton set develop into solid NFL receivers.

Coates isn’t nearly as well-rounded as White is, but he has one elite tool in his toolkit: blazing speed.  Coates is an insane burner on the field.  He reportedly clocks in at around a 4.36 40-yard dash, according to Rotoworld.  He’s also not your typical scrawny speedster, clocking in at somewhere close to 210 pounds—he has a physical presence, too.

He’s not a great route-runner, and he drops too many passes, but these are things that can be worked on.  He might be the best pure athlete in this year’s draft class.

If you’re not thrilled with the two-wide receiver strategy, I did consider some defensive ends at the position.  I feel that Lorenzo Mauldin, the DE/OLB from Louisville, wouldn’t fit perfectly into a 3-4 defense and might be gone by this selection anyhow. 

Trey Flowers is probably the best defensive end available at this point but he, too, fits better into a 4-3 system.  It seems too much of a reach to take someone like Mississippi State’s Preston Smith, either.

If tight end Maxx Williams from Minnesota falls here, that might be a better selection for the 49ers, but I don’t see that happening, either.  Coates might be making the best out of an iffy draft slot.

Other players considered:
Rashad Greene, WR, Florida State
Trey Flowers, DE, Arkansas
Preston Smith, DE, Mississippi State

Round 3: Mario Edwards Jr, DE, Florida State

With Ray McDonald gone and Justin Smith possibly retiring, according to NFL.com and others, the 49ers will need fresh blood at the defensive end position.  They have Tank Carradine ready to step into one starting role, but more talent could be added at the position without hurting anything.

Mario Edwards’ draft position remains something of a mystery to this point.  He could really fall anywhere between the first and third rounds, as indicated by Brendan Sonnone the Orlando Sentinel.  As a first-round pick, I’m a bit wary of him; he has essentially one power-rush move and poor snap anticipation.

As a second-day pick, however, Edwards becomes very, very intriguing.  He’s strong on the point of attack and can use his power, speed and athleticism to keep blockers from squaring him up.  He can play either as a 3-4 end or as a 4-3 tackle, so he’s versatile, as well.  He’s likely to dazzle at the combine, as he’s massively strong.  

He was bench-pressing 405 pounds and squatting 570 coming out of high school and has only gotten stronger since then.  Re-uniting Edwards and Carradine on the edges sounds like a good long-term plan for Jim Tomsula’s defensive line.

I briefly considered looking for a Vernon Davis replacement here for the 49ers, but if they really were to go receiver-receiver in the first two rounds, anything other than a defensive end would be very hard to justify.

Other players considered:
Jeff Heuerman, TE, Ohio State
Henry Anderson, DE, Stanford
Markus Golden, DE, Missouri

Round 4: Garrett Grayson, QB, Colorado State

The 49ers’ fourth-round pick won’t come until Denver’s selection.  They traded their own pick to acquire Stevie Johnson and picked up Denver’s pick when they bounced up to take Cody Latimer last year.  That’s a drop-off of a dozen places.

That ends up being a bit costly for the 49ers, at first glance.  Those dozen picks could see cornerbacks such as Stanford’s Alex Carter and Florida Atlantic’s D.J. Smith go off the board, as well as a useful tight end like Iowa State’s E.J Bibbs.  Trading for Johnson could knock several players of need out of San Francisco’s range.

With those cornerbacks and tight ends probably off the board, the 49ers could gamble a little bit and pick up a backup quarterback.  Colin Kaepernick is the only quarterback under contract for the 49ers in 2015.  He regressed some in 2014 as well, and his contract is such that the 49ers could move on from him after this season, if he doesn’t bounce back.

In the best-case scenario, Grayson would serve as a backup for Kaepernick for the next four seasons before moving on.  In the worst-case scenario, Kaepernick bombs out in 2015 and Grayson has a year under the tutelage of new quarterbacks coach Steve Logan before a battle for the position in 2016. 

A pick later in the draft would likely be more efficient for San Francisco’s quarterback needs, but if any other player would be a stretch, why not one of the top five quarterbacks in the class?

Grayson’s got quite the arm, and can launch 60-yard bombs if allowed to step into his throws.  He’s solidly accurate, completing more than 60 percent of his passes the last two years at Colorado State, and has shown the ability to throw the ball with some touch.  He’s not going to pull off any Kaepernick-like runs through the defense, but he’s agile enough to avoid a pass rush and shows good awareness and decision-making skills when he’s forced out of the pocket.

His mechanics, however, need some serious work.  He drops the ball down low, with a slow and wide delivery.  It’s asking for a defensive end to get a strip-sack on him.  Sometimes, that can be fixed and made more compact.  Sometimes, you just have to live with it—if “fixing” the mechanics make him less accurate or gives him less power on his throws, it’s counterproductive.  It’s a red flag, however.

Grayson’s probably the best of the mid-round quarterbacks, however, and the 49ers could go far worse than working with him.

Other players considered:
Arie Kouandjio, OG, Alabama
Donovan Smith, OT, Penn State
Ben Koyack, TE, Notre Dame

Round 4, Compensatory: Arie Kouandjio, OG, Alabama

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The NFL has not yet announced the supplemental draft choices for 2015, and the formula is not public.  The best we can do is make educated guesses at which teams will get which bonus selections.

Since the compensatory picks are based on the free-agent comings and goings of the previous offseason, the 49ers stand a chance to gain a couple of picks in the 2015 draft.  Remember, they lost Donte Whitner, Tarell Brown, Anthony Dixon and Colt McCoy to free agency, while picking up just Antoine Bethea and Chris Cook. 

Cook will likely cancel out McCoy, and Bethea should offset one of the two defensive backs, but that still leaves two players the 49ers lost.  Based on their salaries and playing time in their new homes, the best guess is that the 49ers will receive an extra fourth- and seventh-round selection.

With the fourth-round pick from losing Donte Whitner, the 49ers could preemptively recover from losing another free agent.  With Mike Iupati likely pricing himself out of San Francisco as a free agent this offseason, the 49ers will have an opening at left guard. 

Now, they do have in-house options to fill the role—last year’s draft choice Brandon Thomas, for example, or the loser of the Marcus Martin/Daniel Kilgore battle at center—but that might just be pushing things forward an extra year.

Next season is Alex Boone’s last under contract.  Considering he held out last offseason, there might not be enough good blood to keep him around after that.  The 49ers might be looking to replace both guards over the next two seasons.

Enter Kouandjio.  A two-year starter at Alabama, Kouandjio is a strong run blocker who excels in short-yardage situations.  With long arms and solid power, Kouandjio can gain leverage and win at the point of attack, consistently.  If he didn’t have an injury history, he might be a second- or even first-round pick.

Kouandjio did miss the entire 2011 season with a knee injury and didn’t become a starter until 2013.  The medical evaluation at the combine could send his stock soaring—either up or down.

Other players considered:
D.J. Humphries, OT, Florida
Ben Koyack, TE, Notre Dame
Deontay Greenbury, WR, Houston

Round 5: Wes Saxton, TE, South Alabama

G.M. Andrews/Associated Press

If you’ve followed along the “other players considered” lists to this point, you’ll see I considered a tight end on three separate occasions in the first five picks, only to pass each time.  You could make it 5-of-5 if you considered Devin Funchess a tight end in the first round and Maxx Williams fell in the second round—Vernon Davis' massive drop-off last season demands some sort of personnel response.

Wes Saxton is a very intriguing late flyer.  He’s not going to be an in-line blocking tight end, but that’s what Vance McDonald is for.  Saxton is a much better route-runner and receiver than McDonald has turned out to be and is simply a mismatch for linebackers to cover. 

He’s one of the better receiving tight end prospects in the entire draft.  It’s hyperbole to compare him to Jimmy Graham, but he’s that type of tight end—basically, a massive wide receiver who will excel when split out.

He needs to bulk up some on the NFL level, because he has to be able to block a bit at the tight end position.  He also has struggled with drops at times.  He has enough raw talent to be worth a Day 3 pick, however.

Other players considered:
David Cobb, RB, Minnesota
Dez Lewis, WR, Central Arkansas
Anthony Chickillo, DE, Miami (FL)

Round 6: Justin Coleman, CB, Tennessee

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The worst thing about this potential draft outcome would be waiting to address cornerback until round six.  In an ideal world, the round-four pick of a quarterback would be swapped with this one, with the 49ers picking up Southeastern Louisiana’s Bryan Bennett or Boise State’s Grant Hedrick.

However, the chips may fall in such a way that keeps the top cornerback prospects away from San Francisco; the teams who consistently pick ahead of them in this year’s draft are cornerback-needy as well.  That just drives home the importance of re-signing Chris Culliver.

If the 49ers do have to wait until the sixth round to pick up a cornerback, Justin Coleman would be a more- than-adequate consolation prize.  Coleman stood out in the East-West Shrine Game.  Chris Kaufmann of Sporting News reports that he had excellent ball skills during practice and succeeded in working in tight man coverage; something he wasn’t asked to do at Tennessee.

He’s probably nothing more than a nickel cornerback at the NFL level, but he’d provide interesting depth as a slot corner.

Other players considered:
Troy Hill, CB, Oregon
Darren Waller, WR, Georgia Tech
Imoan Claiborne, CB, Northwestern State

Round 7: John Crockett, RB, North Dakota State

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press

If the 49ers do not re-sign Frank Gore, they’ll need another back behind Carlos Hyde and Kendall Hunter.  Even if they do re-sign Gore, competition would be a useful thing to have, even if the draft pick ends up on the practice squad for a year or two.

Crockett has suddenness and movement that simply isn’t part of Hyde’s game, making him an interesting counterpoint in styles for the backfield.  He’s not the world’s greatest athlete, and he is not going to amaze anyone with LeSean McCoy-esque shifts in direction. 

What he does have is very good vision and patience, reading his blocks and finding the seams.  He also had lots of production at North Dakota State, rushing for nearly 2,000 yards last season.  He went over 1,000 yards in all three seasons at NDSU.

Crockett suffers from ADHD, which initially kept him off the field at NDSU.  He’s fought through that, though, which shows strength of character.  I think he has some potential on the NFL level, which is all you can ask out of a seventh-round pick.

Other players considered:
Dee Hart, RB, Colorado State
Zach Patt, DE, Rice
Tyler Varga, RB, Yale

Round 7, Compensatory: Busta Anderson, TE, South Carolina

John Raoux/Associated Press

The 49ers’ second compensatory selection, thanks to Anthony Dixon, is likely very, very late in the draft.  It will probably be one of the last five picks, if it even qualifies.  It’s doubtful anyone picked that late will have significant impact, but you never know.

Rory “Busta” Anderson might be a potential redshirt candidate for the 49ers.  They enjoy picking injured players and stashing them on the non-football injury (NFI) list for a season or two—it’s a way of expanding their roster legally beyond the 53-man limit.

Anderson has torn his triceps in both arms, with one of those injuries ending his 2014 season.  He’s unlikely to perform at the combine with the injury, though he should be recovered enough by his pro day to perform.

Over his four-year career, Anderson caught 61 passes for 954 yards and flashed potential to do more.  As a redshirt pick, the 49ers could wait on Anderson for a few years and see how he develops.

Other players considered:
Angelo Blackson, DT, Auburn
Will Baumann, P, North Carolina State
Malcom Brown, RB, Texas

Bryan Knowles is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report, covering the San Francisco 49ers.  Follow him @BryKno on Twitter.