The San Francisco 49ers are sitting in a very favorable position for April's NFL after trading quarterback Alex Smith to the Kansas City Chiefs, as they now possess 14 picks for the event, one of the top totals in all of the league after trading for Anquan Boldin.
The 49ers felt they could trade Smith to Kansas City because of the emergence of Colin Kaepernick, who led the team to the Super Bowl after taking over as starter when Smith suffered a concussion. Kaepernick led the team to a win over the Bears and Smith never started another game for the 49ers.
The Chiefs received a former number one overall pick at quarterback with Smith and the 49ers added two draft picks, the number 34 selection in April's draft and a conditional pick for next year's draft as well. The two picks are very valuable to the 49ers, who could now trade selections for higher picks or even use them to acquire New York Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, which has been rumored for a week.
The team has needs at some positions more than others, like wide receiver, but chances are after making the Super Bowl there is no need to use all 15 picks, but the 49ers in a very favorable position to make deals on draft day.
The fact that the 49ers have so many draft picks also could mean Jim Harbaugh and general manager Trent Baalke could make a surprising move and trade for a backup quarterback. Could the name Tim Tebow be someone they would acquire?
"Do I see it?" Harbaugh said to Yahoo Sports. "Do I envision it? Is it possible? I mean, it's certainly possible. We're here to draft the best football players that we can. Feel good about having that many picks."
Now that Alex Smith is gone, the team will need a solid backup quarterback in case Kaepernick gets injured and even though Tebow was barley used with the Jets last season, there is a chance the 49ers could see some potential in him. Harbaugh made a controversial move in going with Kaepernick over Smith, who went 6-2-1 before suffering a concussion while completing over 70 percent of his passes.
Harbaugh is known as an outside-the-box thinker and the 49ers are in a position where they have a very good roster intact and could survive taking a risk like trading for Tebow.
Harbaugh also spoke about how the picks could greatly improve the team, despite making the Super Bowl and losing to the Ravens. The team also defeated the number one seed in the NFC by winning the championship game over the Atlanta Falcons.
"Uh, I think you can certainly assume that it would," Harbaugh said. "You comparing to last year? Seven picks last year? To say we'd be more active in the draft this year wouldn't get going out on a limb by saying we'll be more active this draft. I think that's true."
Although this draft is not considered top heavy at the skill positions like quarterback and running back, the 49ers could find some solid names late in the draft if some players fall due to injury reasons or uncertainty, like Georgia's Jarvis Jones or EJ Manuel or another quarterback.
The team has a wide range of options after the Alex Smith deal and the quarterback will be officially traded on March 12, meaning the 49ers have some time to figure out what they would like to do with their draft picks. The team will look up and down their draft board and if they see someone they like a lot there is a good chance they will trade up to get them.