Is it smart to draft a wide receiver in the first round?

If they do draft a receiver at No. 27, it would be the second time in three years that they’ve done so. Would that be a smart decision? ESPN’s Ben Solak disagrees.

“One of the earliest listed needs by most others for the 49ers is wide receiver. I disagree,” Solak wrote this week. “Mike Evans has plenty left to his game, and Ricky Pearsall plays well when healthy. Christian Kirk is a fine WR3, and Demarcus Robinson is a fine WR4. In that the 49ers will always funnel league-leading targets to Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle, it’s wise team-building to try to cut corners at the receiver position.

“The 49ers should again look for a middle-rounds developmental type as they have done often in recent drafts (Jordan Watkins, Jacob Cowing, Danny Gray). They should just actually … hit on one. Chris Bell (Louisville) feels like a 49ers type.”

Instead, he suggests the 49ers to go after an edge rusher or a safety in the draft, while prioritizing an offensive lineman over a wide receiver.

“The bottom line: Complete the defensive reload with another splashy edge rusher and a starting safety. Don’t chase the flashy receiver when the meat-and-potatoes offensive lineman is there.”

I tend to agree with the thinking here. There aren’t many consensus first-round caliber wide receivers in this draft. Our Kyle Posey said earlier this month that he has four: Carnell Tate, Makai Lemon, Jordyn Tyson, and Denzel Boston. Of those four, only Boston seems like a realistic possibility at No. 27.

There is quite a bit of talent on Day 2 at wide receiver in this draft (Chris Bell is one of those options), and the 49ers should prioritize a tackle in this draft. It’s much harder to find starting-level tackles than wide receivers, which is why a majority of the top starters at the position come in the first round. There are also other needs on the team.

I’ve hinted at safety being a sneaky position of need, and there are a couple of potential first-round safeties in this draft. While Caleb Downs is highly unlikely to fall to No. 27, Oregon’s Dillon Thieneman or Toledo’s Emmanuel McNeil-Warren could perhaps slide down and would be very solid targets there. We’ve seen how elite safeties can change defenses, and the 49ers’ room underwhelmed last season.

I understand the value of going after a receiver in the first round. It’s quickly become a premium position, and the draft offers younger and cheaper alternatives than shelling out top-tier money. But there’s been a ton of receiver talent deeper into the draft over the past few years, and that should be the case again this year on Day 2 and early Day 3.

So, it feels like a better decision to address a bigger need that doesn’t have as much depth in the first round.