10 NFL Draft prospects 49ers would hate to see in NFC West
By Peter Panacy
No. 4 prospect 49ers don’t want to see in NFC West: CB Derek Stingley Jr., LSU
The Niners still have an outside shot at grabbing Jalen Pitre. Barring the most dramatic of stock drop-offs, or a massive trade-up on its part, San Francisco will have no chance at grabbing LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., perhaps the No. 1 cornerback taken in this year’s NFL Draft.
Stingley’s ballhawking production disappeared following his six-interception campaign in 2019, but that wasn’t because of a lack of effort. Rather, Stingley made his mark by being more of an eraser on his side of the field, discouraging targets even though his coverage skills remain a bit questionable.
Regardless, the 6-foot-1, 195-pound defensive back has all the qualities of being a top cover corner, one who’ll regularly stick to his receiver and convincing opposing quarterbacks it’s better to seek out other areas of the field.
Outside of Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey, the rest of the NFC West hasn’t had a true shutdown corner for some time now, and that’d be the last thing the 49ers would want to see.
Particularly if Stingley’s draft stock proves to be true, and he winds up being a first-round selection by either Seattle or Arizona.