Why the San Francisco 49ers are Showing Interest in Caleb Douglas

The San Francisco 49ers are using one of their 30 pre-draft visits on Caleb Douglas, a wide receiver from Texas Tech. What does he bring to the table and when would he be a good fit for the San Francisco 49ers?

Where Caleb Douglas translates to the NFL

Douglas has a tall, and thick build that should allow him to hold up in the NFL. He also moved around multiple alignments. He has a large catch radius, he is good at blocking, and he comes in with special teams value, so he can make a roster immediately.

Where Caleb Douglas must improve in the NFL

Douglas has strong testing speed, but his speed is much more linear, as he looks clunky get in out and of his breaks. He does not create the best short area separation. He also had issues with drops, especially as defenders crash down on him.

San Francisco 49er — Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

NFL Comparison for Caleb Douglas

The best comparison for Douglas from a physical and stylistic perspective is Jake Bobo. Both of them are tall, and long. Both of them have speed, but neither can consistently flash it on tape. Lastly, both do a strong job of catching the ball away from their body, but both struggle with tough catches and drops.

Bobo has been a consistent depth target for the Seattle Seahawks despite being a late pick, and the Jacksonville Jaguars even tried to pluck him away from them in free agency this offseason. That is because, like Douglas, he can do a lot of the little things like block and play special teams, along with some upside as a receiver. This would be a strong outcome for Douglas.

How Caleb Douglas fits on the San Francisco 49ers

Douglas is an interesting fit with the 49ers because The Athletic projects him to go in round 6 or 7, while NFL.com has him getting selected in round 5 or 6. The 49ers have multiple Day 3 picks but all of them stop at the fourth round. So, the 49ers are either going to reach on Douglas, or they are doing their homework to see if they want to get back into the draft at a later point. Perhaps the team finds a way to trade back and take Douglas.

His size gives him a leg up over Jordan Watkins and Jacob Cowing, but all three of Douglas and those two are unlikely to make the roster. So, how high they take Douglas may determine how out they are on the two former draft picks.