49ers Trade Up for an Edge Rusher in Latest Mock Draft

Nate Davis has the 49ers taking Latu with Alabama offensive tackle J.C. Latham still on the board, which would be a controversial pick.

Draft experts have no clue what the 49ers intend to do with the 31st pick.

Some expect the 49ers to stand pat and take a defensive tackle. Others expect the 49ers to trade up for an offensive tackle. And now, the latest mock draft from USA Today has the 49ers trading up with the Seattle Seahawks to pick no. 16 for UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu.

"First, though they’re NFC West rivals, these front offices have swung deals on the first night the draft before," writes USA Today's Nate Davis. "Second, the Niners, who will be obligated to pay (Brock) Purdy next year, unquestionably remain all in while they can reap the benefits of loading the roster around the quarterback as he remains stuck on his seventh-round contract. San Francisco also has 10 picks but hardly needs 10 more players, whereas Seattle has a hole in Round 2 ... and holes throughout its roster."

Davis has the 49ers taking Latu with Alabama offensive tackle J.C. Latham still on the board, which would be a controversial pick, considering the 49ers' offensive tackles are Colton McKivitz, who gave up 13 sacks last season, and Trent Williams, who will be 36 in July. Offensive tackle is one of the weakest positions on the roster, while the 49ers have Nick Bosa, Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos at defensive end.

Still, the 49ers can't have enough good edge rushers, and Latu is fantastic. He had 23.5 sacks the past two seasons for UCLA. He would greatly improve the 49ers pass rush, which was subpar last season.