Here we are on draft day 2012, and the concensus for who the San Francisco 49ers will pick is all over the board. RG, WR, RB, CB, DT, and C have all been bandied about by the draft wonks out there. Thing is, picking at the back end means a lot more uncertainty out there than when you pick near the top. Guys who should be long gone can hang around til the 2nd round, or guys who are projected in the 2-3 rounds get snapped up early. In 2010, it was fairly certain that the Niners would draft O line help in the 1st round. Both picks? Maybe not, but they were going to take a lineman with one of those 2 first round picks, regardless. Last year? Well, no one on Earth had the words ‘Aldon Smith’ next to the Niners at 7 last year. 10,000 mocks didn’t have Smith anywhere near 7 in the draft. He was seen as a raw athletic guy who was a borderline 1st rounder. Baalke and the scouts obviously did a good job scouting and hiding the fact they wanted him, But I’m 100% certain that no one else would have picked him had they KNOWN the Niners wanted him at 7.
Frankly, Baalke’s drafts have been flat amazing. He has a lot to live up to given the fact that a lot of his picks these last 2 drafts are starting for a good team and are up-an-coming stars. All that being said, the guys that appear to be on the short list are:
WR Stephen Hill
RB Robert Turbin
TE Coby Fleener
G Amini Silatolu
SS Harrison Smith
CB Janoris Jenkins
DT Chandler Jones
The more I think about this, the more I’m leaning toward the Niners going with a Right Guard. That is pretty much a position that can be filled from the get-go without a whole lot of anguish. And it is the biggest weakness on a team that has improved itself with those string drafts, and key FA acquisitions these past 2 years.
One of the more interesting aspects of this is the trading up/down. Baalke has done a fair bit of wheeling and dealing these past 2 years. Last year, Baalke traded up in the 2nd to get Kappy Kaepernick. He traded down in the 3rd round last year to gain a 6th round pick (Ronald Johnson. Ooops). He traded up in the 4th to get Kilgore Trout. The year before, he traded up in the 1st to get Anthony Davis, traded up in the 1st to get Iupati, and traded down in the 3rd round to get Navorro Bowman (!), as well as Anthony Dixon. The dude loves the deal. In short, the guy is quietly proving himself to be an outstanding GM.
So, gimme your guesses as to how the Nines fill their first 2 spots in the draft. Or, what the hell. Gimme all your picks for all 7. Here’s mine:
1. G Amini Silatolu
2. WR Rueben Randle
3. RB Lamar Miller
4. CB Omar Bolden
5. NT Akiem Hicks
6. OT Levy Adcock
7. WR Jordan White
Forty Niners Forever 
I was steadfast from the get-go saying “NO Whitey Fleener or WR” in the 1st round. I stand by my conviction. A.J. could turn out to be the next J.R. or the next Rashaun Woods. Your guess is as good as mine. The talent pool at WR was, is such, that going that route at 30 is a mistake IMO. Compound that mistake by taking a guy by most estimations who is a “reach.” Compound that mistake after the team signed both Moss and Manningham in the off season.
Just how many receivers do you think you can send out on a given play? Sounds to me like we might have to lose one. I know. Did we trade Vernon Davis yet?
My guess is always better than yours..anyway, stick to the horses. Or did they bankrupt you? Manning applied for permanent disabilty, hedging his bets… maybe you can get a job tying his shoes for him…
Would that be the same permanent disability applicant that the Niners tried to sign in favor of Alex Smith? If Peyton Manning is on permanent disability, Alex Smith doesn’t even qualify to hold his blue handicapped parking placard.
You’re going to lose a shitload of money on Manning this year, just as you lost out on winning a bunch on Smith last year.
The Draft……we really know nothing. One big crapshoot!
We know Holmgren is senile as all hell. Who waz it said we needed him as our coach/GM? Nobody from around here I hope…
Not me. I don’t like fat guys.
I’m sure Chuck would agree with a loud BLEEP!
Wasn’t just Baalkebaugh thinking AJ Jenkins’ gonna be pretty good:
http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcwest
A.J. who? Well, turns out personnel people around the league, and specifically in St. Louis, knew plenty about Jenkins.
Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Rams had Jenkins ranked nearly as high as Oklahoma State receiver Justin Blackmon, who went to Jacksonville with the fifth overall choice. He says the Rams “almost certainly” have to take a receiver with the first pick of the second round. Thomas: “League sources told the Post-Dispatch on Thursday afternoon that the Rams liked Jenkins so much that his grade wasn’t much different than the one given Blackmon by the team’s personnel department.” Noted: That Thomas’ sources passed along that information in the afternoon is noteworthy. At that point, the Rams presumably would have wanted to explain why they felt OK failing to land Blackmon. They would not have known Jenkins would land in San Francisco. This lends credence to the idea St. Louis liked Jenkins quite a bit. The Rams hold the first pick of the second round, so they’ll have first crack at the next receiver, should they choose to target that position.
SANDO’S NFC WEST Blog
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/tony_pauline/04/24/draft.late.risers/index.html?eref=si_mostpopular
Good article about who was thought to be up and comers in the draft. The thing is, what the public gets from the myriad draft wonks out there is a lot different than how NFL GMs rate these guys. Aldon Smith being a case in point. Last year, there were plenty of teams that had A Smith on their radar, but no one outside the war rooms were very high on the guy. Sure, there are no-brainers, but lots of guys who were projected as 2nd-3rd rounders were actually a lot higher on a lot of boards.
And Dennis, shut the fuck up. You were all ready to get pissed off at the Niners picking Silatolu. So give it a rest. You would have railed at whoever they picked.
Nice article, Phil. It goes to show that no one really knows who these guys are targeting. Aside from the obvious ones.
Yeah, I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall at Dennis’s house when the Niners chose JRice out of Miss. You went ballistic didn’t you Dennis?? come on admitt it.Not only Rice but I would have loved to have heard your comments on the Skinny little Kid from Notre Dame the Niners drafted for a QB.
According to the SacBee, AJ has some huge hands 9 7/8 inches. So yeah, there is no telling how good this kid is till the games begin. He did look good in College so we shall see.
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