The San Francisco 49ers enter this offseason knowing that they would greatly benefit from adding another edge rusher and a wide receiver or several.
The only problem is that many other teams in the NFL have the exact same needs.
In a recent mock draft done by beat writers at The Athletic, wide receivers and edge rushers were going awfully quick. By the time Vic Tafur drafted for the Niners at pick No. 27, he went with edge rusher TJ Parker out of Clemson, noting that the seven players he wanted were already gone.
Of course, this is just a mock draft, and the actual 2026 NFL Draft can end up going a multitude of ways. Still, it is worth noting that a lot of talent is available in the draft at the two positions the Niners probably need to address the most.
Edge rusher is a perennial area of need for the 49ers. Seemingly every year, San Francisco tries to put a new rusher opposite Nick Bosa on the defensive line, and it never works out quite how it wanted.
Last season was tough on Bryce Huff because he could have been a guy who thrived with Bosa receiving a lot of attention from the offense, but with Bosa and Mykel Williams out for the season with ACL tears, that meant opponents could zero in of Huff, which limited him to just four sacks.
The Niners may end up having to go the free agency or trade route to meaningfully improve at the position especially if a lot of the best players are gone by the end of the first round.
It's a similar story at wide receiver.
San Francisco may have to replace four guys next season, depending on how free agency shakes out, and then it sorely needs more speed at the position to make the offense more dynamic and less predictable.
In the mock draft, four receivers were already off the board by the time the 49ers picked. They could still get a decent receiver, but a lot of the top talent may already be gone, and the Niners would be forced to take more of a risk.
Maybe they can sign a big free-agent receiver, but some have already noted how expensive receivers will be this offseason, and San Francisco probably does not want to go down the path of giving another receiver a huge contract (see: Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk).
The draft may be the 49ers' only chance to add some talent at the position even if they have struggled to consistently hit on wide receivers in the draft over the years.
It is always a craps shoot in the draft, but with so many teams likely to be addressing the same needs, it could make it hard for San Francisco to fully improve through drafting.