It’s difficult to imagine an iteration of the 2020 draft where the 49ers don’t move backward at some point in the first round. They could have an opportunity to do so with their 13th pick, but the more likely scenario appears to involve them moving out of the No. 31 spot they secured as Super Bowl runner ups. That’s how they operate in the new Touchdown Wire mock draft.
A run on receivers at No. 11 and No. 12 takes Jerry Jeudy and CeeDee Lamb off the board for San Francisco. They ‘settle’ for Alabama’s Henry Ruggs III.
There’s a real chance the 49ers prefer Ruggs over the other top receivers in this draft given how rare his speed is. He clocked a 4.27 at the NFL combine and somehow looks faster than that on tape. Ruggs chews up space quicker than anyone in this year’s draft, and there aren’t many offensive coaches that scheme up space the way Kyle Shanahan does.
It’s easy to see how Ruggs would fit in the 49ers’ receiving corps alongside Deebo Samuel. He’s probably not a true No. 1 receiving threat though. The biggest question would be whether the team feels his speed can provide a big enough impact to give them a championship caliber receiving corps. If they do, they’ll have no qualms with getting him at the tail end of a run on receivers.
With the 31st selection, San Francisco makes their second trade of the offseason with the Colts. In what’s becoming a popular mock draft move for the 49ers, Indianapolis moves up to No. 31 to take Utah State quarterback Jordan Love. San Francisco in return gets picks 34 and 122.
That’s a fair return for the 49ers, but desperation from teams wanting to get a quarterback that slid to the bottom of the first round could drive up the asking price for that 31st pick. They may be able to snag Nos. 34 and 75 from the Colts if they include their first pick in the fifth round (No. 156) along with No. 31. While that’d be a lopsided deal for the 49ers from a draft capital standpoint, it’s one they may be able to pull off if any kind of bidding war starts for that pick.
There’s a small chance they elect to stay put at 31 if a player they can’t live without slides to that spot. However, a move back to scoop up more capital in the middle rounds makes more sense for the 49ers long-term, and finding a trade partner that only moves them back three spots while adding a fourth-round selection is pretty good value for the 31st pick.
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