It’s well within the realm of possibilities that the San Francisco 49ers would use the No. 11 overall pick in this year’s draft on an offensive lineman.
That’s the exact route they took in a mock draft from NFL Media’s draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah. His selection for San Francisco is a little bit outside the box given his analysis of the pick.
With the 11th pick, Jeremiah sends Missouri offensive tackle Armand Membou to San Francisco.
Membou started 30 of the 35 games he played across three seasons for the Tigers. 29 of those starts came at right tackle with the other coming on the left side. Jeremiah doesn’t think the 20-year-old will necessarily stay at tackle in the NFL.
Via NFL.com:
Membou is the most technically sound offensive lineman in this class. He reminds me of Aljah Vera-Tucker when he entered the league. Membou will be an exceptional guard who can also play tackle if needed.
It would be a pretty steep departure from the 49ers’ team-building philosophy if they took a player they think will play guard in the first round.
In 2021 they selected left guard Aaron Banks in the second round, and he didn’t even start until his second season. Then in last year’s draft they took right guard Dominick Puni who stepped in as a starter on Day 1 and had a terrific rookie campaign.
A first-round pick on a guard, especially one as high as No. 11, wouldn’t make a ton of sense for San Francisco. Membou may be very technically sound, but he never played guard in college, and he’d likely have to swap sides of the line to play left guard after playing right tackle for his last 29 college games.
Of course, if the team believes he’s their long-term answer at right tackle, the selection makes more sense. It could provide an upgrade at RT over Colton McKivitz who did make strides last season. It would also be a cheap RT option which may open the door to spending on a left tackle if they need to in the post Trent Williams era.
Given what we know about the 49ers’ team-building philosophy in the past, a defensive lineman would probably be the top option for them at this spot. However, if the front office and coaching staff think Membou is a long-term starter at one of the tackle spots, they likely wouldn’t hesitate to snag him and improve their offensive line. If they don’t project him as an offensive tackle in the NFL, they’re not likely to go that route on Draft Day.