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49ers should select Minkah Fitzpatrick in 2018 NFL Draft

By Aaron Tan

TUSCALOOSA, AL - SEPTEMBER 30: Minkah Fitzpatrick #29 of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts after he and Isaiah Buggs #49 sack Shea Patterson #20 of the Mississippi Rebels at Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 30, 2017 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
TUSCALOOSA, AL - SEPTEMBER 30: Minkah Fitzpatrick #29 of the Alabama Crimson Tide reacts after he and Isaiah Buggs #49 sack Shea Patterson #20 of the Mississippi Rebels at Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 30, 2017 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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Defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick is a serious candidate to fall to the San Francisco 49ers at the No. 9 spot in the 2018 NFL Draft. Should the team take a chance on him?

For the past three years, safety Minkah Fitzpatrick has been one of Alabama’s best defensive players, which is saying a lot since this defensive unit possesses a plethora of star talent every year, making the Tide the best defense on paper year after year.

With four quarterbacks looking to be most likely selected before the San Francisco 49ers pick at No. 9 in the 2018 NFL Draft, Fitzpatrick is a likely candidate to still be available on general manager John Lynch’s draft board when he sees that his team is on the clock.

On the surface, however, Fitzpatrick doesn’t seem like an ideal fit for the 49ers’ defense. The team already has three very promising safeties in Jaquiski Tartt, Adrian Colbert and Jimmie Ward, who had the fifth-year option on his rookie contract picked up by the team.

San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers /

San Francisco 49ers

So why should the 49ers draft Fitzpatrick? Seems like a luxury pick, right?

Just as Saquon Barkley is seen as a generational talent at the running back position, I believe Fitzpatrick should be seen as one at not just the safety position, but as a defensive player.

The 6-foot-1, 201-pound safety is a true game-changing chess piece on the defensive side of the ball. What I love about Fitzpatrick is he brings this unmatched level of intensity to the gridiron, and it shows on the field. Whenever I turned on an Alabama game, I would see the clearly high-motor Fitzpatrick constantly bouncing around on his toes with this infectious level of energy that made the players around him better.

However, it’s not just an insanely high amount of energy that Fitzpatrick brings onto the football field. He can lock onto receivers in man, utilize his solid awareness in zone and punish offensive players with his hard-hitting tackling mentality.

Fitzpatrick is as well-rounded of a player as anybody in this draft.

The 21 year old is also very versatile. Fitzpatrick has the capability to not only play safety, but inside and outside linebacker, slot cornerback and outside cornerback as well. With 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster looking to face a suspension from the NFL and the arrow of his off-the-field performance only pointing down, his old Alabama teammate can not only coax him to be smart off the field, but provide insurance at the linebacker position.

Another reason to pick up Fitzpatrick in the draft is what I believe to be the eventual leave Ward will take from the team.

As the 49ers’ 2014 first-round pick, Ward never fit the billing as a first rounder and is arguably the worst starting safety on the team. He is also a Trent Baalke pick, and this new regime has proved to try to get rid of players from the ugly Baalke era.

Next: Final 7-round mock NFL Draft for the 49ers in 2018

If the 49ers draft Fitzpatrick, defensive coordinator Robert Saleh will be getting a player that will not only impact the outcome of games, but elevate the mindset of the entire team to a whole new level.