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2020 NFL mock draft first round and fantasy impacts

By Raju Byfield

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - FEBRUARY 27: Former NFL quarterback Chad Pennington stands alongside quarterbacks Justin Herbert of Oregon, Joe Burrow of LSU and Jacob Eason of Washington during the NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 27, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - FEBRUARY 27: Former NFL quarterback Chad Pennington stands alongside quarterbacks Justin Herbert of Oregon, Joe Burrow of LSU and Jacob Eason of Washington during the NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 27, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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2020 NFL Mock Draft
BOULDER, COLORADO – NOVEMBER 23: Laviska Shenault Jr. #2 of the Colorado Buffaloes carries the ball against the Washington Huskies in the first quarter at Folsom Field on November 23, 2019 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /

31st Overall: San Francisco 49ers – Laviska Shenault (WR – Colorado)

Team Needs
Wide Receiver, Running Back, Cornerback, Safety, Offensive Line

Picks: 31 (1st), 157 (5th), 177 (5th), 210 (6th), 218 (7th), 246 (7th)

With Emmanuel Sanders getting long in the tooth, and no sure thing to stick around in free agency, the San Francisco 49ers will be on the search for a long term solution across from Deebo Samuel at wideout. One of the most talented wide receivers in this draft class, Laviska Shenault is a wide receiver with running back tools and size. While he did not play running back in college like fellow 49er Jalen Hurd, Shenault has the physicality and contact balance of a running back with the ball in his hands. The 49ers have various other needs to address, but head coach Kyle Shanahan will find it impossible to pass up the opportunity to pair Laviska Shenault with Deebo Samuel and Jalen Hurd. The pre-snap havoc he could create with those three wideouts would be unparalleled and unprecedented. If the 49ers keep this pick, Shenault may just be their man.

Team Impact

As alluded to above Shenault, Samuel, and Hurd would give the 49ers offense the type of unpredictability and skill opposing defensive coordinators would have nightmares about. Stopping three receivers who turn into running backs with the ball in their hands, in an offense that uses as much pre-snap motion as the 49ers do, will be one of the toughest tests any opposing defense has on their schedule. Adding Shenault would turn the receiver corps from a ‘solid to good’ group to a ‘very good to great’ one.

Fantasy Impact

Laviska Shenault is teeming with WR1 upside. He may never get there with the 49ers however, especially if San Francisco runs their offense like they did in 2019. Shenault will be a WR3 with WR2 upside in redraft leagues. He may start the season slow, as he may not be on the field in two wide sets. He may even start out as a rotational receiver if Emmanuel Sanders is retained. In dynasty leagues Shenault is immediately on the WR2 radar. He has as much upside as any receiver in this class, and would be in the mix to be the first receiver off the board if he had a better quarterback, and was able to avoid injury in his junior season. Shenault is worth consideration anytime after the 1.06 in dynasty league rookie drafts.

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