2020 NFL Mock Draft: San Francisco 49ers select wide receiver

Denzel Mims, WR, Baylor

With the 31^st Pick of the BGN 2020 Draft the 49ers select Denzel Mims.

Photo by John Weast/Getty Images

Let’s point out the obvious. We don’t have a lot of picks, so this would be a good place to trade back, but Commissioner Gowton has prohibited it. So here we are at 31.

What are the 49ers Needs?

Our first task this offseason was to resign as many of our players as possible, which is not always possible. On the defensive side we kept defensive end Arik Armstead and safety Jimmie Ward, but this came at the cost of trading away defensive tackle DeForest Buckner.

On the offensive side we lost Emmanuel Sanders who was a big part of our Offense. We also have questions on the offensive line, but the biggest concern there is who is going to replace an aging Joe Staley. Very similar to the situation the Eagles faced with Jason Peters.

So our biggest needs going into the draft depending on your perspective are.

Offensive Tackle – eventual replacement for Joe Staley

Wide Receiver – replacement for Emmanuel Sanders

Defensive Tackle – replacement for DeForest Buckner

Cornerback – not an immediate need but Sherman isn’t getting any younger

With our first pick in the Draft we addressed the Offensive Tackle issue with Andrew Thomas. Agree with that pick or not, it at least addressed the Offensive tackle issue, and puts us in a position to look at the available receivers, defensive tackles, and corners.

There may be a desire here to replace DeForest Buckner but Kinlaw and Brown are off the board, and If we were going to go DT we should have done so when we had the chance to snag Kinlaw at 13.

As for Corners; Okudah, Henderson, Fulton, and Gladney are all off the board. Anyone else feels like a reach at this position at this spot.

So with this pick we’re going WR.

Outside of Deebo Samuel and Emanuel Sanders (who’s now playing for the Saints), the 49ers receivers of Bourne, Goodwin, James, and Pettis combined for 818 yards in 2019. In other words Deebo is our only reliable weapon. God forbid anything were to happen to him and we’d look like the 2019 Eagles.

After your top 3 wideouts of Lamb, Juedy, and Ruggs, everyone has their opinion about who’s who in the next group and in what order from Reagor, Mims, Aiyuk, Jefferson, Shenault and of course Tee Higgins. I’m sure someone will even voice frustration at someone being on or off even this list. But with the 31^st Pick we’re going with Denzel Mims out of Baylor

So Why Mims?

First off let’s get this out the way from the beginning. Mims is NOT a combine or Senior Bowl hero. He has the production and tape to back it up. The notion that his “draft stock is rising” is more a result of people getting outside of the parrot narrative of who the top guys are and actually being forced to go back and watch him play. The senior bowl and combine just confirmed what others already new. Mims is bound to be a star.

At Baylor he put up 182 receptions for 2,901 yards (15.9 average) and 28 touchdowns. He’s a big bodied receiver with track speed who consistently made circus catches. Did I mention he blocks? Mims is a ferocious blocker. He has an enormous catch radius. He Highpoints balls really well.

Basically Denzel Mims is the complete wide receiver who many would be happy with as the 21^st pick yet here he is at 31. Just Imagine the 49ers with Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, and Denzel Mims as your top 3 weapons.

Mims had arguably the best combine and senior bowl performances.

Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images

At the combine he compared to other wide receivers he was

3^rd fastest 40 time at 4.38

8^th Highest Bench Reps at 16 (tied)

8^th Highest Vert at 38.5

4^th Highest Broad Jump at 10’11” tied with Ruggs

1^st in the 3 Cone Drill at 6.66

Spider Graph via Mockdraftable:

There was an argument that he had a limited route tree at Baylor, but I would guess that’s more a result of Baylor’s system than Mims inability to run a more extensive route tree which he showcased at the senior bowl. He was the highest graded receiver of the day. He won on consistently against press coverage while running a more varied route tree.

Mims Senior Bowl 1 on 1 Reps

Even if you think his limited route tree is an issue. All it means is he may have a bit of a learning curve in the NFL, and therefore you may not want to expect that he is your #1 year one.

Deebo Samuel: “Hold my beer”

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Some will say that drops are a concern. He had a down year in 2018 that inflates his overall drops throughout his college career but only 5-7 in 2019. You do see him sometimes bobble or double catch a ball but those are concentration issues that can be cleaned up (not to mention Mims played through a broken hand). Otherwise his hands are spectacular, and he make crazy circus catches.

2020 BGN Mock Draft Order

1) Bengals (grantspectations): QB Joe Burrow
2) Washington (ablesser88): EDGE Chase Young
3) Lions (CMG97): CB Jeff Okudah
4) Giants (selgae aihpledalihp): LB Isaiah Simmons
5) Dolphins (dceagles): WR CeeDee Lamb
6) Chargers (dapeltz13): QB Tua Tagovailoa
7) Panthers (wardbell92): DT Derrick Brown
8) Cardinals (drc242): OT Mekhi Becton
9) Jaguars (Palaniappan K M): OT Tristan Wirfs
10) Browns (WentzAndFolesFan): WR Jerry Jeudy
11) Jets (Dr_Horrible): OT Jedrick Wills
12) Raiders (Phillysolo): WR Henry Ruggs III
13) 49ers (eagles0132): OT Andrew Thomas
14) Buccaneers (BuckeyedEagles): DT Javon Kinlaw
15) Broncos (J. Wil): S Xavier McKinney
16) Falcons (Kephas): EDGE A.J. Epenesa
17) Cowboys (PhillyBirdGang): S Grant Delpit
18) Dolphins (dshelton5): QB Justin Herbert
19) Raiders (fredhugo): CB Kristian Fulton
20) Jaguars (ItownBallers22): EDGE K’Lavon Chaisson
21) Eagles (20Safety_Hazards): CB C.J. Henderson
22) Vikings (SadJediShark): CB Jeff Gladney
23) Patriots (Phoenix X Minimus): LB Kenneth Murray
24) Saints (big DUB): LB Patrick Queen
25) Vikings (MrW254): EDGE Yetur Gross-Matos
26) Dolphins (SemperFilly): RB D’Andre Swift
27) Seahawks (mattywils): OT Josh Jones
28) Ravens (Dirtybirdy47): WR Justin Jefferson
29) Titans (mr_england): OT Austin Jackson
30) Packers (Nishant R SambhiReddy): LB Zack Baun
31) 49ers (Fly Like An Eagle): WR Denzel Mims
32) Chiefs (Leo Bedio):

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Now it’s time for you to vote for who YOU think the 49ers should pick in the 2020 BGN Community Consensus Mock Draft.

2020 BGN Community Consensus Mock Draft

1) Bengals: QB Joe Burrow
2) Washington: EDGE Chase Young
3) Lions: CB Jeff Okudah
4) Giants: LB Isaiah Simmons
5) Dolphins: QB Tua Tagovailoa
6) Chargers: QB Justin Herbert
7) Panthers: DT Derrick Brown
8) Cardinals: OT Mekhi Becton
9) Jaguars: OT Tristan Wirfs
10) Browns: OT Andrew Thomas
11) Jets: OT Jedrick Wills
12) Raiders: WR CeeDee Lamb
13) 49ers: WR Jerry Jeudy
14) Buccaneers: DT Javon Kinlaw
15) Broncos: WR Henry Ruggs III
16) Falcons: EDGE A.J. Epenesa
17) Cowboys: CB C.J. Henderson
18) Dolphins: OT Josh Jones
19) Raiders: CB Kristian Fulton
20) Jaguars: EDGE K’Lavon Chaisson
21) Eagles: WR Justin Jefferson
22) Vikings: CB Jeff Gladney
23) Patriots: QB Jordan Love
24) Saints: LB Patrick Queen
25) Vikings: WR Denzel Mims
26) Dolphins: S Xavier McKinney
27) Seahawks: EDGE Yetur Gross-Matos
28) Ravens: LB Kenneth Murray
29) Titans: OT Austin Jackson
30) Packers: WR Jalen Reagor
31) 49ers: