The San Francisco 49ers are one of the most creative teams in the NFL when it comes to the draft and this year they could be in position to trade up for a name like Mike Evans or Brandin Cooks in the first round, while head coach Jim Harbaugh is looking at quarterback options and players like Derek Carr, David Fales and AJ McCarron could be in the mix for the Niners.
The 49ers have long been linked to Evans, as he is considered to be the top receiver behind Sammy Watkins and with the Clemson star likely going in the top 10, teams have started to position themselves as an option for Evans. For the 49ers to get the Texas A&M star, they will have to trade up and the way Harbaugh and Trent Baalke operate in the draft, that is a realistic possibility, as they have once again been hoarding draft picks heading into 2014. The team started off with 13 this offseason and they had 11 to work with before getting another compensatory pick and while that can't be traded, it opens up possibilities for the other picks.
The Niners have the number 30 pick in the first round and they are well set for a deal, as they have two second round picks and three third round picks, with two of those eligible for trades. The team gave up a pick in 2015 for Jonathan Martin and a pick for Blaine Gabbert and now Harbaugh could look to maneuver in the draft again. ESPN.com reported about Harbaugh talking about having a solid third receiver next season and this comes after the team used three receiver sets less than anyone in the NFL last year.
The team has Anquan Boldin back, but he is getting older, while Michael Crabtree is still not a year removed from serious surgery and that could lead to the Niners taking Evans or Marqise Lee in the draft. Evans is coming off of a fantastic year with 69 catches for 1,394 yards and 12 touchdowns and that came after he had over 80 catches for 1105 yards the season before and a number of teams will be looking at him as a target. Harbaugh traded for Gabbert, but that may noit stop him from drafting a name like Carr or Fales, as ESPN.com reports that the coach plans on working out both players ahead of the NFL draft.
In three seasons Cooks has put together some amazing numbers, making 226 receptions for over 3,000 yards and 24 touchdowns and over half of that on both counts came last season. Oregon State was one of the most pass happy teams in the nation, but production is production and Cooks ended up with 128 catches last season for 1,700 yards and 16 touchdowns and that followed his sophomore season when he had 67 catches and over 1,150 yards along with five touchdowns. Cooks scored twice as many touchdowns last season as he did in his first two years combined and that type of production could be huge for the Niners in the red zone.
