San Francisco 49ers: If 2012 was Trent Baalke’s worst NFL Draft, 2013 was almost as bad

Former San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke saw his downfall begin with the horrendous 2012 NFL Draft. But his 2013 efforts were almost as bad, and the Niners are still feeling the ramifications.

The fact we’re still talking about former San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke and his failed efforts in the 2012 NFL Draft speak measures to how hard the Niners fell from being a perennial Super Bowl contender to laughingstock in a few short years.

While 2012 rightfully earns the association of being Baalke’s worst class — and none of those players remain on San Francisco’s roster — 2013 isn’t much better.

Especially considering San Francisco came home with 11 draft picks that year.

It’s relevant now as the 2017 Niners, under current general manager John Lynch, are forced to right the mistakes made four years ago.

So why was 2013 nearly as bad as the year before? And how did the various mistakes made in that year’s NFL Draft compound the problem that eventually led to Baalke’s firing?

In this slideshow, we’ll evaluate how the 49ers’ 2013 draft class cost the team dearly when the disastrous 2015 offseason hit all the way through the present day.

We’ll consider the players selected, their respective impacts on the team and how the Niners are still paying for the mistakes today.

Let’s start by looking at the Niners draft class of that year.

The 49ers’ 2013 NFL Draft Class

It’s important to put Trent Baalke’s 2013 draft class into a bit of a context.

The 49ers that year boasted one of the deepest and most talented rosters in the NFL, and there were relatively few spots to make improvements and/or substitutions.

This, of course, gave Baalke the luxury of starting his “All-ACL” team experiments — sit on an injured player, whose draft stock fell, and wait a year and let those players make a serious impact later.

Two of the needs San Francisco had that year were at safety, to replace the free-agent departing Dashon Goldson, and to find a No. 2 tight end. And both were “addressed” in the first two rounds:

Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 6/9/2017.

Baalke moved up in Round 1 to grab former LSU safety Eric Reid, which seemed to work out at the time. Reid would make it to the Pro Bowl that year.

But the next two picks, defensive end Tank Carradine and tight end Vance McDonald, not so much.

Carradine and running back Marcus Lattimore were the first injured players drafted. And Lattimore never made an impact, retiring before he ever saw the field.

Things got even weirder in Round 3, when Baalke traded up again to nab former Auburn pass-rusher Corey Lemonier. More on him later.

Late-round picks, like defensive tackle Quinton Dial and cornerback Marcus Cooper, looked like they could have provided an impact. But Cooper never made the regular-season roster and went on to post seven interceptions and 35 passes defended over four years between the Kansas City Chiefs and Arizona Cardinals.

The “Impact” Players

Rounds 1 through 3 in any NFL Draft should provide notable talent. And San Francisco ended up taking home four picks in these three rounds.

Only one of them, safety Eric Reid, has made any notable impact.

Eric Reid

As noted, Reid went on to have a fine rookie season, making the Pro Bowl in what looked like would be a promising tenure with the 49ers.

But Reid’s career since then has been marked by injury concerns and has never replicated the kind of efforts seen back in 2013. He’s entering the final year of his contract this season and will see a switch to strong safety, which is probably best for his skill set.

Two picks later, the Chicago Bears drafted offensive lineman Kyle Long — a three-time Pro Bowler — which would have been a great addition to a Niners O-line that lost linemen Mike Iupati and Anthony Davis two years later.

Tank Carradine

Tank Carradine was one of the more prolific collegiate pass-rushers at Florida State, only his draft stock fell thanks to injury.

Getting him in Round 2 appeared to be a steal, as the Niners could rehab him and eventually work him into former 49ers defensive end Justin Smith’s replacement.

But Carradine was out of position in San Francisco’s then-3-4 defensive alignment, struggled to get on the field and has just four sacks in his pro career. Carradine was having a tremendous preseason a year ago, which seemed to warrant a one-year extension, but it’s unlikely the Niners retain him beyond 2017. He could even be cut prior to the regular season perhaps.

Sitting there a few picks later was current Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell. And Trent Baalke had to know he needed a replacement for then-starting running back Frank Gore.

Vance McDonald

I’ll admit, I was excited the 49ers grabbed former Rice tight end Vance McDonald. I remember reading somewhere McDonald was the closest thing in a tight end to Delanie Walker, who left via free agency that year.

We know McDonald’s issues. He had minimal impact his rookie season, and his subsequent campaigns have been marked by poor pass-catching ability and injuries.

More on that in a bit, but the Niners could have had current Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, who was taken eight picks later.

Corey Lemonier

Baalke moved up from No. 93 overall to No. 88 to grab former Auburn outside linebacker Corey Lemonier in Round 3 — a move intended to reinforce San Francisco’s pass rush.

Yet Lemonier never materialized into a significant pass-rushing force. I can’t recall how many times I watched Lemonier pushed behind the pocket, lacking the creative moves to get inside and to the quarterback.

So it shouldn’t be a surprise he registered only one sack with the Niners before being released prior to the 2016 season.

Meanwhile, defensive tackle Brandon Williams and offensive tackle David Bakhtiari were sitting there waiting. Both would have filled a need.

The “Best” 49ers Draft Picks from 2013

Eric Reid has been a solid contributor if not overly stellar. For a first-round pick, that’s OK.

But the Niners hardly got anything else afterwards.

Sure, hindsight is always 20-20. And we can easily look back now and judge Trent Baalke’s efforts with all the criticism they deserve. After all, it was his job to project how these players would provide the impact and negate the pending roster changes all NFL teams go through.

Tank Carradine? No, unfortunately. Vance McDonald? Certainly not. Corey Lemonier? Nope.

Wide receiver Quinton Patton could have turned into a decent contributor, but even he didn’t make much of an impact. And memories of him running the wrong way on plays — or even sitting on opposing players — stick around in 49ers’ fans minds.

So, aside from Reid, Baalke’s best pick from this particular year was defensive tackle Quinton Dial.

Dial has been one of the Niners’ unsung heroes in recent years. He’s versatile enough to play any position along the defensive line, but there isn’t exactly one portion of his game separating him into that Pro Bowl level.

Yes, Reid and Dial — the best players out of an 11-player haul. And Dial was a fifth-round pick.

How the 2013 Draft Class Hurt the 49ers in 2015

For all the grief Trent Baalke gets, there’s no way he could have accounted for the disastrous 2015 offseason that saw wholesale departures from the 49ers.

San Francisco standouts like defensive end Justin Smith, linebacker Patrick Willis, running back Frank Gore, offensive tackle Anthony Davis, offensive guard Mike Iupati, wide receiver Michael Crabtree and linebacker Chris Borland all left via retirement or free agency.

Oh, and former head coach Jim Harbaugh was gone, along with the majority of his staff.

Had Baalke capitalized on those 11 draft picks from two years before, the 49ers would have been in much better shape. Imagine Le’Veon Bell replacing Gore, Travis Kelce instead of Vance McDonald, Kyle Long or David Bakhtiari replacing Anthony Davis and you get the idea.

Those players would have had a full two seasons of NFL action under their collective belt, and the en masse departures wouldn’t have hurt so bad.

Instead, the 2015 Niners were forced to roll with linemen like Erik Pears and Jordan Devey, an oft-injured Carlos Hyde and McDonald’s lovely, lovely hands.

Yes, that was sarcasm on the last bit.

San Francisco went from a Super Bowl contender to a 5-11 record in one quick season. And the ball was rolling to Baalke’s eventual firing.

How the 49ers’ 2013 NFL Draft Class Hurts Now

Yes, general manager John Lynch and the 49ers are still feeling the ramifications of Trent Baalke’s efforts from 2013.

For starters, only four of the 11 selections — Eric Reid, Tank Carradine, Vance McDonald and Quinton Dial — remain on San Francisco’s roster. Perhaps it’s a bit of “addition by subtraction” regarding the rest. But this ideally would be the time when 2013 draft picks would be entering the prime of their respective careers.

It’s hard to say the Niners have any caliber of player like that now.

Eric Reid in a Prove-It Year

Two of the four Niners from this list are in contract years, and the 49ers will have a tough decision regarding Reid.

On one hand, San Francisco could use an upgrade here. True, Reid’s move down to free safety might be the best thing for him. And if Lynch elects to re-sign him between now and 2018, any pending problems at this position would likely be put off for a while.

Tank Carradine’s Last Chance

I’ve written a few articles, to put it lightly, about how Carradine will finally break out and live up to expectations. And year after year, I’m left wondering what happened.

Carradine’s extension a year ago sort of made sense. His preseason efforts as an EDGE looked good enough to suggest he was just a late bloomer and would finally turn the corner at the pro level.

But nothing of the sort happened, and Carradine is left looking at the new 4-3 alignment — his natural collegiate position and scheme — as his final opportunity.

And now, the 49ers are still left scrambling for a prolific pass-rusher.

Vance McDonald an Unwanted Commodity

McDonald was the subject of trade talks before the NFL Draft, speaking to how the new 49ers brass feels about him moving forward.

It makes sense the Niners would want to trade him and his contract, which expires in 2021. That extension was surely strange. Only weeks away from being fired, Baalke somehow thought extending McDonald would be a good idea.

All that despite a less-than-inconsistent production level and more frustration than intrigue.

So if San Francisco releases him this offseason, the team will be on the hook for $3.5 million in dead money.

Quinton Dial an Expensive Reserve

Like McDonald and Carradine, Dial received a similar extension, only his expires in 2019.

Dial is a good contributor on an OK defensive line, but he’s far from elite. That’s fine, especially for a former fifth-round pick, but Dial’s $2.76 million cap hit in 2017 makes him awfully expensive for a backup.

Consider this — the Niners have invested three consecutive first-round picks in their defensive line with Arik Armstead, DeForest Buckner and Solomon Thomas over the past three years.

Dial still may be a worthy backup, especially since he can play a variety of positions along the D-line.

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It’s important to understand how Baalke’s picks from 2013, and subsequent drafts thereafter, put the 49ers in a position where a complete rebuild was absolutely necessary.

Just look at this class though. Only four players remain, and only two of those — Reid and Dial — look as moderate solutions to the problems San Francisco is handling today.

Subsequent drafts, such as 2014 and 2015, may not have wielded as bad results. And some of those players are still providing a good enough impact to keep them out of the discussion of Baalke’s worst.

Next: New-look roster predictions for the 49ers in 2017

But this elongated rebuild was extremely compounded by the failures experienced in 2013. 2012 was bad enough, but what happened a year later put San Francisco in a position of failure.