2026 Draft Prospect Watch List and Discussion

Holy s**t

Originally posted by NYniner85:
Holy s**t

This is the biggest freak athlete in this year's NFL draft. I'd never heard of him till two days ago. He's from a small village in Nigeria. He is 6-4 1/2, 306 lbs and jumps 10-10. Some folks in the NFL think he'll go on Day 3 of the draft. Free story: https://t.co/tgiQdpjikh pic.twitter.com/aFgq5FUjNV

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) April 3, 2026

We need good players. Not athletic freaks. We've drafted some of those guys in the past and they haven't made an impact at all.

If hes really 306 lbs, that's the best 306 lbs I've ever seen.. what a dense freak.

But hes likely years away from the technical proficiency needed to play edge. And I know a quote in article says hes flexible, and I know im literally judging off of one clip of him doing a vertical jump (lol) but he looks stiff.

Originally posted by CatchMaster80:

Originally posted by NYniner85:
Holy s**t

This is the biggest freak athlete in this year's NFL draft. I'd never heard of him till two days ago. He's from a small village in Nigeria. He is 6-4 1/2, 306 lbs and jumps 10-10. Some folks in the NFL think he'll go on Day 3 of the draft. Free story: https://t.co/tgiQdpjikh pic.twitter.com/aFgq5FUjNV

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) April 3, 2026

We need good players. Not athletic freaks. We've drafted some of those guys in the past and they haven't made an impact at all.

To be clear we are talking about a later round flier or UDFA. Alot of great athlete freaks get into football for just that reason.

Jimmy Graham played one year of college football. Antonio Gates didnt play college football. Jordan Mailata started at 21 years old. Ziggy Ansah didnt play high school football but walked onto BYU. We are talking about drafting Max Iheanachor in the first round and he picked football up in 2021.

Now this isnt common, although the list of international guys in the league and on practice squads grows every year. And I'd bet we never hear from this guy again. But I'm not so dismissive. These are the types you'd love to bring into a camp and see if anything is there.

Originally posted by OnTheClock:

Originally posted by ritz126:

Originally posted by OnTheClock:
My thoughts exactly. I think his versatility could get him picked in the 2nd. I have him slotted to go late 2nd currently... close to our pick...

what do you think of him vs Harold Perkins? I also see him as a chess piece he is a bit more of a LB but he is a great athlete with some serious pass rush skills. He had an ACL injury in 2024 had a good year last year but was projected to be a top 5 to top 10 pick before the injury. Hes a year removed from that

Perkins is an interesting case. Incredible athlete but IMO hasn't maximized that ability on the field. Kind similar to Dee Winters. Recall Winters ran 4.49 but it didn't help him cover any better. I see that same issue with Perkins. Dude ran a 4.38 but never consistently covered running backs well.

I like him in the middle rounds but the rarity of a 4.3 LB could get him sneaking into day two.

Barham though I think is underrated. I think he would be best fit in a 3–4 so if we're running those fronts, I think he's easily a top 75 level guy.

Depends who's on the board, but generally I'd be OK with taking him in the second, barring a clear-cut better guy available.

I don't know s**t about s**t, but I would be pleased with Barham in 2nd
what you think of Stukes from AZ ? Projections to safety are intriguing

Originally posted by Hoovtrain:
I don't know s**t about s**t, but I would be pleased with Barham in 2nd
what you think of Stukes from AZ ? Projections to safety are intriguing

My writeup is here, and I see him as a safety. Problem is, homie has been flying up draft boards. He was 100-120 on the mock simulators. Now I see him going 2nd round some places. We'll see.

https://www.49erswebzone.com/forum/nfl-draft/198394-safeties-2026-draft-class/page9/

Originally posted by scooterhd:

Originally posted by Hoovtrain:
I don't know s**t about s**t, but I would be pleased with Barham in 2nd
what you think of Stukes from AZ ? Projections to safety are intriguing

My writeup is here, and I see him as a safety. Problem is, homie has been flying up draft boards. He was 100-120 on the mock simulators. Now I see him going 2nd round some places. We'll see.

https://www.49erswebzone.com/forum/nfl-draft/198394-safeties-2026-draft-class/page9/

Thanks. And yeah that seems to be the case

Originally posted by CatchMaster80:

Originally posted by NYniner85:
Holy s**t

This is the biggest freak athlete in this year's NFL draft. I'd never heard of him till two days ago. He's from a small village in Nigeria. He is 6-4 1/2, 306 lbs and jumps 10-10. Some folks in the NFL think he'll go on Day 3 of the draft. Free story: https://t.co/tgiQdpjikh pic.twitter.com/aFgq5FUjNV

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) April 3, 2026

We need good players. Not athletic freaks. We've drafted some of those guys in the past and they haven't made an impact at all.

Who said anything about drafting him? He's gonna be a UDFA. Develop him. Look at what Philly did with their LT

Originally posted by 49erF90:
Hopefully we pick BPA who were stars in college and no injury history regardless of position. We need more playmakers for now and for the future.

Many of us agree with you. But historically this is not how the Niners draft. Niners definitely draft for need which is fine. Other teams do this as well. That said, if Niners polarize on pass rushers for instance, they are more apt to reach for a player with a second round grade then say select the top center on the board with a first round grade.

The Niners reach….usually. Sadly when a team such as ours has soooo many holes to fill, it makes more sense to "let the draft come to them" and identify guys with mid first round grades who slip a bit and draft BAP. But this is not the Niners style..

Originally posted by adrianlesnar:
If hes really 306 lbs, that's the best 306 lbs I've ever seen.. what a dense freak.

But hes likely years away from the technical proficiency needed to play edge. And I know a quote in article says hes flexible, and I know im literally judging off of one clip of him doing a vertical jump (lol) but he looks stiff.

8.13 3C lmao

Chad Reuter's recent 5 round mock draft had the 49ers taking:

1: Max Iheanachor, OL
2: Malik Muhammad, CB
4: LT Overton, DL
4: Dillon Bell, WR
4: Jude Bowry, OT
4: VJ Payne, S

Id be pretty happy with this draft TBH. I dont care for the Overton pick and I havent watched Bell in any sort of detail. But you get arguably the two highest upside tackles in the class, and a CB and safety that I love.

Jaishawn Barham went one pick before Overton, which would have really put this mock over the top for me. Also, jets took QB Simpson with pick 16, which justifies in my head them instead trading pick 33 for mac jones where Emmanuel Pregnon was available, potentially creating the foundation for our OL the next 4 years barring center.

Who here wouldn't be happy with:

1 Max Iheanachor, RT
2 Emmanuel Pregnon, LG
2 Malik Muhammad, CB
4 Jaishawn Barham, OLB
4 Eli Raridon, TE
4 Jude Bowry, LT
4 VJ Payne, S

If all hit, just a center, WR and maybe one more edge rusher away from a new 49er core.

Originally posted by adrianlesnar:
Chad Reuter's recent 5 round mock draft had the 49ers taking:

1: Max Iheanachor, OL
2: Malik Muhammad, CB
4: LT Overton, DL
4: Dillon Bell, WR
4: Jude Bowry, OT
4: VJ Payne, S

Id be pretty happy with this draft TBH. I dont care for the Overton pick and I havent watched Bell in any sort of detail. But you get arguably the two highest upside tackles in the class, and a CB and safety that I love.

Jaishawn Barham went one pick before Overton, which would have really put this mock over the top for me. Also, jets took QB Simpson with pick 16, which justifies in my head them instead trading pick 33 for mac jones where Emmanuel Pregnon was available, potentially creating the foundation for our OL the next 4 years barring center.

Who here wouldn't be happy with:

1 Max Iheanachor, RT
2 Emmanuel Pregnon, LG
2 Malik Muhammad, CB
4 Jaishawn Barham, OLB
4 Eli Raridon, TE
4 Jude Bowry, LT
4 VJ Payne, S

If all hit, just a center, WR and maybe one more edge rusher away from a new 49er core.

ill be honest im not thrilled about the initial mock. I dont see a scenario where Iheanachor is BPA at 27. He already is a bit raw at OT and i dont think he has taken a single snap at OG where we would ideally need him to start untill Trent retires. Overton doesnt make sense with us getting Osa. Bowry is double dipping into a developmental OT. Payne is solid i dont think he immediately takes a job in a weak S room though . I like your mock slightly better but i think S is a much bigger need than double dipping into two OT developmental projects. IMO i would love the mock more if round 1 we went EMW and still take Payne there.

Originally posted by ritz126:
ill be honest im not thrilled about the initial mock. I dont see a scenario where Iheanachor is BPA at 27. He already is a bit raw at OT and i dont think he has taken a single snap at OG where we would ideally need him to start untill Trent retires. Overton doesnt make sense with us getting Osa. Bowry is double dipping into a developmental OT. Payne is solid i dont think he immediately takes a job in a weak S room though . I like your mock slightly better but i think S is a much bigger need than double dipping into two OT developmental projects. IMO i would love the mock more if round 1 we went EMW and still take Payne there.

I feel you. Iheanachor is definitely not my first choice at 27, but I also wouldn't be upset about it. I think id take him over EMW tho. I also wouldn't mind double dipping, tho wouldn't be my first preference in asset allocation, taking two guys who both might not see the field year one.

I don't really find Overton redundant with Osa. He's just not a difference maker. A run of the mill rotational 4i kinda player.

I love Payne tho. One of my favorite players in the class.

Originally posted by NYniner85:

Originally posted by CatchMaster80:

Originally posted by NYniner85:
Holy s**t

This is the biggest freak athlete in this year's NFL draft. I'd never heard of him till two days ago. He's from a small village in Nigeria. He is 6-4 1/2, 306 lbs and jumps 10-10. Some folks in the NFL think he'll go on Day 3 of the draft. Free story: https://t.co/tgiQdpjikh pic.twitter.com/aFgq5FUjNV

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) April 3, 2026

We need good players. Not athletic freaks. We've drafted some of those guys in the past and they haven't made an impact at all.

Who said anything about drafting him? He's gonna be a UDFA. Develop him. Look at what Philly did with their LT

The Niners only have 6 picks this year. That's the fewest since 2020 when they had 5 so they have to make the most of those picks like they did when they got Kinlaw, Aiyuk, McKivitz and Jennings in 2020. Four of the 5 became starters at one time or another. Three are gone now but they helped for a little while. This draft isn't loaded with a lot of super talented guys so they just need to find players that can start or at least help.

This guy that nobody ever heard of may turn out to be a good player some day but the Niners surely can't afford to draft him. Whether they think he's worth signing after the draft is up to them. I'm sure there will be teams that might be intrigued enough to take him in a late round so he may not even be available.

Originally posted by NYniner85:

Originally posted by CatchMaster80:

Originally posted by NYniner85:
Holy s**t

This is the biggest freak athlete in this year's NFL draft. I'd never heard of him till two days ago. He's from a small village in Nigeria. He is 6-4 1/2, 306 lbs and jumps 10-10. Some folks in the NFL think he'll go on Day 3 of the draft. Free story: https://t.co/tgiQdpjikh pic.twitter.com/aFgq5FUjNV

— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) April 3, 2026

We need good players. Not athletic freaks. We've drafted some of those guys in the past and they haven't made an impact at all.

Who said anything about drafting him? He's gonna be a UDFA. Develop him. Look at what Philly did with their LT

You spoke too soon!!!