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          San Francisco 49ers 2024 NFL draft picks: Selection analysis

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          Ricky Pearsall's NFL draft profile (0:47)

          Check out some of the top highlights from Florida WR Ricky Pearsall. (0:47)

          • Nick Wagoner, ESPN Staff WriterApr 26, 2024, 12:34 AM ET
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              Nick Wagoner is an NFL reporter at ESPN. Nick has covered the San Francisco 49ers and the NFL at ESPN since 2016, having previously covered the St. Louis Rams for 12 years, including three years (2013 to 2015) at ESPN. In his 10 years with the company, Nick has led ESPN's coverage of the Niners' 2019 Super Bowl run, Colin Kaepernick's protest, the Rams making Michael Sam the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam's subsequent pursuit of a roster spot and the team's relocation and stadium saga. You can follow Nick via Twitter @nwagoner
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          SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The 2024 NFL draft began Thursday night in Detroit and will wrap up on Saturday. The San Francisco 49ers are scheduled to make 10 of the draft's 257 picks, which started with the No. 31 selection of the first round on Thursday night.

          ESPN will provide pick-by-pick analysis of each of the 49ers' selections as they are made.

          A look at each of San Francisco's scheduled selections:

          Analysis of every pick | Updated depth chart

          Round 1, No. 31 overall: Ricky Pearsall, WR, Florida

          My take: Regardless of the speculation swirling around their current receivers, the 49ers needed to make a significant addition at wide receiver in this draft. With Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings entering the last year of their rookie contracts and Deebo Samuel's cap charge set to spike this year, the 49ers had to begin planning for the future. The question now is what does it mean for the group already in place? It would be wise to stick with what they have given their Super Bowl desires, but drafting Pearsall will only heat up the rumor mill about a potential trade.

          Is this a pick for depth or does it fill a hole? In many ways, it's both. Kyle Shanahan is notoriously hard on young receivers, so it's going to be difficult for Pearsall to get on the field right away with the offense. But the Niners probably won't need him to do much immediately unless they trade one of Aiyuk, Samuel or Jennings. The eventual hope is that Pearsall can be a starter but it feels unlikely that the Niners will ask that of him right away. More likely, he'll push to help as a returner in his rookie season.

          Ties to the team to know: How's this for a coincidence? Pearsall began his college career at Arizona State, where he was teammates with ... Aiyuk. While it remains to be seen whether that duo will play together next year, there's another key Sun Devils tie here: former Arizona State coach Herm Edwards is one of Niners general manager John Lynch's closest friends.

          What's next: The Niners' biggest needs entering Thursday night were offensive line, cornerback and wide receiver. They checked one box on Thursday, even with talented defensive backs still available. They have two picks on Friday (Nos. 63 and 94) and would undoubtedly like to add to the secondary and the front five.

          • Round 2: No. 63

          • Round 3: No. 94

          • Round 4: No. 124 (from Dallas)

          • Round 4: No. 132 (compensatory selection)

          • Round 4: No. 135 (compensatory selection)

          • Round 5: No. 176 (compensatory selection)

          • Round 6: No. 211 (compensatory selection)

          • Round 6: No. 215 (compensatory selection)

          • Round 7: No. 251