As he did after Day 1, ESPN analyst Mel Kiper named winners and head-scratchers after rounds two and three of the 2019 NFL Draft.
The San Francisco 49ers selected two wide receivers with as many picks. They drafted Deebo Samuel of South Carolina during round two and Jalen Hurt of Baylor during round three.
The additions will create a very crowded wide receivers room this offseason. San Francisco currently has 11 wideouts on its roster, including Samuel and Hurd.
"With a healthy Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco thinks it's close to a playoff team," writes Kiper. "What the Niners really lacked were difference-makers at wide receiver to help Garoppolo, however. So I liked GM John Lynch & Co. taking two wideouts on Day 2, with South Carolina's Deebo Samuel (No. 36) and Baylor's Jalen Hurd (No. 67). Samuel is the best slot receiver in this draft, while Hurd, a converted running back, is a raw route runner with a 6-foot-5 frame."
Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan know tough roster decisions are ahead. NFL teams will typically carry no more than six receivers into the regular season. A team can get away with another if the added receiver proves to be versatile enough to serve an additional role.
"Usually you take anywhere from 10 to 12 to camp because so many are out there, and there's so many reps, and there's always hamstring issues with how much these guys have to run," Shanahan said. "And usually six make your team. I've been on teams that have kept seven. I've been on teams that have kept five.
"What you don't want to do is be able to say who is going to make your team when you look at OTAs just by the ability of the guys that you have. And then injuries happen that give people opportunities, where you look at our roster now, and there's definitely more than six NFL receivers, which is a really good problem to have.
"You hope you have to cut someone you don't want to cut who is going to go help another team, and the more you can start doing that, the more you know your organization is going to the right direction."
The 49ers have drafted at least one wide receiver in each of Lynch's and Shanahan's three offseasons, and the team has selected one in each of the past 17 drafts. San Francisco selected Dante Pettis and Richie James last year, and Trent Taylor in 2017. The 49ers also have veterans Marquise Goodwin and newly acquired Jordan Matthews.
