My question is what is the plan going into the 2021 Draft as a NFL GM and/or more specifically John Lynch?
There are several ways I would approach the Draft due to many college teams playing as few as 6 games and many prospects having opted out before/during the season. If I were John Lynch, I would lean heavily on my scouting department and try to acquire as many picks between rounds 3-5. This seems to be the "sweet spot" for this regime over the years. Players like Warner, Kittle and Greenlaw have been found in this part of the draft.
The 49ers currently have 9 picks in the 2021 Draft:
1st Rounder
2nd Rounder
#3rd Rounder (compensation for Salah)
4th Rounder
5th Rounder
*5th Rounder (from NO for Kwon Alexander)
6th Rounder
7th Rounder
7th Rounder (from NYJ in Jordan Willis trade)
# Widely reported that Salah will land a HC job
* It has been reported that Alexander has likely met playing time requirements to trigger a 2021 5th from NO
~There are possible compensation picks to be gained from Free Agent losses~
Plan A for me would be for Lynch to move back a handful of slots in the 1st Round to gain an extra 2nd or 3rd rounder (more likely a third). I think moving back to about 19-21 overall would allow for several options whether it be taking a CB/OL that they like or an EDGE rusher.
Plan B for me would be for Lynch to stay at 13-15 and take a CB like Surtain or Farley and then trade back in the second round to pick up more mid rounders.
I think Lynch and Shanahan can put the franchise in great shape for the future this offseason. The roster is already one of the best in football. Reliability and productivity from the QB position is by far the greatest need in my humble opinion. I think if you can couple the acquisition of a QB like Matthew Stafford with the above draft strategy, we will be set up for years to come. I look at it this way:
We are in the NFC which has some teams with aging QB's who will be retiring very soon (Brees, Brady) and some that are towards the back end of their career (Ryan, Rodgers). You've also got several non-contending teams that are either rebuilding or are stuck with mediocre QB's. Realistically, the main competition going forward are the Seahawks, Rams, Cardinals, Packers. I think the 49ers roster is significantly better than every one of them.
[ Edited by HarbaughzDeep on Dec 27, 2020 at 2:40 PM ]