San Francisco 49ers: 5 First-round targets in 2018 NFL Draft

It remains unclear who the San Francisco 49ers will take with the ninth overall pick, but here we look at five players they could target in the first round.

After months of build-up the 2018 NFL Draft is finally upon us, yet we have little idea who the San Francisco 49ers will select in the first round.

The 49ers have holes that need to be addressed on both offense and defense and are in a prime position to add a premium talent to their roster selecting with the ninth overall pick.

Here we look at five players they should be looking to target with that selection.

Quenton Nelson, OG, Notre Dame

It appears unlikely there will be a scenario in which the 49ers will be able to select Nelson. However, should they find themselves in such a situation they should not hesitate to add a generational guard prospect to their roster.

Kyle Shanahan does not value guard as highly as center in his offense and at 325 pounds, may be deemed too heavy for his scheme.

But Nelson proved effective at pulling and getting to the second level at Notre Dame, treating defenders with visible disdain when making blocks in space, and his extremely stout play in pass protection would be a substantial boost to a quarterback in Jimmy Garoppolo who too often had to make plays with pressure in his face in 2017.

The 49ers’ O-line still looks shaky because of the lack of talent on the interior. Nelson would change that and give them a group that could develop into one of the best units in the league.