2020 NFL Draft: How LSU QB Joe Burrow affects 49ers plans

The San Francisco 49ers aren’t picking anywhere near where LSU quarterback Joe Burrow will go in the 2020 NFL Draft. But he’ll still have an impact on the Niners in Round 1.

The San Francisco 49ers currently own the No. 31 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, which will almost certainly start off with the top-selecting Cincinnati Bengals taking LSU quarterback Joe Burrow at No. 1 overall.

And yet those three entities — Burrow, the Bengals and the Niners — are all intertwined.

That’s how any draft can go. It’s all so “hand in glove” with one action spinning off a series of other reactions, trickling down from the first overall pick to the second-to-last one in Round 1.

Take a look at nearly every mock draft out there, and Burrow goes to Cincinnati. That’ll start perhaps one of the more provocative runs on quarterbacks we’ve seen in recent years. But where things get interesting for San Francisco is down towards the end of the first round.

More specifically, where the 49ers and Bengals are picking within proximity to each other.

After the Niners’ first selection, the Kansas City Chiefs pick at No. 32 overall. With Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes in tow, they won’t be going after a quarterback. But they’ll likely go defense. San Francisco could, too, considering two of their top free agents, defensive end Arik Armstead and safety Jimmie Ward, may be too expensive to re-sign this offseason.

Then, starting off Round 2, the Bengals pick again to kick off the round.

Cincinnati boasted one of the NFL’s worst defenses in 2019. If a quarterback wasn’t the need, the Bengals would assuredly take Ohio State EDGE Chase Young, who is frequently viewed as the best overall prospect in this year’s class. Passing on Young, instead going with Burrow, almost guarantees the Bengals’ next pick will be on defense.

The Indianapolis Colts (from the Washington Redskins), Detroit Lions and New York Giants, three teams who need some serious defensive help this offseason, own the next three respective picks in Round 2 after Cincinnati. All have enough ammunition to leapfrog over a defensive-needy team, such as the Bengals, to grab the 49ers’ top pick. Especially the Colts, who own two second-round selections and their own picks in Rounds 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 with another pick in Round 6.

See how this is coming into focus?

Simply by grabbing Burrow first, pushing their massive defensive needs down the to-do list into day two of the draft, the Bengals can potentially create a myriad of would-be trade scenarios the pick-strapped 49ers can fully take advantage of.

All because Cincinnati wanted a franchise quarterback first, putting off its own defensive needs until later.