Not a single surprise at this point.
The San Francisco 49ers had been projected to draft Ohio State edge rusher Nick Bosa for much of the past two months, and on Thursday, the expected came to fruition. The 49ers got the best pass rusher in the 2019 NFL Draft, and their defensive front is looking quite ferocious heading into the coming season.
The 49ers signed Dee Ford in free agency, and now have a complement to him on the other edge. It’s been years since the 49ers had a consistent multi-dimensional pass rush. They’ve tried to mix and match parts, and we’ve seen some of their recent first round draft picks played out of position in hopes of making it work. Now they have two premium players coming off the edge, and DeForest Buckner’s life has been made a heck of a lot easier.
It is no surprise then that the annual first round draft grades are reflecting what was the right move to improve the team’s defense. SB Nation’s Dan Kadar kicked things by discussing the obvious need and value for the 49ers.
When the Cardinals took Murray, this became an easy choice for the 49ers. In Bosa, they get the best player in the 2019 draft. He’s a pass rusher teams need to scheme against. As long as he can stay healthy, the 49ers optimized value and need with the second pick in the draft. Maybe now, finally, the 49ers can stop taking defensive linemen in the first round.
CBS Sports analyst Pete Prisco loves the pick and thinks, “[t]hey are building something special on that defensive line.” He also agrees with Bosa’s decision to sit out and get right from a health perspective. He had the core muscle injury this past year, and tore his ACL a few years ago, so health will be something to keep an eye on. But for now, it made all the sense in the world.
For The Win’s Steven Ruiz added his two cents on the fact that there’s still a chance Nick ends up better than Joey. He sees comparable athleticism and potentially even more power in Nick.
49ers GM John Lynch said after the pick that the 49ers had similar grades on Bosa and Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. He said that the difference-maker was the 49ers pass rush need. Bosa and Williams were regularly at the top of most big boards, and NFL.com’s Chad Reuter thinks the 49ers got the best player in the draft. He said Bosa’s floor is Chris Long, and that’s a great floor.
As you can see, it was all As, with an A- and an A+ to balance out. People love this pick.
Other grades
The Ringer: A+
Mike Tanier: A
SI: A
Yahoo!: A-
Cleveland.com: A
MassLive.com: A
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