D-
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers got the worse of every deal, and it shows in the D-.
by Travese ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 3 steals
· 1 reaches
Every swap seemed to tilt away from the 49ers, and the value they bled adds up to real damage.
The Melton pick reads as want over need, and the roster will feel it at running back, interior defensive lineman and other spots. They will regret leaving running back for another day if the season turns on it.
If Melton pans out, nobody remembers the price. If not, this is the pick they hear about. The Johnson pick is the one they will point to when this weekend is judged.
Bottom line, they will need several of these picks to beat their grades just to break even, and running back is still a hole.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 31st overall pick they get an anchor for the offensive line. The biggest hole, addressed.
Johnny Wilson is a better player than pick 37 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A reasonable price with a little left over, Cooper DeJean in pick No. 63. A minor itch, scratched.
By-the-book stuff, Kamren Kinchens at slot 69 squarely in line with his ranking. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
Zach Frazier at No. 94 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They paid sticker price for Kiran Amegadjie in the Round 3 slot, and that is fine. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending Round 4, Pick 6 on Max Melton with running back, interior defensive lineman and other spots unsolved.
A tidy bit of business in the 177th pick, where Zy Alexander graded well above the range. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
A slide stopped in the 227th pick, with Cornelius Johnson worth more than the price. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.