Ranking 49ers' 5 biggest head-scratching moves from 2023 offseason
By Peter Panacy
49ers head-scratching move No. 2: Drafting tight end Cameron Latu
Perhaps the 49ers should get into a habit of trading away their third-round picks in the NFL Draft.
After back-to-back years of taking running backs in the third round, John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan shook up their approach in 2023 by trading up for Penn State safety Ji'Ayir Brown before engineering two questionable picks thereafter.
One of those was used on former Alabama tight end Cameron Latu at No. 101 overall.
Latu could feasibly be a long-term replacement for the All-Pro, George Kittle. But that should be a problem a Super Bowl-competing team worries about later. Especially with other needs available.
On top of that, most NFL Draft analysts saw Latu as a player who'd likely be drafted in Round 5 at the soonest, not in Round 3.
Considering the other tight end the Niners drafted in Round 7, Brayden Willis, might actually have a bigger upside than Latu, this particular pick was puzzling.