Niner Noise
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Jimmy Garoppolo needs CeeDee Lamb to 49ers in 2020 NFL Draft

By Jeremy Wohlfart

NORMAN, OK - NOVEMBER 9: Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb #2 of the Oklahoma Sooners celebrates his touchdown on a 63-yard pass and run with wide receivers Trejan Bridges #8 and Nick Basquine #83 in the game against the Iowa State Cyclones on November 9, 2019 at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. The Sooners lead 35-14 at the half. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
NORMAN, OK - NOVEMBER 9: Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb #2 of the Oklahoma Sooners celebrates his touchdown on a 63-yard pass and run with wide receivers Trejan Bridges #8 and Nick Basquine #83 in the game against the Iowa State Cyclones on November 9, 2019 at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma. The Sooners lead 35-14 at the half. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images) /
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It’s become increasingly popular to see a wide receiver mocked to the San Francisco 49ers at No. 13 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. Niner Noise looks at one such candidate in CeeDee Lamb and why he would be a fit.

With a relatively early 2020NFL Draft pick at No. 13, exactly what the San Francisco 49ers will do with it is a matter of speculation.

One of the most common theories is the Niners have their eyes on one of the top three wide receivers in Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs, as well as Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb. While the 49ers would be happy to add any of these players to a receiving corps that will be without Emmanuel Sanders next season, which of these players would be the best fit?

It’s tempting to say Jeudy, but the odds of him falling to No. 13 are extremely remote. Niner Noise has also already detailed the potential marriage of the Alabama receiver to San Francisco.

Lamb is another intriguing possibility, however. Jeudy and Lamb are very close in the discussion as to who the best receiver is in the draft class to the point they’re essentially 1A and 1B.

If Jeudy is off the board, then Lamb isn’t a bad consolation prize.

In fact he may not be a consolation prize at all.

Lamb fits into what the 49ers need for their offense, and he’d be the perfect weapon for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. Lamb is excellent with his routes displaying smooth, crisp execution of plays and a good route tree run at Oklahoma. What really suits him here is his ability to make plays underneath while also being a decent vertical threat in his own right.

Getting into those intermediate-area throws is precisely what makes Lamb a truly dangerous weapon at Garoppolo’s disposal, as that’s the area of the field in which the quarterback excels.

Lamb doesn’t possess the speed of Ruggs, but he’s more than functional in open space like second-year wide receiver Deebo Samuel was for San Francisco last season. Lamb’s blend of speed and physicality makes him a versatile weapon to have.

Oklahoma realized his versatility and utilized him on screen passes and jet sweeps like what the 49ers use with Samuel. The idea of pairing Lamb with Samuel is a tantalizing one, given how they can confuse defenses who might be aware of the schemes the 49ers are using to get Samuel in space. And this is an idea which serves to potentially boost Garoppolo’s stock level even higher in 2020.

Lamb also has really steady hands and showed what a reliable target he was at Oklahoma. He can be trusted to come down with the football if it’s thrown to him.

Will Lamb be available at No. 13? Most likely he will, but it only takes one team to fall in love with Lamb in the top 12 picks for that to change.

Next. San Francisco 49ers: 5 options for No. 3 wide receiver in 2020. dark

However if he is there and the 49ers either don’t have Jeudy available or they just prefer Lamb outright, he would make an exciting duo with Samuel, while giving Garoppolo and the offense another jolt heading into the 2020 season.