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The No. 11 spot is a weird place in the 2025 NFL draft order. It puts the San Francisco 49ers in a spot where they'll either grab one of the steals of the first round, or walk away with a player they might have been able to get 10 spots later.
We've tried hard to nail down the prospects that will be available. But what if something weird happens that renders the general consensus top 10 in mock drafts wrong?
The 49ers would love to see a little chaos in the 10 picks above them, and they'd love to see one of these players fall to them:
Of all the players projected to go in the top 10, Hunter feels like the least likely to fall out. Neither cornerback nor wide receiver sit at the top of the 49ers list of needs. Hunter's unique talents as a two-way player render the "need" aspect of the draft useless if he drops all the way to San Francisco. They'd love to take a player who is an elite prospect on either or both sides of the ball.
A foot injury put some injury red flags over Carter which gives some hope he could slide. His talent and upside as an edge defender have him projected to go in the top three no matter how the mock draft gets sliced. For San Francisco, they'd be landing the No. 1 edge defender in this year's class. Carter is a player who should be able to step on the field and play all three downs right away in the NFL. He'll be frontrunner for defensive rookie of the year and he'd give the 49ers a bona fide star-level prospect across from Nick Bosa. There are other good edge rushers in this year's class. None are as good as Carter.
Graham can flat out play and he plays the position San Francisco is most likely to draft in Round 1. They need a starting defensive tackle and Graham looks like a shoo-in to be a three-down player out of the gate in the NFL. Finding a quality starter who may push for defensive rookie of the year honors would be a great way for the 49ers to start an important draft. Graham's measurables and workout numbers might turn some teams off to the point he slips through the cracks amid some top-10 chaos. It doesn't seem likely, but he'd be a DT the 49ers feel superb about selecting No. 11. They'd sprint to the podium to make the pick.
Mock drafts are a little more mixed on where Walker will go, but we'll throw him in here since in general he's expected to go in the first eight picks. He's not an exact scheme fit for the 49ers because he's a little small to play edge every down on even fronts, but his talents as a pass rusher are wasted if he lines up as an off-ball linebacker. San Francisco should be able to deploy him in enough ways that it opens the door for a violent, athletic defensive player to make plays all over the field. There are edge rushers who check more boxes than Walker from a physical traits standpoint, but there aren't many who make as big of an impact as he does.
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 2025 NFL draft: 49ers' dream picks in 1st round
Continue reading...
We've tried hard to nail down the prospects that will be available. But what if something weird happens that renders the general consensus top 10 in mock drafts wrong?
The 49ers would love to see a little chaos in the 10 picks above them, and they'd love to see one of these players fall to them:
Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter
Of all the players projected to go in the top 10, Hunter feels like the least likely to fall out. Neither cornerback nor wide receiver sit at the top of the 49ers list of needs. Hunter's unique talents as a two-way player render the "need" aspect of the draft useless if he drops all the way to San Francisco. They'd love to take a player who is an elite prospect on either or both sides of the ball.
Penn State DE Abdul Carter
A foot injury put some injury red flags over Carter which gives some hope he could slide. His talent and upside as an edge defender have him projected to go in the top three no matter how the mock draft gets sliced. For San Francisco, they'd be landing the No. 1 edge defender in this year's class. Carter is a player who should be able to step on the field and play all three downs right away in the NFL. He'll be frontrunner for defensive rookie of the year and he'd give the 49ers a bona fide star-level prospect across from Nick Bosa. There are other good edge rushers in this year's class. None are as good as Carter.
Michigan DT Mason Graham
Graham can flat out play and he plays the position San Francisco is most likely to draft in Round 1. They need a starting defensive tackle and Graham looks like a shoo-in to be a three-down player out of the gate in the NFL. Finding a quality starter who may push for defensive rookie of the year honors would be a great way for the 49ers to start an important draft. Graham's measurables and workout numbers might turn some teams off to the point he slips through the cracks amid some top-10 chaos. It doesn't seem likely, but he'd be a DT the 49ers feel superb about selecting No. 11. They'd sprint to the podium to make the pick.
Georgia DE/LB Jalon Walker
Mock drafts are a little more mixed on where Walker will go, but we'll throw him in here since in general he's expected to go in the first eight picks. He's not an exact scheme fit for the 49ers because he's a little small to play edge every down on even fronts, but his talents as a pass rusher are wasted if he lines up as an off-ball linebacker. San Francisco should be able to deploy him in enough ways that it opens the door for a violent, athletic defensive player to make plays all over the field. There are edge rushers who check more boxes than Walker from a physical traits standpoint, but there aren't many who make as big of an impact as he does.
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 2025 NFL draft: 49ers' dream picks in 1st round
Continue reading...
