3. SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (6-10)
LAST SEASON: The Niners’ bid to return to the Super Bowl was derailed by a spate of early-season injuries. Edge rusher Nick Bosa went down with a season-ending knee injury in Week 2, QB Jimmy Garoppolo missed 10 games with ankle issues, and other key players such as TE George Kittle and CB Richard Sherman also missed significant time as San Francisco stumbled to a third losing season in four years under coach Kyle Shanahan.
FREE AGENCY: The 49ers spent much of the offseason bringing back key pieces with LT Trent Williams the biggest prize to stay. San Francisco also retained versatile FB Kyle Juszczyk, CBs Jason Verrett and K’Waun Williams, NT D.J Jones and S Jaquiski Tartt. The biggest outside additions were C Alex Mack and edge rusher Samson Ebukam. They lost DE Kerry Hyder.
THEY NEED: QB, CB, WR, DE.
THEY DON’T NEED: LB, DT.
POSSIBLE FIRST PICK: Ohio State QB Justin Fields, North Dakota State QB Trey Lance, Alabama QB Mac Jones.
OUTLOOK: Shanahan and GM John Lynch made a big move in March by trading the No. 12 pick and two future first-round selections to move up to No. 3 to take a QB. With Garoppolo missing 23 games the past three seasons, the Niners wanted a more dependable option at quarterback. The plan currently is to keep Garoppolo for 2021, which would allow the rookie QB time to develop. The rest of the roster is in pretty good shape if healthy but could use depth in the secondary and edge rusher, as well as a possible slot receiver.
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