Let’s all take a deep breath and grab a beer. The draft is over — we have ourselves a roster in Santa Clara.
Here’s who the Niners took on Day 3 and what I think of the picks.
And ultimately, what I think of the team’s 2024 draft:
Round 4 No. 124 overall: Malik Mustafa, S, Wake Forest
The No. 3 safety on my board, Mustafa is the kind of instinctual playmaker that can change a defense at all three levels.
A powerful hitter, Mustafa will be great in the run game.
But don’t sleep on his coverage ability — he’s one of the best in this class at turning his hips and covering the deep routes. If someone gets behind him, the play isn’t over.
I’ll plant my flag: Mustafa will challenge for the starting strong safety spot in Week 1.
Grade: A
Round 4 No. 129 overall: Isaac Guerendo, RB, Louisville
There are two players in recent NFL history to run a 4.3 40-yard dash at 220 pounds or heavier. One is the athletic marvel and 49ers’ nemesis, DK Metcaff.
Meet the other one, Guerendo.
The Niners like to keep their draft plans close to the chest. Sometimes the prospects selected don’t even know San Francisco liked them.
They couldn’t help but leak out that they loved Guerendo.
A perfect one-cut-and-go back, he was the second-best running back in his own backfield last season at Lousiville, but you can see that as a plus: there’s not much tread on the tire.
Plus, the college game is dramatically different than the pro one.
Guerendo is the kind of prospect that will be far better as a pro than a prospect, and he slides into the No. 2 running back role — he’s solid as a pass blocker and receiver — for the 2024 season.
Grade: A
Round 4 No. 135 overall: Jacob Cowing, WR, Arizona
This was a bit of a head-scratcher.
It’s also a warning siren to two players already on the roster.
Cowing is a slot receiver. The Niners don’t use one of those often, but the number of plays with a third wide has increased significantly since Brock Purdy took over as quarterback.
While the Niners might be able to use him as an X receiver — Brandon Aiyuk’s backup — what he will be is an immediate replacement for Ronnie Bell and the future replacement for Jauan Jennings, who is an unrestricted free agent after this season.
Cowing is small and doesn’t play with as much quickness or shiftiness as you’d expect from someone of his stature. What can do, however, is get open 100 times out of 100 on short and intermediate cutting routes. He comes from a pro-style Arizona offense where he was prolific, catching 13 touchdown passes his senior season.
There’s no doubt that Kyle Shanahan has been watching a lot of Houston Texans tape this offseason, learning from his former protégé, Bobby Slowik, their OC.
And having surely watched Tank Dell dominate for the Texans, Shanahan had to wonder if he could land one of those for the future.
I don’t think Cowing is that guy, but he could be, in which case this grade will look mighty foolish in short order.
But I’ll come clean: Cowing was not a prospect I spent much time watching during this process. Ten, fifteen minutes tops. I did not expect him to come off the board at No. 135 for any team, least of all the 49ers. It’s just another indication that the Niners operate in a vacuum when it comes to the draft — for better and for worse. Ultimately, I expect Cowing to be a fine pro, so I can’t rave or bash this pick.
Grade: C
Round 6 No. 215 overall: Jarrett Kingston, OG, USC
It’s easy to see why the 49ers like this guy — he can move.
And when he gets his hands on someone and he’s moving, they go flying.
The 49ers value that more than anything else when it comes to offensive line play, which is why they selected Kingston, who appeared destined to be an undrafted free agent.
This is another Colton McKivitz-like lineman. They have a type. Versatile enough to play tackle and guard, Kingston was arguably the only good player on the USC offensive line (what a mess their offense was last year.) He’s great moving forward, fine going back, he’ll be in a morass of folks fighting for a job in training camp.
Grade: B
Round 7 No. 251: Tatum Bethune, LB, Florida State
It’s never a bad idea to take a flyer on a Seminole — that was the best team in the country this past season. (Sorry Michigan backers.)
Here’s the deal with Bethune: he sees the field well, plays with good instincts, and is out for blood.
His body does not match his mind.
That might not be a problem in the NFL where what’s between the ears takes on even more value. It might stop his career before it starts.
Ultimately at pick 251, the Niners were able to draft someone with the same kind of game-changing temperament as Dre Greenlaw, who is about the same size and had many of the same questions coming out of school. That’s a big win, even if he’s anything but surefire.
Grade: B+
The Niners had three ‘A’ picks in this draft, including an A-plus pick in first-round selection Ricky Pearsall, and above all else they brought in players that fit their scheme and on-field values to a T.
There’s nothing you can bash the Niners about with the players they took. Even their reaches made sense.
Criticism can be levied as it pertains to the players the 49ers did not take in this draft — namely a future left tackle in the best tackle classes in a decade. Add in the lack of a tight end and depth quarterback and there will be a few that “got away” and they’ll have to see frequently in the years to come.
Ultimately the answers will come on the field.
