I generally don't find much reason to criticise John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan, those at the head of the San Francisco 49ers.
That can make me a rare breed within the fanbase. To be fair, it's not without reason. Those who criticise the pairing would point to rough picks like Solomon Thomas and Reuben Foster almost a decade ago. Some, meanwhile, still find themselves rehashing the ill-fated 2021 trade-up for quarterback Trey Lance.
I'm not saying that's unreasonable. In some cases, I was right there complaining about the picks, too. But I did admire that the Niners identified their targets and often took big swings to try and acquire them.
What irritated me instead was when the 49ers would do the opposite and make a middling pick in whichever round of the draft purely out of slight overvaluation, and a lack of desire to move out of the first round when it might have been an option.
That was perhaps most glaringly true with 2024's selection of wide receiver Ricky Pearsall. I like Pearsall, and I still think he might become a quality NFL starter. But he wasn't a first-round pick. He could've gone in the early-to-mid second round, had the 49ers shown the bravery or wherewithal to trade out of their spot at the back end of the first round.
In fairness, that's the risk you run when picking at the back end of the first round; it's hurt previous Niners teams, too. Remember back to the days of A.J. Jenkins, or Kentwan Balmer. Or, perhaps don't. I'm still having therapy for it.
I always longed for the 49ers to pull some tricks from their history, trust their board and valuations, and maybe trade down and acquire more picks. Bill Walsh was a master of this, not least in the 1986 draft, when he executed a staggering six trades. Such was his dealing that then-owner Eddie DeBartolo is reputed to have called and asked Walsh if he intended to own every pick in the 10th round of the draft.
However, the results can't be argued with. Many foundational pieces, including Hall Of Famer Charles Haley and longtime 49ers like Tom Rathman, John Taylor, and Steve Wallace, arrived in that draft. That fortification of the roster arguably built the second half of Walsh's dynasty, delivering championships in 1988 and 1989.
In fact, I even suggested Lynch ape Walsh's seminal '86 draft this time last year.
I mention all this because Thursday's primetime extravaganza, Round 1 of the NFL Draft, showed the 49ers might have finally learned their lesson. And, perhaps, it was the reach on Pearsall that provoked it.
Sitting at No. 27 overall, the Niners watched most quality talent get hoovered up before them, including a run on offensive linemen that likely shut down my usual call for the 49ers to fortify the position. Perhaps the nadir was Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman going to the Chicago Bears at No. 25, a player who could've been a true difference maker on Raheem Morris's defense.
At that point, if I'm honest, I expected a reach for a borderline first-/second-round talent, perhaps even again at the receiver position, with the likes of Omar Cooper and Denzel Boston being mentioned.
Credit to the 49ers, they didn't do that, instead moving back, collecting two extra picks, and potentially setting up a blockbuster Day 2, while retaining some cap and roster flexibility. With an aging team on offense, this might actually be crucial.
If Lynch can nail the picks, it can become the foundation of Shanahan's next team.
That's easier said than done, of course, otherwise anyone could do it. But if you give yourself more bullets, more chips at the table, and more chances, you're way more likely to hit on something. As the 49ers head into Day 2, that can only be a good thing.
Perhaps they've finally learned a lesson. And all it took was a little understanding of history.
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