© Brian Spurlock | 2020 Feb 25
With the 13th pick in the NFL Draft, the conventional wisdom is that the 49ers are going to select a receiver. Not only is it a position of need, but three of the best receiver prospects in recent years — Jerry Jeudy, CeeDee Lamb and Henry Ruggs III — might all be available once San Francisco is on the clock.
But what if John Lynch had his pick of the litter? If hypothetically all of the non-quarterbacks were available, would Lynch still target a WR, or is there someone else on the top of his draft board?
According to Matt Barrows of The Athletic, it’s a DeForest Buckner replacement that would be Lynch’s dream selection.
“I think he goes with Derrick Brown,” Barrows told Tolbert, Krueger & Brooks. “He’s the defensive tackle from Auburn, and boy he just reminds me of Ndamukong Suh so much. Obviously the 49ers have a big hole in that defensive line after trading DeForest Buckner to Indianapolis and Derrick Brown would be a guy who could come in and start there from day one. He might ultimately be better than DeForest Buckner was there.”
Brown is ranked as the third best overall player according to ESPN’s rankings, and is expected to be selected seventh by the Carolina Panthers according to both Mel Kiper and Todd McShay. Brown was an unanimous All-American and the SEC Defensive Player of the Year in 2019. Here’s what Kiper said in his latest analysis:
I wrote about Brown early last season, when he had two sacks and a forced fumble in the Tigers’ win at Texas A&M. He had another sack and a forced fumble — plus two fumble recoveries — in Auburn’s loss at Florida. Brown took a leap in 2019, turning his traits into production, and that’s what he needed to show. NFL teams want interior disruptors who can knock down quarterbacks, and Brown hasn’t shown he can do that consistently just yet. He is still raw, but he has top-five talent in a massive frame.
“The idea of Brown playing next to Nick Bosa for the next four or five years, I know offenses don’t want to hear that,” Barrows continued. “It really speaks to the importance of that defensive line. Everything sort of flows backwards from what that d-line does. If you keep that d-line strong then the linebackers will look better and the cornerbacks will look better. Maybe it diminishes somewhat the need for a cornerback moving forward, although that’s also high on the list.”
Listen to the interview below.