One of my biggest pet peeves is when someone scoffs at a rookie for played well because everyone expected him to. When discussing San Francisco 49ers’ second overall pick, the topic is always, “anyone could have made that pick.” As if we don’t see draft busts at the top, or, on the other side of the coin, teams reach for a player that has no business going in the top-five. Looking at you, Oakland.

The shield went through every NFL team’s draft from 2019 and assigned a letter grade to each. First place? The Niners:

Bosa flashed more than any other defender, so I understand the argument of him being the best player on defense. We’re a year away from that, and Bosa being a consensus All-Pro if he’s healthy. It was a phenomenal rookie campaign for one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. Bosa was so good that we overlooked what Deebo Samuel did on the field. Year 1 is generally when wide receivers struggle. That wasn’t the case for Samuel in 2019, who would have been a 1,000-yard receiver had it not been for the 49ers offense style of play/blowing out opponents.

It’s important to note, as the author did, that it wasn’t just two picks Lynch hit on. A year from now, hopefully, we’re talking about how Jalen Hurd fell to the third round. Greenlaw has a chance to be an above-average starter. Getting the type of early returns the 49ers did in 2019 was promising. Now that the team tasted success, the pressure to continue to draft at a high-level isn’t going to stop anytime soon.