Senior Bowl practice comment

Senior Bowl Game

East West Shrine Game

Player who will have a better NFL career than many drafted higher than him.

Player who will have a better NFL career than many drafted higher than him.

Player who will have a better NFL career than many drafted higher than him.

B

2009 COLLEGE DRAFT REPORT CARD

by Jay Goldberg

The 49ers' draft was saved by the signing of three high quality college street free agents, Lambert, Mitchell and Sheets.  Outside of that they had one reach, Coffee and one good get late, Jean-Francis.

DRAFT PICKS

What can you say about the 49ers selection of Crabtree except, lucky for you.  Crabtree fell to San Fran at #10 and despite having some good young talent at wide receiver, they did the right thing and drafted him.  Crabtree, Morgan, Hill, and yes, even Zeigler form one of the best young receiving corps in the NFL.

The 49ers had Coffee rated higher than I did.  At running back I had Andre Brown, Goodson, Ringer and even Kory Sheets rated much higher than Coffee.  In addition to those backs, I would have drafted CB Lewis, SS Vaughn, or FS Bruton over Coffee.

McKillop was a nice selection in round five.  Long term he could settle in next to Willis.  McKillop has very good instincts and makes a lot a tackles.  He is also a better athlete than he appears.

Nate Davis saw his value decline as the draft approached.  He has a learning disability, poor technique and is not the athlete that he was thought to be.  Personally, I would have drafted Lewis in round three, running back Javon Ringer here and signed Nathan Brown as a free agent.  I like Hill and do not believe Davis will be able to beat him at at any point in the future.

Pascoe is an intriguing prospect.  He is a good blocker and has excellent hands.  His speed is suspect, but he is the type of player that despite his lack of speed will make the occasional play downfield.  He will be a good backup tight for the 49ers for a long time.

Taylor has good size and is a good athlete, and will help on special teams but has a limited upside in the base defense.  For me, C. J. Spillman of Marshall would have been a more intriguing pick here, he is a better athlete and has a bigger upside.

Ricky Jean-Francis was very good value late.  Here is the case of player who looked very good at time on film, but didn't show the athleticism or quickness expected of him during workouts.  The only player I might have grabbed instead of him was Khalif Mitchell who the Niners signed as a free agent.

 COLLEGE STREET FREE AGENTS

Boone is a big, strong kid who is an ideal practice squad candidate where he will have to show a good attitude, stay out of trouble, and perform consistently to get a call up to the active roster.  Boone could be a steal as a free agent or be out of the league in a hurry.

Egboh has the size and quickness to play play end in the 49ers' 3-4 defense.  He has a chance to stick as a backup this year.

Howard will have to play guard to make it in the NFL.  He needs work but has some skills and could land on the 49ers' development squad.

Lambert was a great college free agent signing. He's fast, quick and athletic and will be a better NFL player than he was a college player.  Worst case he will become a core special teams player.  However, I expect hom to be a solid nickel corner in time.

Mitchell is one of those rare players who has the strength to play inside in a 3-4 and the quickness and athleticism to play outside at end as well.  He will need coaching to bring out his best, but I expect him to be a valuable, versatile sub for a long time in the league.  And it wouldn't surprise me if he develops into a starter on the nose.

Sheets is a better runner than Coffee.  I look for Sheets to be Gore's primary backup.  Only his temperament can hold him back.  He is a very talented player.

Thomas is a cover-two corner who will have a hard time making this club.  However, he was solid at South Carolina.

Word-Daniels is a strong, athletic kid who will be a standout on special teams if he can show enough on defense to also be a backup corner or strong safety.  He lacks speed.

While the 49ers could have used a right tackle in this draft, I didn't see a missed opportunity and they accumulated good talent.  They also brought in some quality college street free agents.

DRAFT PICKS

Balmer a defensive tackle in college,  is ideal for end in the 49ers's 3-4 defense.  He will become a quality starter there sooner than later.  He is very strong and has good lateral movement and will be solid playing the run.

Rachal, a guard in college, could be looked at as a starter at both left guard and right tackle.  While I know he will be a good starting guard, I'm not sure if he can be an every down starter at right tackle, although he is athletic enough to make the switch.

Smith can play corner or safety.  His best attributes are his quickness, change-of-direction skills and athleticism.  At corner, I thought he would be best served in a cover-two or zone defense, although he could cover slot receivers well on a team with a good pass rush.  As a safety, he has requisite physical skills, and that may be his best long term position in the NFL.  In the short term, Smith copuld be an asset in the 49ers nickel defense and on special teams.

Wallace was excellent value in round four and is an impressive athlete for a center.  He is also a tough kid and a hard worker.  He does need to play with more consistency, but could be a long term starter at center for the 49ers.

Morgan is an interesting prospect.  He has a nice mix of speed, size and athleticism.  However, he dropped some balls in college and the Niners will have to determine if it was because of lack of concentration or bad hands.  

Grant was a player that went a bit under-valued by me during my draft prep because I looked at him solely as an outside linebacker.  However, in retrospect, he has the strength, speed and quickness to transition inside in a 3-4 defense despite being a little undersized for the position.  Grant should develop into a solid backup and good special teams player for San Fran. 

COLLEGE STREET FREE AGENTS

Finley has good size and showed good hands at the East West Shrine Game.  He needs work in the weight room to become a better blocker if he wants to stick as a backup tight end.  He is an ideal practice squad candidate.

Holmes was defensive end in college who has the quickness and athleticism to play outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense.  However, he had only 2 sacks his senior year.  Holmes is another practice squad candidate.

I like Robert Jordan.  While very slight, he is a tough kid with good hands and speed.  He needs to put on weight but is the type of receiver who could do well in the slot in a Mike Martz offense.  His odds of making the team may be long, but he'll be fun to watch in early preseason games.

 Parker has the look of a long-term NFL backup safety who excels on special teams.  It wouldn't surprise me if he captures one of the final roster spots.