Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Looking around at various NFL mock drafts, there does not seem to be a consensus on who the San Francisco 49ers should select in the first-round. With the No. 31 pick in the first-round, it is tough to predict who will be available when the 49ers select.

A majority of mock drafts I have seen do have the 49ers picking a player on defense. That makes sense, because the one hole they need to fill on offense is at wide receiver. And I don’t see the 49ers front office selecting a wide receiver two years in a row. Especially with the non-production the team got out of wide receiver A.J. Jenkins, who was picked in the first round by San Francisco last year.

Here are some highlights of the mock drafts out there:

NFLMocks.com

FanSided.com’s own mock draft website has the 49ers selecting defensive tackle Kawann Short from Purdue: Justin Smith isn’t getting any younger, and the Niners could be losing some DL depth this offseason to free agency. Short would be a solid pickup for them.

NFL.com

Over at NFL.com they have the front office selecting cornerback Jamar Taylor from Boise St.: Taylor is one of my favorite players to watch on tape. He is physical, fast and possesses good ball skills. This might be a little earlier than expected but his style of play fits perfectly with the 49ers defense.

NationalFootballPost.com

In their current mock draft, National Football Post has general manager Trent Baalke taking defensive end Datone Jones from UCLA: After Justin Smith was injured their defense did not play at the same level during the playoffs. Jones is the versatile type of defensive linemen who can be effective rushing the passer and defending the run from any alignment, which makes him an ideal fit for the 49ers defense.

SportingNews.com

The Sporting News has the Niners selecting defensive tackle Jesse Williams from Alabama: The 49ers could use a younger linchpin at nose tackle to replace Isaac Sopoaga. Williams, the Australian sensation with the national champs, can be a mighty force in their 3-4.

FoxSports.com

Over at Fox Sports, they are claiming San Francisco will go with defensive tackle Jonathan Hankins from Ohio State: The 49ers, even before we see what they get for Alex Smith, have an insane 14 draft picks this year. Look for them to be moving all over the place. With a loaded roster of young talent, the 49ers can take the best player on the board.

Update: Click here to see Niner Noise’s latest NFL Mock draft by Ryan Sakamato. Keep checking back for updated mock drafts.

Credit: Kyle Terada-US PRESSWIRE

During the offseason San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke made his job a little easier for the NFL draft starting on Thursday.  By taking care of most of the teams needs in free agency, Baalke could draft the best player available when the 49ers select at No. 30 in the first-round, and it would still be a value pick regardless of what position is selected.

With all 11 starters returning on defense and ten of the 11 starters on offense who finished last season on the roster returning, the 49ers have free reign with their first-round selection.  With the addition of Mario Manningham, Randy Moss, Brandon Jacobs and the re-signing of Alex Smith, the offense returns well intact with added upgrades.  Former 49ers right guard Adam Snyder, who signed with Arizona, is the only starter not returning.

This leaves the 49ers with a need at right guard which is the position I think they should go after in the first-round.  Currently, the only options at the position are Alex Boone and Daniel Kilgore who have zero starts between them.  However, my prediction in the first-round for the 49ers is they will not only draft a guard, but will trade up into the top-20 of the draft to do so.

Conventional wisdom says if a team is stacked with solid starters on both sides of the football and has only one or two needs on the roster, the team should trade down instead of up in the draft.  But for the 49ers to have a solid starter at right guard for the upcoming season, the best option is the draft at this point.  I don’t see Boone or Kilgore being capable starters in protecting Alex Smith or opening up running lanes for Frank Gore.  There is no way the 49ers find a starting right guard at pick No. 30 for the up coming season.

Baalke has a great track record of selecting first-round players who contributed successfully to the 49ers in their rookie season.  Last year Baalke went with Aldon Smith at the 7th pick and he contributed with 14 sacks, tying a rookie record.  In 2010, the 49ers had two first-round picks and selected right tackle Anthony Davis, at pick No. 11, and left guard Mike Iupati, at pick No. 17.  Both offensive linemen started every game as rookies.

The best guard available in the draft is David DeCastro from Stanford.  DeCastro will most likely be selected somewhere between the 10^th and 20^th picks in the draft.  Now, you would think the 49ers would have to sell the farm in order to move up into the top-20 but recent history shows the 49ers would not have to give up a lot to trade up.  The last team to have the 30^th pick in the draft and trade up into the top-20 was the Eagles in 2003.  The Eagles traded their 30^th and 62^nd draft picks with the Charges in exchange for their 15^th pick.  The 49ers have 61^st overall pick (second-round) in this year’s draft.  This would mean the 49ers would not pick for 77 selections in between their first draft pick (15^th) and their second draft pick (92^nd, third-round).  But it would be worth it to get a bona fide guard who played for Jim Harbaugh in his last year coaching at Stanford.  DeCastro is the best guard in the draft because he was a starter for three years in college and was the featured run blocker opening up lanes for the Cardinal running game.

There is no guarantee DeCastro will still be available at the 15^th pick and the 49ers might have to give up more than just their first- and second-round draft picks to land inside the top-20 of the draft.  But with right guard being the only true need for the 49ers and their biggest hole on the offensive line, it would be well worth the risk and price.

You always try to go through the offseason and take care of as many of the needs as possible. That’s part of free agency, addressing needs. As your team gets deeper, you hope to have fewer needs, which should allow you to concentrate on the best-player-available formula. (Trent Baalke)

Recent Niner Noise draft coverage: 2012 NFL Draft: Who Will the 49ers Pick? Nobody Has a Clue

Even though it is impossible and the 49ers have other holes to fill, the offense should be the only focus of the draft. The first round pick should be a wide receiver. Whether it is Cal’s DeSean Jackson, Indiana’s James Hardy, or Texas’ Limas Seed, the 49ers need to draft a speedy wide receiver that will fit in well with Mike Martz’s passing offense. DeSean Jackson is the best of the wide receivers the 49ers should draft if he is still available at pick 29. Jackson will learn to become a great wide-out under veteran Isaac Bruce, excel in Martz’s pass happy no run offense with his speed and he will be added help in the return game. If the 49ers draft Jackson, he will probably be the number 3 receiver on roster allowing him to learn the offense and not have the added pressure of being the go to receiver. With the remaining picks the 49ers should draft in this order: Offensive lineman, defensive line, wide receiver, cornerback, offensive lineman.