5 players 49ers should have taken in 2021 NFL Draft

No. 4: 49ers would have loved LSU wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr.

The Niners’ decision not to grab a wide receiver in the NFL Draft was provocative, to say the least, especially considering they have some depth questions behind Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, and the depth of this class was so apparent. And while the undrafted free-agent addition of UAB wide receiver Austin Watkins could help a little bit, it would have been nice to see San Francisco take a serious look at some of the mid-level wideouts available to them.

Such as LSU wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr., who went at No. 63 overall to the Carolina Panthers.

Marshall, 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds, would have immediately been one of the biggest wide receivers on the 49ers roster and could easily have helped in the red zone — an area where Kyle Shanahan’s offenses have historically struggled, and that won’t be made any easier with the free-agent loss of Kendrick Bourne to the New England Patriots.

While fellow LSU wideout Ja’Marr Chase was the headliner at this position in this year’s draft, Marshall was nearly impressive with 731 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns last season following Chase’s decision to sit out 2020. And Marshall isn’t just a big-bodied project. He has speed, route-running savvy and physicality to go along with a plus-size catch radius.

The Niners may regret not investing more in their wide receiver corps, and Marshall could easily end up being a player they wish they had taken in Round 2 instead of a guard, Aaron Banks.