Mel Kiper's New Mock Draft Has a Name We Never See in the 1st Round

The legendary NFL draft guru threw a massive curveball in his latest first-round projection.

Even at this point in the NFL draft process, it's not uncommon to see a few surprises among the big-name analysts when it comes to their mock draft predictions.

But the latest 2024 NFL mock draft from legendary draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. at ESPN has a name you probably haven't seen in any first-round mock draft this entire cycle.

It happens late in the round, but Kiper has the San Francisco 49ers spending the No. 31 pick on Washington offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten.

Most first-round mock drafts have the Huskies' other tackle, Troy Fautanu, as a first-round lock, but Rosengarten isn't even a name that typically makes deeper projections that go through all of Day 2.

Here's what Kiper had to say about the pick:

The 49ers have been able to make several moves in free agency to make tweaks to their roster, acquiring veterans on short-term deals to build out their depth. One position they haven't added? Offensive tackle, where soon-to-be-36-year-old Trent Williams is holding down the blindside and 2020 fifth-rounder Colton McKivitz just started every game on the right side. Williams ranked first in the league in pass block win rate among tackles (95.8%). McKivitz? He was 50th out of the 69 who played in at least 10 games. That's not good enough. I'd like to see San Francisco bring in some competition.

I thought Rosengarten might return to college for another year; he could have been a top-10 pick with some more seasoning. He might be a steal here, though, as the right tackle is aggressive as a run-blocker and solid in pass protection (though he had his worst game of the season in the national championship loss). I really liked his tape when I went back through after the season ended.

It's a bold enough take for Kiper to have Rosengarten in the first round at all, but then to say he could be a steal as a first-rounder? Wow.

Kiper has certainly been no stranger to wild pre-draft takes over the years, but this might be the most surprising one we've seen so far this year.

To check out Kiper's full mock draft at ESPN.com (subscription required), click here.

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