5 Bold Predictions for the 49ers in 2015 NFL Draft

If history repeats itself, general manager Trent Baalke and the San Francisco 49ers will select a defensive back in Round 1 of the 2015 NFL draft.

After all, San Francisco has tabbed a D-back in the first round of each of the last two drafts (safety Eric Reid and defensive back Jimmie Ward). Suggesting Baalke will do so again may be a bold prediction. Or maybe it isn't. The 49ers could use some help at cornerback this year, and there is some top-tier talent available when the team is set to draft at No. 15.

But Baalke doesn't always take the conventional route. He's made draft-day trades before—the flurry of moves in last year's draft are perfect examples—which lends to the possibility of additional bold actions on his part in 2015.

Will this be the case?

Predictions are little more than educated guesses. And it can be beneficial to a general manager to be unpredictable come the draft. Baalke being heralded as a "draft ninja" suggests this. Some contained herein may be bold.

Very bold, perhaps.

So what are some out-of-the-box moves that Baalke may engineer on draft day?

Let's take a look.

Aggressively Moving Up to Draft WR Kevin White

Prediction: San Francisco trades up to the No. 7 slot by sending off its own first-, second- and sixth-round picks in order to draft West Virginia wide receiver Kevin White.

Wide receiver Kevin White is a stud. His collegiate accolades and physical prowess (6'3", 215 pounds) have moved him into the No. 7 slot of prospects according to CBS Sports. One has to also note that CBS draft analysts Rob Rang and Dane Brugler currently have him mocked to the Chicago Bears with the seventh pick.

Assuming White stays at his No. 7 spot, the 49ers would have to execute some sort of dramatic trade-up in order to land the talented wide receiver.

Trent Baalke has executed similar draft-day moves before. He wasn't afraid to move up and select safety Erick Reid at No. 18 overall in 2013—a deal that cost the 49ers their own first- and third-round picks.

But moving from No. 15 to No. 7 is a bit more costly.

According to Walter Football's draft value chart, such a transaction would require something similar in value to the 49ers' first-, second- and sixth-round picks in order to pry the Bears' first-round selection away. And there is no guarantee that Chicago would want to move down from its prized position.

The asking price could be similar to what Baalke encountered a year ago when he tried to trade up for current New York Giants wideout Odell Beckham, per Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area. That cost was too high.

Will the asking price for White be similar?

"

Last year, #49ers decided price was too high for WR Odell Beckham. Now, they’ll consider Amari Cooper or Kevin White. http://t.co/di1VcLUiU0

— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoCSN) April 5, 2015"

But if Baalke decides that this is the year in which to be aggressive, White would make an excellent target.

49ers Land Two First-Round Picks

Scenario: 49ers use 15th overall pick on CB Marcus Peters. They send their second- and third-round picks to the New Orleans Saints to acquire the 31st overall pick. San Francisco then selects WR Dorial Green-Beckham.

The 49ers need a cornerback, and it isn't crazy to assume they'll take one like Washington's Marcus Peters at No. 15. This is what has been recently mocked by CBS Sports' Rob Rang.

"

#49ers GM Trent Baalke among the interested observers watching Marcus Peters' workout. pic.twitter.com/HANLharKc9

— Rob Rang (@RobRang) April 2, 2015"

That's fine and all. But the 49ers could use some help at wide receiver as well considering the fact that 34-year-old top-target wideout Anquan Boldin is entering a contract year.

Oklahoma receiver Dorial Green-Beckham has amazing talent equaled by off-the-field concerns. CBS Sports ranks him as the No. 34 overall prospect, which means he'll likely fall somewhere in between 49ers' picks in Rounds 1 and 2 despite his enormous talent.

So what if Trent Baalke wanted to get his hands on both Peters and Green-Beckham?

Such a move could be the dealing of San Francisco's own second- and third-round picks to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for their own 31st overall pick (from Seattle). The numbers add up, according to Walter Football.

Considering all the offseason transactions the Saints have made, another draft-day deal wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility.

The 49ers would be addressing two of their primary needs at a cost of, essentially, a third-round pick.

Trading out of Round 1 Entirely

Paul Sakuma/Associated Press

Trent Baalke has a knack for acquiring draft picks.

Scenario: The 49ers send off the No. 15 overall pick in exchange for a second-round pick in 2015 and a first-round pick in 2016.

Suggesting the 49ers move out of Round 1 in 2015 is pretty bold. But that's what this slideshow is about, right?

Assume for a moment that Trent Baalke's top targets in the first round are either off the board by the time No. 15 rolls around or that he feels as if remaining targets wouldn't have the same value at that slot. Trading down is always a possibility here.

But the extreme possibility could be a move that generates another second-round pick and a potential first-round selection the following year.

Such a move could be engineered in a number of ways and scenarios. The trade partner would have to feel the need to climb up to the 49ers' spot in Round 1 and would be comfortable enough to gamble away its first-round selection in 2016.

That would be a high price to pay. But there are always a few desperate teams looking to fill current voids immediately.

A less bold of a prediction would be a repeat of Baalke's trade efforts from a year ago. Remember the general manager's moves in the 2014 draft?

It wouldn't be surprising to see something similar happen again.

49ers Take RB Todd Gurley with Their First Pick

Prediction: San Francisco elects to draft Georgia running back Todd Gurley with its first pick in 2015.

You wanted bold, right?

Conventional wisdom would suggest the 49ers first targeting a collegiate prospect that fills one of their pressing needs: a cornerback, wide receiver or defensive lineman.

But what if Trent Baalke put off those needs and elected to reinforce a staple of San Francisco's offense?

The running game is what has powered the 49ers' offensive prowess for years. In 2014, San Francisco's ground attack gained 2,176 yards, which was good for No. 4 in the NFL.

Yet the 49ers lost their featured back when aging veteran Frank Gore departed via free agency. Speculation would lead one to believe that San Francisco would replace him with second-year pro Carlos Hyde in the No. 1 slot on the depth chart.

While the team could still do this, an outside-the-box thought could suggest San Francisco targeting Georgia running back Todd Gurley.

Ranked by CBS Sports as the No. 14 overall prospect in the draft—and the top prospect at his position—Gurley is seen as a player in the mold of Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch, per CBS Sports' Rob Rang.

Gurley suffered a torn ACL last November, which would be a major red flag for a lot of teams. But the 49ers could afford to work him into the rotation with Hyde and Kendall Hunter.

"

Surprising 49ers option in round one that wouldn't actually surprise me: Todd Gurley

— Tim G (@Reambler) April 11, 2015"

Gurley and Hyde could then combine to be a two-headed monster that would highlight San Francisco's ground game.

And this move wouldn't be as surprising if Baalke felt comfortable with the team's current depth and offseason acquisitions across the board.

Trading off Some Noteworthy Assets as Part of a Package

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

Linebacker Ahmad Brooks saw his playing time diminish after the emergence of fellow LB Aaron Lynch.

Scenario: 49ers trade away one of their noteworthy players such as linebacker Ahmad Brooks to either move up in a specific round or to gain draft picks in 2016.

The likeliest of bold predictions involves outside linebacker Ahmad Brooks and a trade possibility that would send the 31-year-old off to a team willing to exchange draft picks to San Francisco.

Brooks' playing time in 2014 was decreased thanks to the emergence of standout linebacker Aaron Lynch. Brooks and Lynch were tied for the team lead in sacks last year (six), but the younger Lynch is clearly in the 49ers' future plans.

The veteran linebacker has been linked to trade rumors before, so this wouldn't be anything new. Yet those rumors were in a different scenario.

San Francisco now has a glaring hole at inside linebacker after the retirements of Patrick Willis and Chris Borland. One might think that the 49ers could shift their excess linebacker to the inside—the position at which Brooks started when he broke into the NFL in 2006.

But this scenario has yet to be determined, according to head coach Jim Tomsula (h/t Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area and Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee). 

"No, and if we did, I really wouldn’t get into it," Tomsula said when asked if he had considered a position switch. "But, no, to this point. No, we haven’t. Obviously, we all know he played inside before. But we haven’t gotten into that."

"

Jim Tomsula said there have been no discussions "yet" about moving Ahmad Brooks back to ILB. Again, the guy is 270 lbs.

— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) March 23, 2015"

This keeps the thought of a draft-day trade involving Brooks a possibility. Trent Baalke could wait and see how the first couple rounds of the draft pan out before making such a move. And it's hard to imagine Brooks netting anything more than a third-round pick at this point in his career.

But Baalke has stretched out draft picks acquired via trades before. Look no further than the net results of the transaction that sent quarterback Alex Smith to the Kansas City Chiefs.

"

#49ers return package for Alex Smith: -Tank Carradine -Carlos Hyde -[Chris Borland] -Pick to trade up for Lemonier -4th round pick in 2015

— Christian Gin (@Christian_Gin) March 18, 2015"

Could Brooks net a similar return?

Baalke is the type of general manager who could make it happen.

All statistics, records and accolades courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com and Sports-Reference.com unless otherwise indicated. Supplemental draft information courtesy of CBS Sports.

Peter Panacy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report, covering the San Francisco 49ers. Be sure to check out his entire archive on 49ers news, insight and analysis.

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