SF 49ers could have drafted Tristan Wirfs, not Javon Kinlaw

The SF 49ers made an excellent move by grabbing Javon Kinlaw in the 2020 NFL Draft, but they may have been wiser to land Tristan Wirfs instead.

There’s nothing wrong with the SF 49ers’ first-round selection of former South Carolina defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw in the 2020 NFL Draft. By most measures, Kinlaw is going to be a highly productive interior defensive lineman. And in a few years, he could easily develop into a pocket-wrecking perennial Pro Bowler.

We saw that kind of play from Kinlaw late in the season, and his trajectory should only grow with a fully healthy defensive line to support him.

That said, it’s fair to look back at hindsight and wonder the “what ifs?”

Remember, the Niners traded down from the No. 13 overall pick in a move with the now-Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who then used that selection to grab Iowa offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs.

Perhaps that’s the pick San Francisco should have made at No. 13, not moving down to grab Kinlaw.

And it isn’t as if Wirfs failed to make an impact his rookie season, as Pro Football Focus pointed out:

https://twitter.com/PFF/status/1358800515430313989

True, this would have left a massive hole in the interior of the SF 49ers defensive line in the wake of that spring’s trade of defensive tackle DeForest Buckner. And part of the Bucs’ trade package (a fourth-round pick) helped San Francisco land wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk later in Round.

But given the kind of production the Niners received from a banged-up and makeshift D-line over the course of 2020, and the likelihood that trade-up package for Aiyuk could have included something else, it’s not out of the question this unit could have proceeded OK enough.

Especially once it returned fully healthy.

How Tristan Wirfs could have helped SF 49ers

Head coach Kyle Shanahan likes the Iowa offense, namely after grabbing two former Hawkeyes in tight end George Kittle and quarterback C.J. Beathard.

So it’s pretty safe to say Wirfs would have been a good scheme fit.

Also, certainly of note, San Francisco knew at the time veteran left tackle Joe Staley was going to retire, which prompted the day-two draft trade with Washington for perennial Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams.

That worked, as Williams received his eighth Pro Bowl nod in 2020. But the problem is Williams now hits free agency and could command north of $18 million on a new contract. He won’t come cheap. And with the SF 49ers currently having just $13.7 in projected cap space, per Over the Cap, it’s going to be awfully tough for the Niners to make the financial room to retain him.

Wirfs would have been that younger option playing on a rookie contract for at least the next four years before a fifth-year option would have kicked in. The money and age would have been a big difference, too, and one could assume San Francisco wouldn’t have had too big a drop off in production from Williams to Wirfs.

It’s all hindsight, so it doesn’t necessarily matter. But it’s fair to raise the question now after looking back at Wirfs’ impressive rookie year and the situation the SF 49ers now face with Williams, one of the more highly costing players on the open market.