2020 NFL Draft: Henry Ruggs III a complete player for 49ers if he falls

The San Francisco 49ers already had a slim chance of landing Alabama wide receiver Henry Ruggs III in the NFL Draft, but his 2020 NFL Combine numbers pushed him out of range. Oh, what could be, though.

In an ideal world, Alabama wide receiver Henry Ruggs III would fall to the San Francisco 49ers, who own the No. 31 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

After one of the most impressive NFL Combine performances, however, the already-slight chances the Niners had of grabbing Ruggs in Round 1 all but evaporated.

Ruggs, who played second fiddle at Alabama to arguably the top receiver in a loaded draft class, Jerry Jeudy, still managed to impress enough with a worthwhile statistical body during his collegiate career:

Provided by CFB at Sports Reference: View Original Table
Generated 2/27/2020.

But that was before Thursday night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, when Ruggs nearly broke the record for best 40-yard time at the NFL Combine, flashing a blazing 4.27 seconds and leading all wide receivers in this mark.

But Ruggs’ abilities go far beyond mere straight-line speed in spandex. He’s one of the most explosive players in this year’s draft class, already laden with explosive offensive weapons.

At 5-foot-11 and 188 pounds, some would argue Ruggs lacks the ideal size at the position. But he plays bigger than his size would indicate, and his ability to get into space and create massive yards after the catch is a trait 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan would covet.

And then some.

Ruggs is more than capable of lining up on the outside or doubling inside in the slot. Shanahan’s system doesn’t follow the traditional WR1, WR2, slot dynamic, rather it’s common to see boundary-type wide receivers operate out of the slot, while some of the smaller, shiftier wideouts perform pass-catching duties on the outside.

There’s plenty of motion, picks and deception mixed in there, too.

In an ideal world, Ruggs would be the kind of player Shanahan would deploy in a multitude of ways. The elite-level speed, a trait Shanahan covets, would provide the deep threat San Francisco’s offense generally lacked last season after getting underwhelming numbers from its prior speedster, Marquise Goodwin.

Yet Ruggs potentially has so much more to offer, including crisp route running and separation skills.

And his 42-inch vertical jump at the NFL Combine only served to increase his stock. That was also among the best from those wide receivers participating. It indicates Ruggs is perfectly OK going after those 50-50 jump balls, too.

Back to that ideal world, it’s fun to fathom what Shanahan and the 49ers could do with a player like Ruggs. Pairing him with up-and-coming wide receiver Deebo Samuel, while also allowing tight end George Kittle to be even more explosive than usual, one can see Ruggs being a seamless fit in San Francisco.

The only issue is the 49ers, picking just once between Rounds 1 and 4, don’t have the draft capital to move up and get him.

Especially since Ruggs just increased his draft stock from a possible early 20s selection into the mid teens, perhaps earlier.

OK, so there’s the chance Ruggs somehow slips down to the end of Round 1. There’s also a chance the 49ers sign any of us to play wide receiver in 2020, too.

Both are highly unlikely, which is unfortunate. For Ruggs to the 49ers, that is.