49ers Draft Day

Although I did not watch the draft, I believe the 49ers did a great job getting the positions filled that they needed.  For the first round they traded up thirteen spaces with the Cowboys to snag Eric Reid,a safety they desperately needed after Dashon Goldson went to the Buccaneers.  Free Safety was their most need spot filled and I believe they picked up a very talented and humble young safety.  He joins a defense that was ranked 3rd overall last year and has a new deep secondary.  The loss of Goldson does hurt, but I believe Reid will fill in quite nicely, and with more experience will become a great safety for an already great defense.


Eric Reid

Next, in the second round, the 49ers drafted Cornellius Carradine, a defensive end who will most likely play outside lineback in their 3-4 defensive scheme for now.  He is a pass rusher with tremendous speed off the snap.  I believe when the Man-Beast known as Justin Smith finally retires or goes to another team, he will fill in.  The depth at defensive end was shallow last year.  Justin Smith went out the last few games with a torn tricep and the defense just was not the same without him.  Aldon Smith did not record a sack when he got a hurt after going 19 1/2 sacks in 12 games (which by the way is pretty damn impressive).  With Cornellius it not only adds depth, but also another pass rusher to an already great pass rushing defense.


Cornellius Carradine

The last person I will talk about because it would take me all day to write about all 11 players they drafted is Vance McDonald.  When the 49ers lost Delaine Walker to the Titans, they needed another tightend to fill his big shoes.  He was the back up to Vernon Davis, but he is agile, fast, creates mismatches, can catch the ball extremely well, and above all can block in the running game better than any tightend I have seen.  But, I believe the 49ers drafted a great young prospect in McDonald.  He is a terrific run blocker (maybe not better than Walker, but he will learn), he has great hands and can catch any ball thrown his way, and probably the best attribute about him, he is a whistle-to-whistle player.  He does not give up until the ref calls the play over, which is exactly what the 49ers are all about.


Vance McDonald

All in all, the 49ers may not have gotten the best picks, or the best players in the draft; but they sure as hell filled the spaces they needed with good quality players that are humble, work hard, and are team players.  What more could you ask for.