The question was debated during the latest episode of the No Huddle Podcast, and it's being debated in media circles. Is this San Francisco 49ers roster, coming off of a Super Bowl run that fell just short of a championship, better after the draft than it was last season? We won't know for sure until football kicks off again.
San Francisco lost some key pieces from its Super Bowl run, but general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan worked hard to find replacements. They replaced their Pro Bowl tackle, the recently-retired Joe Staley, with another Pro Bowl tackle in Trent Williams. Defensive tackle DeForest Buckner was traded to the Indianapolis Colts after it became clear the team would not be able to sign him to a long-term deal, and was replaced with rookie Javon Kinlaw. Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders signed with the New Orleans Saints, but San Francisco drafted Brandon Aiyuk.
Are the 49ers better, though?
Andrew Siciliano of NFL Network asked analyst Jim Trotter that question on Wednesday.
"Objectively, you cannot say that they're better," Trotter responded. "Let's look at the three key moves that they made. Number one, you trade DeForest Buckner, a second-team All-Pro, a team captain, a team MVP, and you bring in a rookie in Kinlaw. Can you say objectively that Kinlaw will be better than Buckner this year? I don't think you can.
"Number two, look at the receiver position. You let Emmanuel Sanders walk in free agency. You draft Aiyuk. Can Aiyuk be better than Sanders was a year ago? Right now, objectively, you would say no. That's not to say, in a year or two, he couldn't (be), but now, no.
"Thirdly, look at the tackle position. Joe Staley retires; you trade for Trent Williams. He is an upgrade over Joe Staley, at this point, but when you put it all together, objectively, you cannot say that they are better, which is not to say that they won't be by the end of the year. Some of the young guys may step up but there's also the possibility that veterans may take a step back.
"But right now, it just has to play out. But the feeling for the 49ers is they were so dominant in the playoffs last year, beating both NFC opponents by 17 points, that they feel they are still the class of the NFC, at this point."
If you want to read more on the topic from Trotter, you can take a look at his lengthy feature over at NFL.com.