Hello Draftmas My Old Friend

Too long? Scroll to images at the bottom for the good stuff

It's been three-and-a-half long years since I last breathed life into this virtual space.

Lynch, Shanny and Jimmy are a tonic for the malaise that infected my fandom the past few seasons. I watched from across the ocean, went silent; returned, maintained that silence; but now... now I'm fully back. (Maybe.)

It's fucking draft time baby.

Hello again the to the Big Board. Hello again to useless mocks. Hello again to parking my ass in front of a television for hours to watch Doritos commercials as an antecedent to Roger Goodell misreading names off a glossy piece of cardstock.

Not even Reuben Foster can dampen the good spirits I'm feeling toward the football world right now. Well, OK, he can dampen them, but not enough to put out these rekindled flames.

Ready or not, here comes the heat.

Somewhere in the archives there's an overly lengthy post regarding how I come up with this Big Board. Suffice it to say that while that explanation may serve to enlighten readers on my process, it probably no longer reflects the true nature of the process.

I've gotten busier, lazier and rustier since then.

Still, I've always touted my own abilities as an armchair GM, and even with an abbreviated "scouting" process, I have no problem proudly stamping my name on the following list.


The Big Board was constructed with these considerations:

• IMPACT
• Players given a "Blue Chip" or "First Round" grade are likely to be good or great regardless of what team and scheme they play in

• POSITIONAL VALUE
• It's all well and good to rank players irrespective of their position, but I'm not doing advanced scouting on these guys for a year or more with a whole team of scouts at my disposal. QBs, EDGE players, and Tackles are going to get pushed up the board over similarly rated RBs and LBs. 

• 49ERS
• After the first round, things get murky. Players have less elite qualities (seemingly) and scheme fit needs to be considered. A guy like Isaiah Oliver, a tall corner with great length, is going to get pushed ahead of a similarly rated CB in Jaire Alexander, a shorter guy with great athleticism, because the 49ers play a Seattle style cover-3. 

• CHARACTER/MEDICAL
• This effects far fewer players on my board than it would in a real NFL draft room, as I am obviously privy to WAY less information than NFL teams. Still, it's well-publicized that Arden Key has/had some sort of off-the-field issues. That is taken into consideration. Likewise, I've seen reports (via WalterFootball.com) Leighton Vander Esch may be medically redflagged. Though not a first rounder in my book regardless, this news did push him down the board a bit. 

Blue Chippers

the best of the best

• Maybe the only surprise here is the inclusion (and high ranking) of Derwin James. Ultimately the guy is an elite, explosive athlete with great instincts and superb cover skills for a man of his size. The size, speed and hitting ability he can bring to any style of NFL defense is worthy of a top-5 pick in almost any draft. 

• No QBs - I've made the mistake of Blue Chipping unworthy QBs before because I thought they'd go top 5. Just because a QB is worthy of going No. 1 (like Mayfield or Darnold in this class), doesn't make them a can't-miss Blue Chipper. 

• Edmunds just made the cut for me. The more I watched him, the less I loved him. He's great when he has his eyes on a ball carrier, but gets lost too often when he can't diagnose the play. He's more of a run and chase artist than developed linebacker. Still, he's not even 20 and he's 6' 5" 250+ and runs a sub 4.6. Enough said. 

First Rounders

The Real Good

• Minkah just missed the cut for me. He's so, so solid on tape, but his best position appears to be slot cornerback, which, while increasingly valuable, is not a premier impact position. He also is not the elite athlete I hope to see when bestowing Blue Chip status on a player. 

• I've gone back and forth on Mayfield and Darnold since the end of the season. In the end, Mayfield's accuracy is just too good for me to rate Darnold ahead of him. Accuracy, for me, has to be at the top of the list of necessary traits for a QB. 

• I'm a big Harold Landry and James Daniels guy.

Second Rounders

The probably pretty good

• Per multiple media outlets Josh Allen is a strong possibility for the Browns at No. 1 overall. Far be it from me to question John Dorsey, but fuck me that would be a huge reach. Look, I get it, he's big and throws the ball like few on earth ever have, but he's inaccurate and needs a ton of work on the mental aspects of the game. He's just too big of a dice roll for any franchise to use a top 10 pick on, much less the unluckiest franchise in (arguably) all of sports. 

• I'm a big Austin Corbett and Michael Gallup guy.

Third Rounders

The could-be-goods

• I think Dorance Armstrong is being hugely overlooked as a potential mid-round fix for the LEO position. A scheme change in 2017 led to a horrible sack output, but he has the physical profile to be an impact at the position.

• Quenton Meeks, 6'2" Stanford CB with long arms, is such a perfect fit for us in the third round that there is absolutely zero chance we actually take him. It's a cosmic mystery how these things happen. 

• If the 49ers don't opt for Roquan Smith or Tremaine Edmunds at No. 9 their third round picks are a sweet spot for a potential Reuben Foster replacement. Darius Leonard, Malik Jefferson, Fred Warner and Josey Jewell are all potential fits and good value in this range. 

Fourth Rounders

Role players/Developmental Moonshots

• I could add another 20-30 guys who belong in this range but wanted to highlight this group of players for their specific fits on the 49ers.

• I clearly like a lot of running backs in this draft, but I think my favorite fit is Royce Freeman in the 4th round. He's a big, experienced runner with good one-cut vision and he'd complement our smaller, shiftier backs extremely well. 

• Duke Ejiofor and Kemoko Turay are polar opposites as potential LEO fits. Ejiofor lacks the athletic upside, but has positional versatility and great motor and technique. Turay is raw, but dripping with potential. He had just 4.5 sacks in his last collegiate season.

• I had to show Shaquem the love. 

Tune in tomorrow for my first and only mock of draft season!