The second selection of the 2023 NFL draft has officially been made by the 49ers.
This time they go bold by drafting kicker Jake Moody out of Michigan with the No. 99 pick. Now this pick may appear bold since drafting a kicker this high can be head scratching, but Moody is the real deal.
He made 86.7 percent of his field goal attempts over the last two seasons with Michigan, and converted all 148 of his point after attempts throughout his career there. It's safe to say that he's a pretty good kicker, especially playing at a school like Michigan where pressure is non-stop.
Another reason that made sense going after a kicker for the 49ers is because it was a need. Yes, they have Zane Gonzalez who they acquired in a trade from the Panthers, and he isn't a bad kicker at all. However, the concern with him is that he is injured all the time. He missed all of 2022 with a groin injury, then prior to that he only managed to be active for 12 games in both 2021 and 2020.
Trading for him was a contingency plan from the 49ers in case they were not able to draft Moody. The 49ers could not have gone into training camp with Gonzalez as their lone kicker, which is why drafting Moody makes sense. Now that they have their man in Moody, you can expect the 49ers to conduct a competition in training camp. It'll most likely be just for show as there is no way the 49ers are going to cut bait with Moody even if Gonzalez has the edge.
Two picks have been made by the 49ers so far and both are easily excellent selections.
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