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Quenton Nelson: Why the Niners should run, not walk, to take him

By Jeremy Wohlfart

SOUTH BEND, IN - OCTOBER 17: Quenton Nelson #56 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish celebrates after a 10-yard touchdown reception by Corey Robinson against the USC Trojans in the fourth quarter of the game at Notre Dame Stadium on October 17, 2015 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
SOUTH BEND, IN - OCTOBER 17: Quenton Nelson #56 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish celebrates after a 10-yard touchdown reception by Corey Robinson against the USC Trojans in the fourth quarter of the game at Notre Dame Stadium on October 17, 2015 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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The San Francisco 49ers have several holes to fill, and here we look at perhaps the most exciting guard prospect to come in the NFL Draft in several years, Notre Dame’s Quenton Nelson.

In football, quarterbacks are the faces of almost every team. However since it’s NFL Draft season let’s take a look at someone who helps those franchise players shine. Namely let’s take a look at Notre Dame guard Quenton Nelson, who is one of the most impressive offensive line prospects in years.

For all the talk of quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and his wizardry under center for San Francisco, what we should be aware of is a quarterback is only as good as the talent the team puts around and in front of him. Garoppolo looks like the real deal, but the image of him celebrating victory after victory in the red and gold may be replaced by a hobbled No. 10.

For the Niners, offensive line might be the biggest need, specifically the interior line. The Niners have good bookends on the line — Joe Staley is, of course, one of the best blindside protectors in the league, and Trent Brown has great potential if he stays on the field. But the interior is where it gets a bit murky.

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Interior linemen Daniel Kilgore and Brandon Fusco are free agents and can be upgraded. Joshua Garnett might get another chance. But as a pick of the Trent Baalke regime, general manager John Lynch has no loyalty to him.

Zane Beadles and Laken Tomlinson are not the answer.

As it turns out, the answer might be sitting there when the 49ers are up, at pick Nos. 9 or 10 (pending the combine coin toss with the Oakland Raiders) — Nelson.

Nelson is an absolute tank of a prospect, bulldozing opponents in both the rushing and passing game. He uses his great size and strength (6-foot-5 and 325 pounds) to be an immovable object to opponents. But has the athleticism and ability to get into position, via lateral movement, of a man much smaller than himself. He can get himself frequently to the next level in the running game, he has the agility to ride a defender around the pocket and the strength to push them into the ground or stand up to a bull rush.

But you might be thinking, “Sure that’s impressive, but you can find talented guards easily later on, why use a top-10 pick here?”.

To answer that, let’s take a look at this video, by YouTube user bigduke50, who’ll break down this play for us:

To recap (or sum up for those who can’t/didn’t watch the video):

Nelson expects to have to block the defender coming around the edge, but instead has nothing to do because the defender drops into coverage. Nelson doesn’t slack off there, however, and his keen awareness quickly notes the safety blitzing from the other side of the field. And he uses his speed to hustle to that side of the field before using his strength to head off the defender and prevent an open hit. It’s the perfect play to highlight his impressive strength, speed and football IQ.

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Such a well-rounded and elite prospect, that frankly has very little in the way of flaws, would be of immeasurable value to the 49ers, who need to both protect their field general in Garoppolo as well as help blast open running lanes for whoever is the lead back next season.

He’s not the sexiest pick, but Nelson makes the most sense for the Niners as an elite player who fills their most pressing need.

Next: 5 Round 1 NFL Draft scenarios for the 49ers in 2018

Will he be available? It’s hard to tell with how crazy the NFL Draft is, but he’s a very good chance to be there. Interior linemen aren’t valued as much as they should be, but the fact he’s received such high grades is a testament to his ability and I would be ecstatic to hear NFL commissioner Roger Goodell say those words:

“The San Francisco 49ers select: Quenton Nelson, guard, Notre Dame.”