The NFL draft has concluded, and even before these rookies step onto the field, winners and losers are being assigned to teams. The Seattle Seahawks managed to turn their four draft picks at the beginning of Thursday into eight picks by the conclusion of the draft.
There were mixed reactions to the Seahawks selecting a running back in the first round, but overall, the consensus was positive about Jadarian Price. Jeremy Brener of Sports Illustrated viewed the selection as one with a high upside in his April 23 article reacting to the pick.
“If he develops into a true three-down threat, this could look like a steal,” Brener wrote. “But for now, it’s a solid, if slightly early, addition.”
One team, however, whose picks were universally panned, was the Seahawks’ rival, the San Francisco 49ers.
Reaching for Picks
The 49ers have been known to skirt conventional wisdom on their draft board, often going against the grain of consensus on prospects.
Grant Cohn of Sports Illustrated was highly critical of the 49ers for reaching on picks in his April 23 draft grades article, especially in the second and third rounds. On the 49ers’ second-round pick, De’Zhaun Stribling out of Ole Miss, he gave that pick a “D” grade.
“This is a mega reach. Stribling was projected to get picked in Round 3 or 4 by most scouting services. He’s big and fast, he is a YAC threat and he can block, but he’s not a good route runner and he didn’t have a ton of production in college, and he’ll be 24 in December,” Cohn wrote. “The 49ers should have taken a guard, which is what the Cardinals took with the next pick. This is a head scratcher.”
He wasn’t anymore forgiving of the 49ers third round selection of 24-year-old running back out of Indiana, Kaelon Black.
“This pick is hilarious. Black was projected to get picked anywhere between Round 5 and Round 7, so of course the 49ers took him at the end of Round 3,” Cohn wrote. “Keep in mind, they have a horrific track record when it comes to drafting running backs in Round 3. They also took Trey Sermon and Ty Davis-Price. To be fair, the 49ers certainly need a running back because Christian McCaffrey is getting old. But this is another major reach.”
Cohn was not the only analyst to question the 49ers’ draft process.
Going Against Consensus
49ers reporter Grant Cohn brought his criticism of 49ers GM John Lynch and his recent drafts directly to him, asking why he so often goes against consensus draft boards and leads to reaches. Lynch answered the question.
“That depends who’s consensus. We’ve got consensus in this building. That’s the consensus I care about,” Lynch said.
Lynch was strong in his convictions about his process, but the data show the 49ers have been among the worst teams in the league at reaching. NFL analyst Warren Sharp wrote about the phenomenon in his April 25 article.
“I normally would not do this, but I’ve got to vent. I don’t know what John Lynch is doing,” Sharp wrote. “For the last several years, I’ve looked at industry big boards and compared the ‘wisdom of crowds’ ranking of draft prospects with what each team actually does.
The metric is called ‘Draft Capital Over Expectation’ (DCOE) and helps to identify reaches or steals.
The 49ers’ recent record is shocking:
2023: #31
2024: #28
2025: #31
2026: #32
So this isn’t just a 2026 thing. This has been going on for several years. The 49ers are the WORST in the NFL at drafting, and local reporters have noticed,” Sharp continued.
The 49ers are trying to keep pace with the Super Bowl champion Seahawks in the NFC West, but the number of draft picks they have acquired over the last several years is making the task increasingly more difficult.
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