Much to the chagrin of many San Francisco 49ers fans, the team has not invested a lot of draft capital at offensive tackle in recent years. The last time the Niners drafted a tackle early in the draft was when they selected Mike McGlinchey in the first round back in 2018.
One 49ers beat writer is urging the Niners to break that trend by drafting a successor to Trent Williams in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft.
Vic Tafur of The Athletic made a plea in a recent article for the 49ers to draft Alabama tackle Kadyn Proctor. He argues that it would not be a strictly future-oriented move. Instead, Tafur thinks the 49ers should use Proctor at left guard in his first few seasons, and then when Williams retires or goes elsewhere, Proctor can be moved to left tackle.
Importantly, Tafur notes the Niners would probably have to trade up at least a few spots in order to make this happen. There’s a chance Proctor could fall to the No. 27 pick, but if the 49ers bought into Tafur’s idea, they would have to go all in.
More and more recent mock drafts have the Niners picking an offensive lineman in Round 1. Caleb Lomu out of Utah has been a popular pick as of late, so maybe this is the year the Niners finally give in to the demands of fans who believe San Francisco needs to improve its offensive line.
For years, it has seemed there is a glaring disconnect between the way fans view the offensive line and the way the 49ers assess their line internally. From the outside, it appears like Trent Williams and a whole lot of average comprise the line. That seems OK on paper, but the O-line definitely catches a lot of flak from fans.
Tafur is right, that at some point, the 49ers need to think about a succession plan for Williams. He has continued to be an elite player well into his 30s, but his age may catch up with him, and the Niners have to be tiring of the annual tradition in which they have to renegotiate Williams’ contract.
Maybe Proctor is the future. It would at least give them a plan for life after Williams, something the 49ers don't currently have.
But with perhaps more pressing needs at edge rusher or other positions, the Niners may once again choose to kick the can down the road when it comes to answering a big question for the O-line.
Drafting tackles is never as sexy as selecting a wide receiver or some other skill position, but if Tafur has his way, the 49ers will finally eat their vegetables in Round 1.