Offseason: Secondary gets continuity with the franchise tagging of Goldson and signing Rogers to a decent longterm deal with a good signing bonus but back weighted to hedge risk. Ginn leaves for another team that will overpay him thinking they have the magic to turn him into an NFL WR rather than just an ace return man. Brooks also departs to a team like the cardinals who needs OLB help and have been willing to pay top dollar for LB's in the past. Alex and Grant resign and Snyder hangs out on the market long enough for us to resign him at a bargain. The club also resigns Morgan.
Additions: Keeping it simple, Baalke signs Garcon from Indy and possibly a vet guard who fell through the cracks if Snyder gets an overpaid offer.
Draft: Baalke has shown the determination to address things that need fixing, like drafting 2 OL in the first or grabbing Aldon Smith. (I give Baalke credit since draft boards are typically set up to incorporate the teams "need" factor at a position when determining BPA... ie: BPA for that specific team and he hit a homerun there)
This draft will address the offensive efficiency and red zone threat.
Quick note: IMO Baalke will try to trade out of the 30 spot with a team looking to get back into the 1st round, leaving our first pick in the early 2nd round. I also think that the additional picks will then be traded away to move up from our 30th spot in the 2nd to the middle of the second round, leaving us with 2 picks in the 34-50 range. Based on how combines, pro-days and interviews the top two picks may flip flop.
Top of 2nd Round: Reuben Randle, WR, LSU: The combine will help this kid, and he is a big bodied WR with Speed. Also a tough kid and came from the SEC where he had to block a ton. If he catches everything in sight and runs a good 40... he will leap frog Fleener in value at the pick.
Middle of Round 2: Coby Fleener, TE, Stanford - OLB is an option but in the end the value of Fleener as a target to move the chains and in the redzone is too big to ignore for a team that struggled in both areas the majority of the season. Fleeners ankle sprain will cause his stock to fall out of the first but not that far since he will run well at his pro day. Fleener adds a dynamic to this offense which is predicated on the 2 TE set. Byham becomes the #3 TE. Walker moves to an H-back role, taking the roster spot of Norris who wont be coming back.
3rd Round: Trumaine Johnson, CB, Montana - Baalke likes himself those small schools, this year he turns to the small schools earlier in the draft than in the past and selects Johnson, who at 6'2 doesn't lose much athleticism for that height. He also returns kick offs if needed. Speed & injury concerns will cause him to fall to the late 3rd where Baalke will pounce.
4th Round: Shea McClellan, OLB Boise St. - He may not last this long (every mock has to have a lil bit of a stretch in thinking), but size concerns take him out of the NFL DE in a 4-3 conversation and teams may start going for projects with outstanding measurables over a player like Shea who does whatever he is asked and does it well. Another option who could be a sleeper at this position would be Tank Carder, TCU if he shows the ability to add weight without losing athleticism by the combine. Both of these guys are swiss army knife linebackers with excellent motors and the athleticism to line up both inside and outside with solid results at the next level. Chris Rainey is also an option if still available.
5th Round: Ryan Miller, G, Colorado - My bias pick, went to every Colorado home game this year and Miller was the only constant across a terrible line. Shows great strength to maul in the run game, as well as the athleticism to get position and stop the rush in pass protection. Could be a steal as his supporting cast was terrible and will overshadow how effective he actually was at his position.
6th Round: Robert Turbin, RB, Utah State - With the lack of big bruisers at the RB position, Turbin fits more in the Gore mold and is a hard-nosed runner. Turbin takes over Dixon's spot on the team.
7th Round: Janzen Jackson, FS, McNeese St.- Athletic Freak with allot of baggage. May or may not be available depending on his interviews but worth taking a shot on in the 7th round. Lavon Brazill, WR, Ohio is another option at this spot for his talents as a KR/PR and slot WR... Brazill could please allot of Niners fans by taking Kyle Williams roster spot.
The second round of this mock may be a little delusional, but if a team is calling at the end of the first and no one is there with a 1st round grade on the niners board, it could fall out that way and be the zone's wet dream.
. Maybe we sign another FA WR but I don't think it's anything big. Braylon came on a cheap one year deal. I think it will be something similar to that. People might be worried about adding legit weapons but we have to be able to afford them. Resigning Morgan and our Def is the most important and then it would be cheaper to sign good offense weapons from the draft because we can get them to an initial 3 year deal at a cheaper rate.