Niner Noise
FanSided

5 early candidates for 49ers first pick in 2020 NFL Draft

By Elvis Jerez

ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 08: Terrell Lewis #24 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrates beating the Georgia Bulldogs in overtime and winning the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. Alabama won 26-23. (Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 08: Terrell Lewis #24 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrates beating the Georgia Bulldogs in overtime and winning the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. Alabama won 26-23. (Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images) /
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Offensive Tackle. Cougars . Josh Jones. 4. player. 881.

Who is he?

For the 2020 NFL Draft, tackle Josh Jones out of Houston is currently ranked 28th overall and fifth best at his position. At least three teams would need to either reach for other players, let Jones slide or draft unexpectedly for him to fall to the 49ers when they make their first pick.

Jones is the kind of guy you can build a quarterback wall around. Some of his stats and notables as a Houston Cougar include:

  • in the six of 13 games played, he didn’t allow a sack
  • blocked for an offense that finished fifth in the nation
  • helped Cougars make 25 rushing touchdowns
  • in 2017 he didn’t allow a sack in four of the 10 games he played
  • in 2016 helped Houston to at least one touchdown in 11 of 13 games

Mike Tagliere of FantasyPros had this to say about Jones:

"[Jones is] not afraid to take a step back and allow [a pass rusher’s] own momentum to drive them into the ground. Has extremely long arms, allows him to slow down edge rushers before they get any momentum."

Why it makes sense?

The run game is part of the 49ers’ DNA. They are not likely to deviate much from the script we saw last year. Having a solid tackle is integral to opening up lanes for running backs. At the same time, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the offense try to open up the passing game a bit now that quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has his feet under him.

To succeed in that endeavor, Jimmy G needs a wall of protection to give him time to find his receivers. Garoppolo is more of an old-school pocket passer, by and large. He can slide out when the pocket collapses, but he’s not the type to rake up 50 rushing yards in a game.

It may be hard to admit, but 11-year veteran tackle Joe Staley is nearing the sunset years of his career. While the fans would love to see him stick around another two or three years, it may not be in the cards. Thinking ahead for the future of the franchise, you can’t go wrong having a top-five talent like Jones learn the from one of the best at the position for a year or so.