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The NFL calendar unofficially turns the page to the 2019 season Tuesday, when the week-long NFL Combine kicks off in Indianapolis. From there, 338 prospects will be measured, tested, and questioned as the NFL draft looms two months away.
Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch enter year No. 3, the most pressure-packed and expectation-filled season of the current regime. The ongoing rebuild is now expected to manifest into wins.
Part of building the 2019 roster is acing April’s draft. After the 49ers were awarded a sixth-round compensatory pick last week, they now have six total selections this year, including the No. 2, No. 36, No. 67, No. 104, No. 176, and No. 212 picks.
The Combine serves purposes beyond the draft. Teams will talk trades, host player interviews, and mull free agency, while the competition committee broaches rule changes for next season.
With that, here are five things to watch this week.
Shanahan and Lynch address busy offseason
The Combine marks one of the lone times Shanahan and Lynch speak with the media during the offseason. Shanahan will talk at 2:15 p.m. Wednesday, with Lynch at 11:45 a.m. Thursday.
There is shortage of topics to discuss, including:
Coaching staff changes
There has been steady turnover among the 49ers coaching staff this offseason.
The team restructured its strength and training department. Quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello took the Broncos offensive coordinator position. Defensive backs coach Jeff Hafley left for the Ohio State co-defensive coordinator job. The 49ers replaced Hafley with Joe Woods, who is expected to assume a larger role than his predecessor. The team has a new defensive line coach, Kris Kocurek, after firing Jeff Zgonina.
These are just some, not all, of the changes that have been made. Lynch and Shanahan may expand on the decision-making behind these moves and whether new roles await the newcomers.
Releasing veterans and if there is more to come
Throughout recent weeks, the 49ers released Earl Mitchell, Garry Gilliam, and Pierre Garcon — all expensive, expendable veterans. The team will have to make decisions on a couple more players fitting similar descriptions, including linebacker Malcolm Smith.
The draft
Of course, several questions will center on April’s draft, the reason Shanahan and Lynch are in Indianapolis. They will answer questions on the team’s lack of edge rush and how that applies to the draft. Many draftniks project the 49ers select either Nick Bosa or Josh Allen, arguably the top two edge rushers in this year’s draft, at No. 2 overall. The 49ers are also looking for depth at receiver, linebacker, and among the offensive line.
The Antonio Brown and Odell Beckham Jr. trade rumors
Shanahan and Lynch may completely deflect this topic. They have long maintained that they will entertain any move that improves their team, but they won’t bring in someone at the expense of disrupting their locker room. They will likely reiterate that thought this week.
It’s unknown whether the 49ers are one of the three teams that have reportedly inquired about Brown, who is looking for a new home. The Steelers are looking to shop the seven-time Pro Bowl receiver, but only for the right price, which is also undisclosed. Beckham likely demands a larger offer, considering he is four years younger than Brown. The 49ers have reportedly shown ‘real interest’ in Beckham since last year.
We should get a better sense on whether Shanahan and Lynch feel confident enough in the current 49ers receivers, along with their chances to draft or sign one in free agency, to hold off on the Brown and Beckham sweepstakes.
Franchise tag
The timing of the Combine overlaps with the ongoing franchise-tag window. The 49ers have until March 5 to use the tag, which they have not done in seven years.
The immediate choice is Robbie Gould, who just engineered the best two-year stretch for a kicker with a minimum of 50 attempts in NFL history. In Gould’s two seasons with the 49ers, he made 72 of 75 field goal attempts, including three game-winners.
But Gould’s love affair with Chicago is no secret. He played his first 11 NFL seasons there. His family lives there. The Bears will reportedly release kicker Cody Parkey, making a reunion with Gould, the organization’s all-time leading scorer, possible. The 49ers would like to work out a long-term deal with Gould, but if those conversations stall, the franchise tag could be the right course of action.
Lynch and Shanahan could provide more clarity on the franchise-tag situation this week.
Edge rushers
The 49ers’ edge rush problem isn’t a revelation. Last year, the team faced the same issue and chose not to address it in either the draft or free agency (with exception to signing Jeremiah Attaochu, who was ultimately cut).
What followed? The 49ers recorded two defensive interceptions and forced seven turnovers, both all-time lows. After another lifeless season from the edge rushers (they combined for 12 sacks in 2018), the 49ers seemingly have no choice but to add pass-rushing talent.
Several of the NFL’s marquee defensive ends set to hit free agency are likely to either sign extensions or be franchise-tagged. Fortunately for the 49ers, the crop of edge-rush prospects is one of the best and deepest in recent history. That’s why nearly every mock draft has the 49ers selecting a defensive lineman or outside linebacker in the first round.
This week’s event will feature most of the top edge rushers in the class. That includes Bosa, Allen, Florida’s Jachai Polite, Clemson’s Clelin Ferrell, and more.
If Shanahan’s and Lynch’s draft history shows us anything, however, it’s to not assume they take the expected route.
Kyler Murray’s performance
No, the 49ers aren’t in the market for a quarterback. But Heisman Trophy-winner Kyler Murray’s combine performance – the event’s headliner — potentially impacts the 49ers.
If Murray tests well, teams could be convinced he is a franchise-changing player worthy of a top pick. That could impact the 49ers in a couple ways. Both they and the Arizona Cardinals, picking No. 1 overall, will likely receive calls from quarterback-needy teams coveting their picks. The 49ers could trade down and pile up more assets. The Cardinals could do the same thing, and if they surrender their pick, the 49ers would take their top non-quarterback prospect in the draft at No. 2 overall. For a team with many of the same needs as the Cardinals, that’s important.
Murray eyes a potentially historic Combine performance. Earlier this month, he said he previously ran a 4.37 40-yard dash time, and that he is faster now. For reference, Texas A&M’s Reggie McNeal ran the fastest 40-time for a quarterback at the event, clocking a 4.35. He is the only quarterback to run in the 4.3-second range in the history of the event. Last year’s Combine saw seven players clock below a 4.4.
Murray may not, however, choose to run the 40-yard dash. As one of the smallest quarterback prospects in history, he could be more concerned with his weigh-in and decide not to run.
Murray’s draft stock is liable to shift in either direction.
“Z” receivers
The 49ers lost their most accomplished player from one of the statistically worst receiving corps in franchise history.
Earlier this month, the team waived Garcon, ending his 49ers tenure after two years. The 49ers already needed to improve the receiving corps, with Kendrick Bourne’s 487 yards leading the position group — and ranking No. 97 in the NFL.
The upcoming draft offers some replacements for Garcon, who played the “Z”, or flanker, spot in Shanahan’s offense. Ole Miss’ A.J. Brown, Georgia’s Riley Ridley, Arizona State’s N’Keal Harry, Iowa State’s Hakeem Butler, and South Carolina’s Deebo Samuel — whom the 49ers coached at last month’s Senior Bowl — are all intriguing options. They will be closely monitored this week.
Even if several wide receivers are picked in the first round, the 49ers will have access to a range of options at the No. 36 spot, should they choose that route. Last year, they traded up 15 picks to select Dante Pettis at No. 44 overall — the highest Shanahan has drafted a receiver in his 11 years running NFL offenses.
