49ers Fans Should Hope For Return To Boring Draft Day

    Remember the days when the 49ers' draft wasn't worth watching. Sure you might check the crawl to see which back up lineman or special teams player the team picked at the end of the first round, but it was a long way from appointment viewing.
    Somewhere around the Dennis Erickson era the draft went from being unimportant, to more exciting than the regular season. Suddenly fans were checking Mel Kiper's blog in mid-December and watching bowl games like a fat guy watches the Food Network. Dreams of off-season salvation were far more enticing than the reality of what was happening Sundays at Candlestick.
    Now, for the first time almost a decade, the 49ers will enter the draft without any gaping holes that need filling. The team has plenty of weaknesses (namely on the o-line) but even if Team York takes a Jack Cust sized whiff in the first round they should still be at even odds to win the pathetic NFC West.
    This is good news for Niners fans on many levels, but mainly because of the team's track record when it comes to drafting for need. When the front office has stretched for a player to fill a problem area, the results have been predictably disastrous (for examples see Ketwan Balmer, Rashaun Woods and Smith Alex). Conversely, when the team takes the best available talent they end up with the likes of Patrick Willis and Michael Crabtree.
    To that end 49ers fans need to stuff all talk of Jimmy Clausen or packaging picks to get a Top 5 talent. The team should leave Thursday with an impact starter (at any position) and the best available offensive lineman. Day two and day three should produce a change-of-pace running back and help in the secondary.
    Nothing sexy, nothing buzz worthy, just the regular workings of a competent NFL franchise. Let the excitement of the picks play out for the NFL's bottom feeders because the the first step back towards respectability is a utterly boring draft.