SF 49ers: NFL Draft options after potential Deshaun Watson trade
By Robert Smith
SF 49ers Safety Options
Again, the SF 49ers secondary will need to be reconfigured after this offseason of free agency. And chances are safety Jaquiski Tartt will be moving on to another team.
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While the Niners do have defensive backs Tarvarius Moore and Marcell Harris to pair with Jimmie Ward, look for the team to take a safety at some point in the draft.
The top end of the draft will see Trevon Muehrig and Jevon Holland come off the board early, there is plenty of starter-level talent left to pick from. San Francisco could do well going with TCU’s Ar’Darius Washington, Texas’ Caden Sterns, Georgia’s Richard LeCounte, or JaCoby Stevens of LSU, let’s mock another Pitt Panther, safety Paris Ford, as the target here.
Ford is a 6-foot, 190-pound hitter with great leadership qualities. He can reach all areas of the field and has a terrific motor. He will need to refine his technique to become a more sure tackler, though. In 2020, he racked up 41 tackles, three tackles for loss in just four games. He opted out of the rest of the season to prepare for the draft.
There are many critics of the SF 49ers trading high picks in order to acquire a generational talent like Deshaun Watson, citing the fact the team will struggle to field talent around him if they give up those picks.
However, if the team continues to draft well in the mid-to-late rounds, the Niners will continue to be a Super Bowl contender for the foreseeable future.