The 49ers present a slight draft issue for the Chiefs in first round

The San Francisco 49ers lack of Day Two picks could become an issue for the Kansas City Chiefs if they love a player falling in the first round.

The 2020 NFL Draft, like every draft before it, could go any number of ways. Even looking at the history of the Kansas City Chiefs alone, it’s hard to tell whether or not general manager Brett Veach will repeat his tendencies of trading up or whether he’ll trade out of the first round entirely—making this the third year in a row with no first round choice. Then again, the Chiefs could simply stay put at No. 32 overall in the first and make their selection accordingly.

It’s this final option—the standing still one—that brings an intriguing angle with the pick right before it.

The San Francisco 49ers hold the No. 31 overall selection in the first round after losing the Super Bowl. The Niners own the No. 13 pick as well after trading DeForest Buckner to the Indianapolis Colts.  However, after the first round, the Niners are nowhere to be found. Lynch isn’t officially scheduled to pick again until Round 5. That’s three full rounds in a stacked draft with no picks at all.

It’s hard to imagine Lynch sitting still in the midst of all of this and watching three rounds of prospects pass him by. Instead, the Niners are likely looking to move down out of that late round first-round slot for some extra picks on Day 2.

If the Chiefs are also looking to trade down, the Niners’ presence depresses the market with further supply. After all, a team looking to trade back up into the late first would have two franchises with which to barter about an opportunity to move. That means less of a return for the Chiefs (or maybe a missed opportunity overall).

Even worse, what if a dynamic prospect somehow looks like he could fall all the way to the Chiefs? In this scenario, the team in front of the Chiefs pick could kick open the doors on a potential trade and allow anyone to climb back in front of the Chiefs to snag the same falling prospect. Picture a coveted linebacker like Kenneth Murray slipping through the first and a team also in need of an impact LB realizing they can reach back up to San Francisco and make a deal to stymie the Chiefs efforts.

Either way, it’s not so much the 49ers who have the choice in front of the Chiefs. Instead it should be viewed as a question mark. No one has any way of knowing even who might be selecting at No. 31 at this point, which makes it tough for the Chiefs to accurately craft mock scenarios before their selection.