49ers secure 2nd overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, now what?

Following the San Francisco 49ers’ Week 17 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, among other results from today, the Niners have secured the second overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. Niner Noise breaks down what that means for the team.

Week 17 resulted in, for the San Francisco 49ers, the second worst situation possible.

First of all, they got absolutely blasted by the Los Angeles Rams, 48-32, in a game that wasn’t even close until Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay rested his starters. In that game, the offense struggled with turnovers and the defense couldn’t handle the short fields. The only bright spot of that game was George Kittle breaking the all-time tight end yards record in a season.

Now, losing several games can usually be offset by high NFL Draft picks, and that’s exactly what happened. But even on the draft front, the 49ers only managed to break even, at best. Wins by the Atlanta Falcons and Dallas Cowboys ensured that, with a loss, the Niners would be picking second overall at worst. But the Arizona Cardinals had a chance to beat the Seattle Seahawks and gift the 49ers the first overall pick in the draft.

Big surprise, they didn’t.

Losing on a game-winning field goal, the Cardinals got the top pick, and the Niners got locked into the second spot.

So now what? Well, there are a variety of situations and options for the 49ers, all of which will be discussed in great detail in the coming months.

However, here is a quick summary of some dates and situations to know about.

The Dates

The draft season really starts with the Senior Bowl, which the San Francisco coaching staff is eager to be a part of. That will happen Jan. 24 through 26, 2019.

From then, there will be minor showcases up until the big one, the NFL Scouting Combine. That would happen from Feb. 26 all the way to March 4.

Following that, you have team visits and pro days, all until the big day(s), April 25 to April 27. That’s the time of the NFL Draft.

The Situations

With the second overall pick in the draft, there is a lot more intrigue surrounding the 49ers. That stems from whatever the Cardinals will be doing. That being said, there are three pretty reasonable expectations with the pick.

Take Nick Bosa

Ohio State EDGE Nick Bosa, the consensus No. 1 prospect in this class for a very long time, has been the perceived target for San Francisco. Now, this hinges on the Cardinals choosing not to take Bosa, which could happen. With a need for an interior rusher and offensive line help, there are many other places the Cardinals could look. Charlie Campbell of Walter Football predicts that very situation happening.

If that happens, the choice is a no-brainer. The Niners have a need for edge rushers, and Bosa is the best edge rusher. Problem solved.

Take another defensive linemen

Assuming the Cardinals decide to take Bosa, the next obvious choice is to select another defensive linemen. There are two paths the Niners could take here. The first is to take Alabama’s Quinnen Williams, yet another interior rusher, but easily the second best player in the draft.

If the glut of interior defensive tackles moves the 49ers in a different direction, they would likely select Josh Allen out of Kentucky, a great prospect for sure, but not Bosa.

Trade down

Here’s where things get interesting. Should the Niners not see a sizable difference from Allen, to Florida’s Jachai Polite or other pass-rushers, then they would likely trade down with the New York Giants or Jacksonville Jaguars, who would select a quarterback in an otherwise thin signal-caller class.

At a later pick, San Francisco could shift gears and take a cornerback, safety or wide receiver.

That’s about it for the 49ers. At No. 2, there are a lot of options, but also quite a bit of uncertainty.

The next four months will be interesting to watch, for sure.