San Francisco 49ers Are Reportedly Willing To Trade Away Both First Round Picks
The San Francisco 49ers have two picks in the first round of this week’s NFL draft, though a recent report indicates they may be looking to trade both. Adam Schefter reported on Twitter the Super Bowl runners up are fielding calls on both the 13th and 31st picks and aren’t shooting down the idea that deals can be made for either or both.
The 49ers might be willing to trade their first-round picks because they lack any picks in many of the subsequent rounds. After the 31st pick of the first round, the team isn’t due to make a selection again until the fifth round. General Manager John Lynch reportedly wants to have some middle-round selections.
Bleacher Report‘s Tyler Conway explained why the 49ers don’t have any middle-round picks. The 49ers owe their second-round selection to the Kansas City Chiefs as part of last year’s trade for defensive lineman Frank Clark. They also lost their third- and fourth-round picks to the Denver Broncos when they acquired wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders.
Conway pointed out the trade with the Broncos is especially painful because Sanders isn’t staying with the team, instead opting to move on via free agency. San Francisco is essentially short three players heading into draft week.
“You’re either getting better or getting worse. We’re into getting better. It becomes trickier with less draft equity and things of that nature, but we’ve got a lot of good players that are part of us moving forward as well,” Lynch said, speaking about their lack of picks in the upcoming draft.
Conway believes the team’s best bet for a steal at number 13 to acquire either quarterback Justin Herbert or Tua Tagovailoa, if he drops out of the Top 10. That seems less likely, as the New York Giants — who have the fourth overall pick — have been looking into Herbert, indicating they are either considering another first-round quarterback selection or believe someone else is willing to trade up to get him.
On the other hand, the 49ers are said to be quite interested in any one of three receivers. At least one of Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs, or CeeDee Lamb should still be available for the 13th selection. That means the 49ers aren’t desperate to trade away their 13th pick, but would be willing to if a team made a good enough offer. The team may be more willing to trade for their 31st pick, as it seems likely those three receivers will all have been selected by then.
