Time to play armchair GM with the first pick of the 2017 draft

"WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections 49ers Salary CapLevi’s Stadium Events49ers Transactions49ers Injury News49ers Press Conferences & Conference CallsNFL Trade Rumors2019 NFL Draft: 49ers picks Dee Ford Jersey , mock drafts, news, rumors, analysisWhat would you trade Solomon Thomas for? New,263commentsTime to play armchair GM with the first pick of the 2017 draftPDTShareTweetShareShareWhat would you trade Solomon Thomas for? We have some time until the 2019 NFL Draft and the 49ers have a decision to make between edge rusher or interior rusher. If they go to the interior and select Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, that is almost a declaration that Solomon Thomas was a mistake and is not working out. Early Sunday, CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso tweeted out who he would be inquiring for in trades and Thomas made the list. Thomas is not a bust, but it’s no secret he hasn’t played up to expectations. This can be blamed somewhat on him starting 2017 late (due to that stupid collegiate rule) and also on him recovering from his sister’s suicide in 2018. It’s safe to say he’s under the microscope. New 49ers defensive line coach Kris Kocurek has been reported to be getting Thomas film and if he thinks he can’t turn him around, the 49ers very well could be looking to Williams instead of Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa. If Williams is drafted, this opens up a scenario where the 49ers may want to give Thomas a change of scenery. It’s time to play armchair GM. Thomas can fetch a trade. He’s not awful. It’s a matter of what the 49ers could get for him. If Williams is the Solomon Thomas they wanted and they go elsewhere for their edge rusher,another team may want to give him a shot. Thomas has played only two years on his four-year rookie deal. This deal also includes a fifth-year option. That’s three possible years you can get a cheap defensive lineman. If cut in 2019, he carries a dead money hit of $16.6 million, so he’s not getting released, he’ll be traded. That rookie deal is also indicating his youth. That gives a young person that, if they pan out, can be playing for another team for years to come. Unfortunately, Thomas has nothing as far as stats. He has four sacks for his career, three of which were in his rookie season. I’d like to say, “Stats lie, tape doesn’t” but the tape shows just the same issues. It doesn’t show a bad player, but one that just hasn’t gotten it together. So, if I was called about what to send Thomas off for what would I look for? Given his contract and age, probably a fourth-round pick. I want badly to say a third, but Trent Brown was on the final year of his rookie contract and offloaded to the New England Patriots for that, so Thomas would be a bit different. I think the contract works wonders since it won’t cut into a trade partner’s salary cap. Even a fourth round pick is a bit high asking price. That’s what I’d give up for Thomas. Even if he finds himself buried on a depth chart, he’s still cheap and would give depth. It’s disappointing a prospect picked so high in the draft would be in this situation George Kittle Jersey , but it is what it is. I don’t know who would be interested in giving Thomas a change of scenery. We also don’t know how his film review went with the 49ers coaching staff. Besides DeForest Buckner, the 49ers defensive line was disappointing—not just Thomas. I’d like to say that’s probably what cost D-line coach Jeff Zgonina his job. Personally, I think Thomas sticks around. He hasn’t done enough to where he should be released and given the widespread problems the 49ers had last year, saying Thomas is awful may be incorrect. There were some bright spots like when he was double teamed by the Seattle Seahawks. I think he just needs some time to get it together. Newly acquired defensive end Dee Ford was a first round pick with an uninspiring first two years as well until his 2016 campaign hit and he racked up 10 sacks in 15 games. So maybe this just takes some time. If you were John Lynch and an NFL team asked you what it would take to get the first round defensive lineman, what would you give up? NEW YORK (AP)They’re not comparable to Power Five players, or even guys from the MAC, AAC or Mountain West. At least not on the football field.In the classroom? That’s no contest.Work in such subjects as nuclear physics, applied and computational mathematics, or geological engineering help Ivy Leaguers stand out in the real world. For NFL personnel people, such a resume is impressive – yet means a lot less than how fast a player ran the 40, how many squats he can do, or his injury history.That doesn’t mean the eight Ivy League schools who play in FCS – and don’t go to bowl games – get ignored by the pros. Indeed, there were 16 Ivies in the NFL last season, six starters. Two more were selected last weekend: Penn receiver Justin Watson in the fifth round by the Buccaneers, and Yale safety/linebacker Foye Oluokun in the sixth by the Falcons. A few others have been signed as undrafted free agents.Among the dozen 2017 pros were Tampa Bay tight end Cameron Brate of Harvard and New England fullback James Develin of Brown. Brate had 48 receptions for a 12.3-yard average and six touchdowns as one of Jameis Winston’s favorite targets with the Bucs. Develin merely has won two Super Bowls and made the Pro Bowl last season, as did 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk , who attended Harvard.”It takes an incredibly driven and dedicated individual to excel at the highest levels of academia and athletic competition,” says Robin Harris, executive director of the Ivy League. ”The Ivy League’s unique approach allows our student-athletes to focus on reaching their fullest potential in both realms and prepares them for lifelong success, whether in their field of study or professional athletic opportunities.”Oluokun hopes to seize his opportunity as a linebacker in Atlanta, though he’s versatile enough to handle safety duties. At 6-1, 234, he’s got the size, and can handle pass coverage.Then again, when you can juggle a course load filled with the likes of macroeconomics, econometrics and European economic history Jimmy Garoppolo Jersey , you probably can breeze through a playbook.”I believe 100 percent it prepares you,” Oluokun says of the schoolwork at Yale and the challenges of making the NFL. ”You have got to put in that work and there are really no shortcuts here, and if you get behind you need to catch up, and that’s not easy. So if you make that mistake, you learn from it.”At first thought I thought it might be stressful,” he adds of being a student-athlete in the Ivy League, ”but it really is manageable if you approach it the right way. You have teachers who will help you out and you have tutors if you need them, or other students are kind of helping you out because they are in the same situation.”Except that the great majority of football players from Yale, Penn, Columbia, Harvard, Brown, Princeton, Dartmouth and Cornell are not heading to the NFL. Still, the true standouts get drafted, going back to 1949, when Penn’s two-way lineman Chuck Bednarik went first overall to Philadelphia. All Bednarik eventually did was make the Pro Football Hall of Fame.Ivies in the league last season were Brate; Develin; Juszczyk; Giants tight end Ryan O’Malley (Penn); Colts center Anthony Fabiano (Harvard); Giants long snapper Zak DeOssie (Brown); Browns center J.C. Tretter (Cornell); Seahawks long snapper Tyler Ott (Harvard); Browns tight end Seth DeValve (Princeton); Colts defensive tackle Caraun Reid (Princeton); Panthers center Greg Van Roten (Penn); Jets linebacker Josh Martin (Columbia); Buccaneers quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (Harvard); Bills center Adam Redmond (Harvard); Bears tight end Ben Braunecker (Harvard); and Vikings guard Nick Easton (Harvard).Two current head coaches, Dallas’ Jason Garrett (Princeton) and Houston’s Bill O’Brien (Brown) also are Ivy guys.”The NFL is incredibly challenging for all players, especially rookies that have to make a big adjustment playing against professionals,” says Princeton coach Bob Surace. ”I have been impressed by the talent level of the athletes in the Ivy League. More high school football players have turned down Power Five schools recently as they realize they can reach their athletic dreams and long-term career goals better in the Ivy League than any other conference.”As important, we are having more players make NFL teams better because our players love to compete, they have outstanding work habits and a burning desire to achieve at the highest level in everything they do.”Including, given the chance, in the NFL.—