SF 49ers: Analyzing experts’ 2021 first-round mock drafts

In the 2019 NFL Draft, one could’ve bet the house the SF 49ers would select defensive end Nick Bosa from Ohio State with the second overall pick. In 2020, though, it was a bit more of a mystery whom the team would select with their two first-round picks.

It was known that wide receiver was a position of need in 2020 for the Niners, but who they would take was a question mark all the way up to pick No. 25.

Many thought the SF 49ers would use their early first-round pick to take a wide receiver. Names like Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy and Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb were thrown around as possible draft picks for the team. But in an absolute shocker, they selected defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw from South Carolina with the 14th overall pick.

Then the Niners pulled another shocker and traded their 31st overall pick plus a fourth- and fifth-round pick with the Minnesota Vikings to move up to the 25th overall spot. With that pick, they selected the position that everyone thought they’d look for earlier and went with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk out of Arizona State.

The 2021 NFL Draft, and especially the first round where the SF 49ers have the 12th overall pick, looks to be much like the 2020 draft. It almost seems like every expert and every sports news outlet has a different pick at No. 12 for San Francisco in their mock drafts.

Let’s take a look at three different mock drafts and break down how these picks would shake out for head coach Kyle Shanahan and Co.