San Francisco 49ers: Post-Combine 7-Round Mock Draft

With the 2015 NFL league year officially starting this coming Tuesday, it’s time to look ahead and preview the NFL Draft.

What types of players might the San Francisco 49ers opt to select come draft day?  What options will they have once they’re on the clock?

We took a look at a mock draft a month ago, but things have been clarified for the 49ers somewhat since then.  Head coach Jim Tomsula’s reign is now a month old, and we’ve heard confirmation that the 49ers will be sticking with a 3-4 defensive front and a run-heavy offensive philosophy.  That moves some players on San Francisco’s board; hybrid defensive end/outside linebacker types drop in value while run-stopping defensive ends rise, for example.

We’ve also had the benefit of the Senior Bowl and the NFL combine to get a better look at some of the prospects in this year’s class.  Some players have seen their stock skyrocket thanks to their performance in workouts and drills, while others have found themselves swarmed with question marks.  It’s enough to reset the board and do a full seven-round mock.

In 2015, the 49ers will have their normal draft pick in rounds 1-3 and 5-7.  They’ve traded their fourth-round pick to the Buffalo Bills for Stevie Johnson and have received Denver’s fourth-round pick as part of the trade that allowed the Broncos to draft wide receiver Cody Latimer.  The Broncos also are due a fourth-round compensatory pick thanks to the loss of Donte Whitner last offseason.

How can the 49ers fill their needs with these eight picks?  Let’s take a look.

Round 1: DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville

There’s some worry that the top three receivers will all be gone by the time the 49ers go on the clock.  While that worry is real, I also think it’s somewhat overblown.  Yes, the Oakland Raiders, New York Jets, St. Louis Rams, Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns are all looking at the position with some level of scrutiny, but I still believe pressing needs elsewhere will have some of those teams go alternate routes in the first round.

Parker is arguably the best deep threat of the top three receivers, though his overall abilities are behind those of Amari Cooper and Kevin White.  He performed well at the combine, showing no ill-effects from a broken foot he suffered last season.  If anything, he seemed faster than he did in 2014, regaining some of the speed he showed in 2013 with Teddy Bridgewater.

The 49ers have other needs, but the value at receiver would be too good to pass up as long as one of the three top players falls to No. 15.  He’d fill in as a second receiver behind Anquan Boldin this season and hopefully take up the role of the top threat in years to come.

Other players considered:
Arik Armstead, DE, Oregon
Dante Fowler, DE/OLB, Florida
Devin Smith, WR, Ohio State

Round 2: Phillip Dorsett, WR, Miami (FL)

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

No team has ever used both a first- and second-round draft choice on receivers in the same year, but with only one experienced receiver on the roster in Anquan Boldin, it’s not entirely out of the question for the 49ers.

It doesn’t help that the 49ers’ next big need, defensive end, is weak in the second round.  By this point, Leonard Williams, Arik Armstead and Carl Davis should all be long gone.  The one true second-round 3-4 defensive end would be Preston Smith, but I don’t think he’ll slide down to the middle of the second round, either.   I briefly considered Arkansas’ Trey Flowers with this pick, but it would be a pretty massive projection to have him as a 3-4 end; he’s more of an outside linebacker in the 49ers’ system.

The 49ers could also take the top tight end off the board in Minnesota’s Maxx Williams, but if they’re looking for a pass-catcher, Dorsett’s the better option.  With a blistering 4.33-second 40-yard dash and incredible agility on display at the combine, Dorsett is a big-play receiver waiting to happen.  He’s undersized, which is why he’d fall to round two, but he could still develop into an NFL starter, at least at the slot position.

Other players considered:
Trey Flowers, DE/OLB, Arkansas
Maxx Williams, TE, Minnesota
Tyler Lockett, WR, Kansas State

Round 3: Henry Anderson, DE, Stanford

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

Danielle Hunter of LSU is a better value here, but he doesn’t fit as well into the 49ers’ system as Anderson would.  Anderson produced at Stanford, finishing third in the conference last season with 12.5 tackles for loss.  He’s one of those high-motor players who never takes a snap off.

He’s not super explosive and needs to develop a better array of pass-rushing moves, but he’s the kind of player you can develop with a mid-round pick like this one.

Ideally the 49ers would draft a defensive end before round three—if Preston Smith fell, for instance.  In that case, they could double up on receiver here instead with someone like Stanford’s Ty Montgomery or Florida State’s Rashad Greene.

Taking a defensive end earlier would also open this slot to taking a cornerback like Ohio State’s Dorian Grant.  If Oregon’s Ifo Ekpre-Olomu fell, he’d also be in consideration here.  The 49ers need to have one of their first four picks be a big defensive lineman to eventually replace Justin Smith, however, and this is the best place for it.

Other players considered:
Danielle Hunter, DE, LSU
Markus Golden, DE, Missouri
Doran Grant, CB, Ohio State

Round 4: Nick O’Leary, TE, Florida State

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This will almost assuredly be Vernon Davis’ last season in the red and gold, unless he has a monster bounce back from his injury-plagued, ineffective 2014.  The 49ers already have some pass-catching options at the position, but no one to really replicate Davis’ old blocking style—Vance McDonald was taken with a second-round pick in 2013 but hasn’t fully developed yet.

O’Leary looks like an H-Back type.  He’s played on the line of scrimmage, out of the slot and out of the backfield at Florida State, so he’s versatile.  He’s a very solid blocker and has sure hands, though he’s not a game-breaker at the position.  He would shore up the 49ers’ blocking schemes in their run-first philosophy, and might eventually compete to take Bruce Miller’s role in the offense.

I considered Iowa State’s E.J. Bibbs here as well—he’s much more of a pass-catching tight end with very solid hands.  He doesn’t have any explosiveness in his receiving game, though, and O’Leary is a much better blocker, so I went with him.  If Stanford’s Alex Carter falls, this might be a spot to shore up the secondary, as well.

Other players considered:
E.J. Biggs, TE, Iowa State
Ramik Wilson, OLB, Georgia
Tye Smith, CB, Towson

Round 4 Compensatory: Sean Mannion, QB, Oregon State

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Colin Kaepernick will be the starting quarterback in 2015 without a doubt.  His contract, however, is such that the 49ers could move on in 2016 if he has another poor season.  While such a poor season would likely correspond with a high draft pick next season, there’s no harm in taking a developmental player just in case this year.

Anyway, the 49ers currently have no one on the roster behind Kaepernick at the position, so they’ll need someone back there in case Kaepernick gets hurt.  While a veteran backup makes the most sense in free agency, a rookie for competition purposes still can fit.

Mannion’s a four-year starter who looks like an NFL player, albeit one without a cannon for an arm.  He’s accurate, has very good form and is comfortable in a variety of reads and drops from under center.  He’s not going to wow you with his physical abilities, so his ceiling might be as a comfortable backup. He’s definitely worth using a mid-round pick on.

Other players considered:
Jalston Fowler, FB, Alabama
Jacorey Shepherd, CB, Kansas
Mike Hull, OLB, Penn State

Round 5: Ladarius Gunter, CB, Miami (FL)

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

At this point in the draft, the two largest remaining needs for the team would be depth at the cornerback position and another competitor on the interior of the offensive line.   I think the 49ers are, in general, all right for this season going with Alex Boone and Brandon Thomas as their two guards, but a draft choice wouldn’t go amiss.

That’s why I considered guards Robert Myers and Trent Brown here, but instead finally decided to go with the superior player in Gunter.  At 6’1” and 202 pounds, Gunter fits the mold of a large NFL cover corner.  He’s also versatile, having played safety and in the slot at Miami as well.  He also has special team experience, which comes in handy with a player taken this late in the draft.

He doesn’t have the speed to be a top-level cornerback in the league, and he’s better in zone than man-to-man coverage, but that’s just why he’s a fifth-rounder and not a Day 2 player.  He’d fit in well as depth, developing behind Tramaine Brock, Jimmie Ward and Dontae Johnson.

Other players considered:
Robert Myers, OG, Tennessee State
Troy Hill, CB, Oregon
Trent Brown, OG, Florida

Round 6: Zach Hodges, OLB, Harvard

Gregory Payan/Associated Press

Hodges is definitely a project at the NFL level—he doesn’t have the raw size at only 250 pounds to compete at outside linebacker, and there’s questions about the level of competition he faced at Harvard.  However, he has the athleticism I like to see from a developmental pass-rusher—a good initial burst and ability to change directions quickly to account for scrambling quarterbacks or play-action fakes.

The 49ers don’t need to start a new pass-rusher right away, anyway—they have the likes of Aldon Smith and Aaron Lynch for now.  Hodges could spend some time on the bottom of the roster or the practice squad, bulking up and continuing to learn the position.  He could serve as some insurance in case Smith has more off-field issues in the future.

This is another draft slot that could be used on a guard, with Florida State’s Josue Matias and Texas A&M’s Jarvis Harrison being potential picks as well.  All in all, however, I’d stick with Hodges and his edge-rushing potential here.

Other players considered:
Josue Matias, OG, Florida State
Jarvis Harrison, OG, Texas A&M
David Perry, DT, Stanford

Round 7: Leon Brown, OG, Alabama

Jonathan Bachman/Associated Press

I couldn’t go the entire draft without taking a guard, even if I think the position is better off than others do.

At 6’6” and 320 pounds, Brown has NFL-caliber size, and has shown some potential to be a mauling, physical interior lineman at the NFL level.  He doesn’t have ideal power and he’s not going to be able to keep up with the most athletic tackles in the NFL—he’s a backup rather than a starter, essentially.  He has the potential to develop into something greater, however, and seventh-round picks are wildcards as it stands.  If he flames out, it’s not a huge deal, but he has the potential to have a long career on the bottom of a depth chart.

Other players considered:
John Crockett, RB, North Dakota State
Blaine Clausell, OT, Mississippi State
Al Bond, OG, Memphis

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