jterry with the pick...
The 49ers have many holes filled with good players (Michael Crabtree, Patrick Willis, Vernon Davis, and Frank Gore), but they also have quite a few holes left to be filled.
With Scot McCloughan out, Mike Singletary will have more of a say in the team's draft this year. I see Singletary targeting a high character, defensive player.
Cornerback, Joe Haden, fits this description perfectly.
While this pick may not fill the 49ers' biggest need, cornerback was a position where the Niners struggled last year. Nate Clements underperformed and was benched in-season, and Shawntae Spencer had a solid season and could provide some veteran mentoring for Haden. Haden showed a much improved time from his Combine 40 (4.57) to his Pro Day 40 (4.43), which answers the questions that faced him when he left Indianapolis. Haden would give a lot of value to the 49ers, because his speed and timing allow him to be an effective blitzer, and his coverage and ball skills would help the defense that was good overall but ranked 29th in the NFL in passing.
Tackle and finding a pass rusher are bigger needs for this team, but the Seahawks' pick of Bulaga leads me to believe the next best OT will still be there for the 17th pick, and Haden's talent will be too much to pass on for Singletary.
Number
Team
Position
Player
Selected by
1
St. Louis Rams
QB
Sam Bradford
UCrawford
2
Detroit Lions
DT
Ndamukong Suh
upamtn
3
Tampa Bay Bucs
DT
Gerald McCoy
Larryemcdaniel
4
Washington Redskins
OT
Russell Okung
ChuckDiesel
5
Kansas City Chiefs
S
Eric Berry
ChiefsFan90s
6
Seattle Seahawks
OT
Bryan Bulaga
Matt Conner
7
Cleveland Browns
QB
Jimmy Clausen
HIV2Elway
8
Oakland Raiders
OT
Bruce Campbell
mushin
9
Buffalo Bills
OT
Anthony Davis
ArrowDread
10
Jacksonville Jaguars
DE
Derrick Morgan
GenericBrand
11
Denver Broncos
WR
Dez Bryant
kcsno56