The San Francisco 49ers shouldn’t be doing a ton of homework on the top quarterbacks in this year’s NFL draft.
Neither Miami’s Cam Ward nor Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders should be on San Francisco’s radar since it appears QB Brock Purdy will be receiving a long-term extension at some point this offseason.
Both of those players are also expected to come off the board well before the 49ers pick at No. 11 overall, and that’s why San Francisco should be invested in the outcome for each of them.
The Athletic’s Dane Brugler doesn’t have either of those two QBs in the top 11 players on his big board. NFL Media’s Daniel Jeremiah has Ward at No. 10 and Sanders at No. 11 in his top 50. ESPN’s Matt Miller has Ward at No. 13 and Sanders at No. 22 in his top 50.
If both Ward and Sanders go before the 49ers pick in this year’s draft, it means a couple of top-10 players are likely to slide out of the top 10 and into San Francisco’s hands at No. 11 overall.
With offensive and defensive linemen littered across the top-10 of various draft analysts big boards, the 49ers would love to see an early run on QBs that starts pushing players like LSU offensive tackle Will Campbell or Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham to them.
If they can walk out of the first-round with a great value pick at one of their biggest positions of need, it would be a great start to a draft the 49ers need to nail if they want to extend their Super Bowl window beyond 2025. Their chances of that happening tick up once Ward and Sanders are taken.
About the Author: Insidethe49
