Tankathon calculated the value of the selections for each NFL team in the upcoming draft, ranking the organizations by total draft capital. It should come as no surprise that the San Francisco 49ers, who lack a first-round pick until 2024, are nowhere near the top of the ranking. In fact, John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan's squad ranked No. 31 out of the 32 teams.
Last year, the 49ers surrendered this year's first-round pick as part of a massive package to move up to select quarterback Trey Lance at No. 3 overall. In doing so, the team's perceived total draft value plummeted.
"This calculation assigns a value to every pick in the draft and ranks teams based on the sum of their pick values," notes Tankathon. "The values for each pick were determined by [the Jimmy Johnson model] widely used."
San Francisco's pick value of 506.4 bests only the Los Angeles Rams, who earned a mark of 169.9. It could be a quiet first day of the draft for the 49ers, assuming they don't find a way back into the first round. The team's first selection is the No. 61 overall pick, and it owns just two picks in the top 93. Only the Rams have a later "first pick" (No. 103 overall) in this year's draft.
The New York Jets ranked No. 1 on the list, owning four of the top 38 selections and two picks in the top 10.
The 49ers' draft value could increase in the coming weeks. The team is expected to trade starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, opening the door for Lance to become the team's starter in 2022 and beyond. However, it is unclear how much interest Garoppolo is attracting. The 49ers are reportedly working with the quarterback to find a trade situation that benefits all parties involved.
The lack of a first-round pick might not be as concerning in this draft compared to previous ones.
"You can find starters there on day two and day three," NFL Media draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah recently said during a recent conference call. "Yeah, that's the Rams' thing. I think that's going to catch on around the league, too, is people are going to realize when you target the right positions outside of round 1, you can survive without a first-round pick."
