49ers Select Solomon Thomas No. 3 Overall
With the No. 3 overall pick in the draft, the 49ers have selected Stanford defensive lineman Solomon Thomas. Thomas was regarded by most as the best defensive end available after Myles Garrett. 
Thomas enters the NFL after two strong collegiate seasons. In 2016, Thomas had 61 total tackles – including 14 tackles for a loss – and 8.5 sacks. He’s a three-technique player with the ability to play on the inside when asked, though most evaluators would like to see him beef up in order to hold his ground on the interior. Depending on who you ask, Thomas is either labeled as versatile or as a “tweener”. Either way, no one denies that he is a high-level talent.
With the Niners, he projects to start at defensive end with 2015 first round pick Arik Armstead on the other side. The Niners will have free agent pickup Earl Mitchell and 2016 All-Rookie selection DeForest Bucker on the inside.
Moments ago, the Niners traded down from No. 2 to acquire Chicago’s No. 3 overall selection plus more. The 49ers also received picks No. 67 and No. 111 this year plus a 2018 a third-round pick next year. Ultimately, they got a king’s ransom to move back just one spot and land one of this year’s very best talents.
Bears Acquire No. 2 Pick, Take Mitch Trubisky
The Bears have acquired the No. 2 overall pick from the 49ers. With the pick, the Bears have shocked the world by taking UNC quarterback Mitch Trubisky. 
The selection comes as a massive surprise. There have been a number of players connected to the Bears over the last few months, but no one anticipated Chicago taking Trubisky. The Bears paid a fortune to sign Mike Glennon this offseason and they have now put major resources into landing Trubisky. Glennon was supposedly signed to be the Bears’ starter, but he might wind up holding the clipboard for a highly drafted QB yet again.
The Niners will be acquiring Chicago’s No. 3 overall selection plus more. The 49ers will receive picks No. 67 and No. 111 this year plus a 2018 a third-round pick next year to move back one spot, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com tweets.
Photo courtesy of Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.
Teams Calling 49ers About No. 2 Pick
Myles Garrett won’t be available, but teams blowing up 49ers GM John Lynch‘s phone about acquiring the No. 2 overall pick. Six teams have contacted SF about moving up, a league source tells Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area. Three of those teams are in the top ten and three of those clubs are outside of the top ten. The Niners, Maiocco hears, are open to making such a deal. 
[RELATED – NFL Draft Rumors: Cowboys, Conley, McCaffrey]
We don’t know who these six teams are, but there has been speculation that the Browns could satisfy team ownership by moving up from No. 12 to secure UNC quarterback Mitch Trubisky, so they could be one of the inquiring clubs. As the draft board is currently constructed, the Jets at No. 6 appear to be the only team that could seriously entertain Trubisky, but the Browns can guard against them or any other club moving up the board for him by getting the No. 2 selection. For what it’s worth, the Niners reportedly have not ruled out taking Trubisky themselves, but I’m personally not buying it.
Besides Trubisky, teams could be eyeing top prospects like Stanford defensive end Solomon Thomas, LSU safety Jamal Adams, LSU running back Leonard Fournette, and Ohio State cornerback Marshon Lattimore at No. 2. Of course, this year’s draft is particularly hard to read, so the list of potential targets could expand beyond those four players.
49ers Try Out Steve Williams, Kitt O'Brien
- Along with the previously reported Tim Barnes, the 49ers tried out cornerback Steve Williams and offensive lineman Kitt O’Brien on Wednesday, tweets Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle. A three-year veteran who has appeared in 33 games, Williams spent time with the Chargers and Rams last season. In six games (two starts), he totaled 18 tackles. O’Brien, undrafted in 2013, hasn’t seen any regular-season action. He was on and off the Colts’ practice squad in each of the two previous seasons.
PFR’s 2017 Live NFL Mock Draft
The 2017 NFL Draft begins on Thursday night, and Pro Football Rumors is back with its second mock draft of the year. While our initial mock attempted to project what will happen in Round 1, we’ve taken a different approach for mock draft 2.0.
PFR editor Zach Links and I conducted this live mock draft on Tuesday morning, rotating picks and breaking down what we would do were we in charge of these selections. We posted each pick on Twitter, followed by a short explanation of our thought process on this page.
Here’s the complete mock:
1. Cleveland Browns (Zach) – Myles Garrett, LB, Texas A&M
I suspect this is the easiest pick either one of us will make all day. Garrett is the best pure talent in this year’s draft and the Browns would be foolish to go in any other direction at the top of the draft.
2. San Francisco 49ers (Dallas) – Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
Reports that the 49ers are considering a quarterback with the second overall selection stand out as a potential smokescreen, and instead San Francisco uses the No. 2 pick to bolster its defense. Hooker, who recently earned a full medical clearance following combine rechecks, has been commonly linked to the Chargers as a perfect fit for Los Angeles defensive coordinator Gus Bradley‘s scheme. But the 49ers are running the same defensive look as the Chargers under new DC Robert Saleh, and Hooker would give the team a centerfielder with the upside of an Earl Thomas. San Francisco’s plan to convert nickel cornerback Jimmie Ward to safety won’t stop it from adding Hooker, who is possibly the draft’s No. 2 overall prospect.
3. Chicago Bears (Zach) – Solomon Thomas, DL, Stanford
Dallas’ bold pick left my Bears with a golden opportunity. The Bears could go safety or cornerback in this scenario, but the talent of Thomas is too good to pass up. Thomas can be used on both the inside and outside of the Bears’ defensive line and I see him as one of the safest talents on the board.
4. Jacksonville Jaguars (Dallas) – Gareon Conley, CB, Ohio State
No, we didn’t forget the Jaguars used a top-five pick on Jalen Ramsey in 2016 and then handed a $67.5MM contract to A.J. Bouye in free agency last month. But one of Ramsey’s key selling points last year was his versatility: while he’s a shutdown corner at his best, Ramsey can man the slot, cover tight ends, and dabble at safety. As such, adding Conley doesn’t mean Jacksonville is facing cornerback overload, especially given that NFL clubs are in the nickel more than two-thirds of the time. Conley is viewed as a safer prospect than his Ohio State teammate Marshon Lattimore, and he’d give the Jaguars a Broncos-like secondary.
5. Tennessee Titans (Zach) – Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
The Titans, arguably, get the best cornerback available in the draft even though they are the second team to address the position. No, we don’t have a ton of film to go on for Lattimore, but his combine numbers indicate that he could be a megastar. Few teams in the NFL would have a young cornerback duo like the Titans if they can pair Logan Ryan with Lattimore.
6. Cleveland Browns (projected trade with Jets) (Dallas) – Mitch Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
In need of a franchise quarterback, the Browns send the No. 12 and No. 52 pick to the Jets in exchange for No. 6 with the intention of drafting Trubisky. It’s a slight overpay for Cleveland (at least, based on Chase Stuart of Football Perspective‘s draft value chart, which is likely what the Browns front offices uses), but it does the deal anyway to land a long-term option under center. Given that Browns owner Jimmy Haslam is reportedly pressing the club to select a quarterback early — and the fact the Cleveland may still be considering Trubisky with the first overall selection — landing the UNC signal-caller at No. 5 for the cost of a mid-second-round pick is a move the Browns can’t pass up.
7. Los Angeles Chargers (Zach) – Jonathan Allen, DL, Alabama
In this scenario, it seems like Allen’s subpar workouts have led to a bit of a drop. His size (6’3″) is a bit of a concern, but he has the ability to be an effective defensive end while spending some time on the inside as well. Allen would look great lining up on the opposite end of Joey Bosa.
8. Carolina Panthers (Dallas) – Corey Davis, WR, Western Michigan
Sitting at pick No. 8, the Panthers certainly have options. General manager Dave Gettleman & Co. could go after a running back like Leonard Fournette or Christian McCaffrey, bring in a young edge rusher to play alongside veterans like Charles Johnson and Julius Peppers, or even reach for an offensive tackle given Michael Oher‘s health questions. With Ted Ginn Jr. and Corey Brown having defected via free agency, the Panthers need another wideout to pair with Kelvin Benjamin. Enter Davis, who topped 1,400 yards and 12 touchdowns in each of the past three seasons.
9. Cincinnati Bengals (Zach) – Reuben Foster, LB, Alabama
Foster’s stock, by all accounts, is slipping after he turned in a diluted urine sample and got into an argument with a hospital worker at the combine. However, with other teams in the market for an inside linebacker (like the Jets at No. 12, for example), it would be somewhat risky to trade down into the teens and expect Foster to still be there. The Bengals have been willing to overlook character concerns in the past, so I see no reason why they can’t do the same here and land the Alabama star.
10. Buffalo Bills (Dallas) – Jamal Adams, S, LSU
While the Bills gave Jordan Poyer a four-year deal with $6MM in guarantees earlier this offseason, I’m still not convinced Buffalo views him as a definite starter. Those questions come to the forefront with Adams still on the board, and the Bills don’t hesitate to take the LSU defensive back. With ex-Packer Micah Hyde also in the fold, Buffalo can field one of the more diverse and flexible safety tandems in the league. Adams is viewed as a leader in the locker room, and has been favorably compared to former Cowboys All Pro Darren Woodson by Lance Zierlein of NFL.com.
Schrager’s Latest: 49ers, Kizer, Humphrey
The 49ers‘ interest in UNC quarterback Mitch Trubisky has been “real” during the entire predraft process, according to Peter Schrager of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Ian Rapoport of NFL.com indicated this morning that San Francisco is considering drafting a signal-caller with the No. 2 overall selection. LSU safety Jamal Adams and Stanford defensive lineman Solomon Thomas are also possibilities for the Niners, per Schrager, who adds San Francisco is willing to trade down if another club is eyeing Trubisky.
Here’s more on the 2017 draft, all courtesy of Schrager:
- Notre Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer could have a similar draft outlook to Paxton Lynch in 2016 and Teddy Bridgewater in 2014, wherein a club with a need under center trades back into the end of the first round in order to select him, reports Schrager (Twitter link). Any team that does move into the first round for Kizer would have the added benefit of a fifth-year option, enabling them to retain Kizer for a fifth season at a cheap price.
- One NFL general manager says he’d be “shocked” if Alabama cornerback Marlon Humphrey isn’t off the board by pick No. 20, tweets Schrager. Last week, Matt Miller of Bleacher Report indicated the Saints, Titans, and Ravens — all of whom pick in the top-20 — could be possible landing spots for Humphrey. Other clubs with picks early in the draft who have a need at corner include the Bills, Cardinals, Eagles, and Redskins.
- As previous reports have indicated, the Titans are willing to trade out of the No. 5 pick, per Schrager (Twitter link). If Tennessee doesn’t trade away that selection, however, Alabama’s O.J. Howard and Ohio State’s Marshon Lattimore will be among the players in consideration at fifth overall. Howard would give the Titans another option at tight end to pair with veteran Delanie Walker, while Lattimore would help fill out one of the league’s worse cornerback units.
49ers To Audition C Tim Barnes
The 49ers will work out center Tim Barnes on Tuesday, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). This marks Barnes’ first known audition since being let go by the Rams earlier this offseason. 
Barnes’ release came as a mild surprise in Los Angeles since he had adequately served as the team’s starting center for two seasons. After 32 consecutive starts for St. Louis/Los Angeles, he’s now seeking his next home. In 2015, he ranked as Pro Football Focus’ 29th-best center out of 39 qualifiers. This past season, PFF ranked him 31st out of 38 qualifiers.
The Niners acquired Jeremy Zuttah earlier this offseason and he currently projects to start at center. If they sign Barnes, it’s possible that the Niners could have an open competition to determine the No. 1 role.
49ers Considering QB At No. 2
The 49ers are giving strong consideration to taking a quarterback with the No. 2 overall pick, according to sources who spoke with NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. The Niners already have free agent pickups Brian Hoyer and Matt Barkley on the roster, so this news comes as something of a surprise. 
Of course, every piece of news must be taken with a grain of salt on draft week. The Niners could be giving real thought to Mitch Trubisky and other top QBs, but they might also be trying to send a message to teams that are interested in taking a top signal caller. The Browns, for example, have an affinity for Trubisky (or, at least, some Browns execs do), and the Niners could be scaring them into trading up to the No. 2 pick. Rapoport hears that the Browns are one of several teams considering a move up to No. 2, so this could be a clever smokescreen on the part of SF brass.
Assuming Myles Garrett goes No. 1 overall, taking a QB at No. 2 would mean bypassing several intriguing talents like Stanford’s Solomon Thomas. The pick might also rule out a pursuit of Kirk Cousins after the 2017 season, but it’s too early to know that for certain. What we do know is that San Francisco standing pat and taking a QB at No. 2 would cause a surprising domino effect that would radically alter the rest of the first round.
Glen Coffee Attempting NFL Comeback
Glen Coffee is looking to return to the NFL. The running back has been reinstated from retirement and is attempting a comeback, reports Ben Volin of The Boston Globe (via Twitter). Following the news, Coffee was subsequently waived by the 49ers, and barring an unexpected waiver claim, he’ll become a free agent.
The 2009 third-round pick out of Alabama spent only one season in the NFL, serving primarily as Frank Gore‘s backup in San Francisco. In 14 games, Coffee ran for 226 yards and one touchdown on 83 attempts. The running back also hauled in 11 receptions, returned three kicks, and compiled 11 tackles.
Prior to the 2010 season, the running back curiously announced his retirement (this ultimately led to the 49ers signing veteran Brian Westbrook). Coffee intended to return to the University of Alabama to finish his degree, and he later acknowledged that he was never fully committed to the sport. The 29-year-old had been serving as a paratrooper and working for the 6th Ranger Training Battalion since 2013.
“I can tell you, he’s in great shape,” agent Ray Oubre said (via Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com). “The man doesn’t have a six-pack, he’s got a 12-pack. He’s been waiting for the right time to hopefully get a workout with someone and show what he can do.
“He had a calling, and right now he feels like it’s his time to show what he can do. He explained to me, ‘I can do things now that I couldn’t do when I was initially with the 49ers.’ That’s the kind of shape he’s in.”
It would have been a nice story for Coffee to return to the 49ers, but the team’s running back depth chart is crowded enough as is. The team is currently rostering Carlos Hyde, Tim Hightower, DuJuan Harris, Mike Davis, and Raheem Mostert.
Latest On Browns’ Mitch Trubisky Interest
Earlier today, CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora reported the Browns were still mired in a Myles Garrett-vs.-Mitch Trubisky debate despite the former being the consensus top talent in the draft. More came out of Cleveland on Friday night to support the Browns are legitimately considering the North Carolina product.
The team is both pondering a trade-up for the former Cleveland-area high school quarterback and selecting him at No. 1 overall, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com reports. Cabot adds that the pro-Garrett vibes coming out of Sashi Brown‘s Wednesday press conference do not mean the team is going to take the defensive end, noting the Browns are “strongly considering” bypassing the Texas A&M sack artist and selecting Trubisky.
Cleveland’s line of thinking here is believed to be that the pro-Trubisky contingent within the Browns’ decision-making structure is uncertain he will be there at No. 12 and isn’t sure the team will be able to swing a trade back into the top 10 to select him. Sources informed Cabot the team is ready to select its quarterback of the future.
During the second-year GM’s pre-draft presser, Brown said the Browns have “just about finalized” their decision at No. 1. While that was believed to be interpreted as a sign the team was ready to take the best player available, sources told Cabot that Brown may have meant Trubisky is the emerging consensus choice.
Cabot also hears the 49ers are a threat to take Trubisky at No. 2 overall, and that the North Carolina-honed signal-caller won’t last past the Jets at No. 6. Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reported earlier this month some Jets officials are high on Trubisky, and Matt Miller of Bleacher Report noted the team could serve as a trade partner for the Browns if they wanted to get back into the top 10.
If the Jets are entertaining the thought of using another high pick on a passer, the Titans hold the No. 5 pick. Tennessee had to surrender a 2016 third-rounder and 2017 second-round choice to Cleveland in order to move from No. 15 to 8 to select Jack Conklin. The price could be similar for the Browns, who have been more known for stockpiling draft picks than trading up for talent since the Brown- and Paul DePodesta-led front office took over.
The Browns have turned down offers for the No. 1 pick, Cabot reports, but after the team traded out of No. 2 last year and passed on Carson Wentz, it’s now poised to make that quarterback pick this year. Cabot adds that the Browns missing out on Trubisky would result in them moving on to Deshaun Watson or Patrick Mahomes — presumably with their No. 12 pick. Of course, a GM told NFL.com’s Charlie Casserly he believes two quarterbacks would go in the top nine selections. In that scenario, the Browns would have to trade back into the top 10 if they wanted to draft the second-best quarterback on their board.
This would wrap up another complex Browns pre-draft process. Reports about the Browns’ astronomical grade on Garrett and team brass being awed by his Combine showing eventually leading to a Trubisky pick would be quite interesting. As would the possibility that owner Jimmy Haslam, who was possibly connected to having made the decision to trade up for Johnny Manziel in 2014, being involved in the decision-making process, as La Canfora suggests he could be.