The range of opinions is wide on how the 49ers should operate with their trio of third-round picks in this year’s draft. Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay offered their takes on what San Francisco should do with their selections in a dual three-round mock draft.
There’s at least some likelihood the 49ers wind up moving up on the second day of the draft where their first pick comes earlier than the 99th choice. However, they need to restock the cupboard at a handful of positions so utilizing all three picks wouldn’t be a huge shock.
San Francisco has a handful of pretty glaring needs, particularly at right tackle and tight end. Kiper and McShay forego those positions to tack on depth in the trenches and in the secondary. Their picks provide an interesting glimpse into what ESPN’s draft experts think of the 49ers’ roster, and given the selections, the urgency isn’t high to find contributors for this season:
Round 3, Pick 99 | OL Joey Fisher, Shepherd
Kiper’s explanation:
OK, last two picks for me, and they’re both for the 49ers, who have yet to draft a player. Let’s start with Fisher, who was invited to the Senior Bowl but couldn’t practice due to a broken hand. He had an impressive pro day, though, and I think he is likely going to play guard in the NFL. He isn’t ready to compete in 2023, but he has a ton of upside.
While depth on the interior of the offensive line is a need for San Francisco, picking up a Division II player who “isn’t ready to compete in 2023” doesn’t make a ton of sense for a club that anticipates contending for a Super Bowl this year.
The 49ers do need to start looking down the road a bit, but ideally it would be with a player who could help them right away and not need a year or two of seasoning to adapt to the NFL while making a position change.
Round 3, Pick 101 | DE YaYa Diaby, Louisville
Kiper’s explanation:
I just wrote about Diaby on Monday; he is my 10th-ranked defensive end. He broke out with 9.5 sacks last season. At 6-foot-3 and 263 pounds, he is a little undersized, but he has tools with which to work.
This selection makes a lot more sense for San Francisco. Diaby has good athleticism and was sometimes miscast at Louisville where he didn’t always get to line up wide and use his strength and athleticism to rush off the edge like he would with the 49ers. They need some quality depth at defensive end and Diaby could certainly provide it as a rotational pass rusher right away.
Round 3, Pick 102 | CB Tre'Vius Hodges-Tomlinson
McShay’s explanation:
The Niners went from 0 to 60 mph quickly, huh? After sitting out the first 98 picks, they’ve had three selections in a four-pick span. I considered Southern California defensive lineman Tuli Tuipulotu here to close out our three-round mock draft, but San Francisco’s cornerback depth is lacking, and Hodges-Tomlinson has good instincts and ball skills despite a smaller frame.
Cornerback depth is another need the 49ers have to address and doing so in the third round would make sense given that they don’t have a pick in the fourth. Hodges-Tomlinson measured just under 5-foot-8 and weighed in at 178 pounds. It’s hard to imagine him playing outside in the NFL, which means San Francisco would either move Samuel Womack outside or cut bait entirely with a player who was their starting nickel cornerback in Week 1 last year. A bigger CB who can compete outside right away might make more sense here even though Tomlinson is a good athlete who “has that dawg in him,” as the youths say.
