During the Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch eras, the San Francisco 49ers established a reputation for capitalizing on later round picks. Many of the 49ers’ veteran leaders and current stars were second- or third-round draft picks, including All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner (2018 third-round pick, No. 70 overall), All-Pro tight end George Kittle (2017 fifth-round pick, No. 146 overall), and Pro Bowl quarterback Brock Purdy (2022 seventh-round pick, No. 262 overall), to name a few.
The ability to identify talent in later rounds of the draft has come in handy in recent years, as San Francisco traded away its first-round picks in 2021, 2022, and 2023 to get quarterback Trey Lance at No. 3 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft.
However, in 2024, the 49ers will have the potential to achieve something they haven’t done in the previous two drafts: make a first-round pick. San Francisco is set to pick at No. 31, one of 11 picks they presently have in 2024. Four of the 49ers’ eleven selections are compensatory picks awarded to them in exchange for the departures of Jimmy Garoppolo, Samson Ebukam, Jimmy Ward, and Azeez Al-Shaair during free agency.
“We have a first-round pick for the first time in a long time,” Lynch said during the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine. “That’s fantastic, but we aim to make each one count. They are all opportunities to better your organization, and we treat each of them as such. We take pride in investing just as much effort into the late rounds as we do the early ones. We’ll accept them wherever they come and try to make the best of it.”
So, how does possessing a first-round draft pick affect the 49ers’ approach to talent evaluation during the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine and leading up to the draft?
“It actually doesn’t. “It gives you a little more to do on day one,” Lynch explained. “Day 1, we’ve been doing a lot of prep and obviously stay by the phones and things like that.”
During the combine, prospects will go through interviews, on-field testing, and medical exams, all of which will give the 49ers with valuable information regarding possible roster fits.
“There’s a lot of various stuff. Our doctors, as well as the entire league’s medical team, provide us with extremely valuable medical information on players. That’s critical to your decision-making. I believe the other thing is that we have interviews with college athletes, even if they are only 15 to 20 minutes long, to get to know these guys and what drives them.
You have to be efficient with your time. I believe that having consistency, being together for a long time, and knowing what you’re searching for is beneficial. We aim to be incredibly efficient with that time. A lot of people are here, mostly instructors via Zoom, and we benefit much from that.”
