B
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers cashed the board's mistake on Caldwell: B.
by bedlam ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 7 picks
· 2 steals
· 4 reaches
Every so often the board makes a mistake, and the 49ers were there to profit. Jeff Caldwell, the No. 192 name on the board, should have been long gone before the 217th overall pick.
For all the activity, running back went untouched, which is hard to explain. The cost of the Prysock reach is exactly the players who went right after him.
In short, they left a little better than they arrived, which is the whole idea.
Pick-by-Pick
A wild overpay on Malachi Lawrence in No. 34, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A straight-up fair deal on Chris Bell at pick No. 41, value and slot in agreement. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A top-tier offensive lineman at a bargain, Jake Slaughter in the 77th pick, plain and simple. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A premium they did not need to pay, Jakobe Thomas a notch or two before his time. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
A conviction pick on Isaiah World at slot 138 that the board grades a round light. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Ephesians Prysock. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
Jeff Caldwell at Round 7, Pick 1 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.