Many experts, analysts, and fans have criticized the San Francisco 49ers for the players they selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. Many view general manager John Lynch’s picks as reaches that were well out of step with the consensus, but one Niners analyst thinks the team actually had a great draft.
David Lombardi of the San Francisco Standard is arguably the most positive analyst of anyone covering the team. He provides very cogent and detailed analysis and often makes good points, but oftentimes it feels like he will bend over backwards to defend any move or decision the 49ers make.
It’s easy to poke fun at, but despite his well-known reputation, he is doing everything in his power to try to convince people the Niners actually had an incredible draft.
A look at his posts on social media will show him attacking the mock draft consensus and going after people who disagree with him.
One recent one is pretty emblematic of what he’s been posting the last few days:
“Draft reactions have highlighted the current disconnect from objectivity and reality. It's the most 2026 thing ever: Entirely rooted in the rush to make 100% subjective judgments on a heavily subjective process *years* before it's possible to make objective conclusions.”
There is truth in this statement. We may not know for years how San Francisco’s draft turns out. Maybe at that point, wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling is a star and running back Kaelon Black has replaced Christian McCaffrey, and everyone criticizing the draft has to eat crow.
It is smart of Lombardi to try to remind people that draft grades don’t really matter all that much in the aftermath of the draft. Some of us are old enough to remember when the analysts were bullish on San Francisco trading up to select Trey Lance, and there were plenty who thought it was dumb to pick Brock Purdy with the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft.
But what Lombardi ignores is the 49ers do have a history of reaching on players in the past, and it has come back to bite them. They’ve reached on running backs who were complete busts, and their track record on drafting receivers is spotty at best. No team is batting 1.000 when it comes to the draft, but the fact the Niners haven’t drafted a true impact player in years is troubling.
The consensus and the grades don’t mean a ton, and Lombardi is right that we probably won’t be able to accurately assess this crop of players for years, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t cause for concern or any reason to question San Francisco’s front office.
The 49ers deserve credit for the home runs they’ve hit in the draft over the years, but there have been a lot of strikeouts as well. Fans should reserve judgment, but if the team continues to struggle to get adequate talent in the draft, then suspicions will only grow deeper.
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