As we get deeper into the offseason and talk about the San Francisco 49ers’ team needs, we’d be remiss if we ignored the draft picks that didn’t work out. Even in hindsight, there’s no shame in moving multiple first-round picks for a quarterback you identified to be franchise worthy. It didn’t pan out, but the process was there, and that’s the cost of the most valuable position in the game.
There was always a possibility that the 21-year-old wouldn’t reach the level needed to be successful. Even if
you were high on Trey Lance, the reality is it’s not all that surprising how everything turned out. Today, we’re asking which 49ers draft pick was a surprise “bust.”
We use that word loosely because it can be a player you believed would contribute at least something, but never did. Looking back through some of the 49ers’ drafts this decade, there are some doozies. Even in the early drafts, this regime had some head scratchers. But we’re focused on the players who had the potential and ability to make a difference, even though it didn’t work out.
Let’s not limit the question to this current regime.
My answer: Those Florida State teams in the early 2010s were dominant. They had the defenders that the Seahawks and Texans have now. In my mind, Tank Carradine would have turned out differently if he had had the opportunity to rehab in 2023 rather than 2013. Carradine tore his ACL at the end of November in college, but did not play as a rookie. That does not happen in today’s NFL.
Playing for a team with so many quality players on the defensive line makes it difficult to believe Carradine wouldn’t have produced under different circumstances. He had 11 sacks in 12 games as a senior. Being drafted early in the second round despite his knee injury shows how talented he was.
It’s the ultimate “What if” when looking back at the drafts of this franchise. Because, to this day, Carradine had the kind of DNA as a football player that would have resonated well with the Justin Smiths, Ahmad Brooks, and Aldon Smiths of the world. The talent was there, but the athleticism never recovered after Tank’s knee injury. Even under Kyle Shanahan, Carradine was getting his opportunity, but a high-ankle sprain cut his season short. And that was that.
Carradine’s lasting six years in the NFL and continued chances to prove himself are signs that the talent was there. It just never worked out.
Who is your answer?
