It's time for the return of my favorite article series of the year: our annual San Francisco 49ers draft panel. We've reached out to some of the top draft experts for their thoughts on five 49ers-centric questions. Before we go any further, it's important to say a huge thank you to Bleacher Report's Matt Miller, The Athletic's Dane Brugler, ESPN's Matt Bowen, The Draft Network's Trevor Sikkema and Charles Davis and Daniel Jeremiah from NFL Network.
Now, let's dive into our first topic of conversation. Nick Bosa has been the apple of the eye for many 49ers fans for well over a year now. Following San Francisco's Week 15 win against the Seattle Seahawks, there was a prevailing thought that all hope for Bosa was lost. But now there appears to be a strong chance that Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray gets taken ahead of the Ohio State edge rusher.
So the first question for our panel is this: What are the odds that Bosa is available for the 49ers at the No. 2 pick?
**Matt Miller**, Bleacher Report:
I'll say 99.99%. I haven't talked to anyone who doesn't think that Kyler Murray is going to be the first pick. I think Bosa will be there for the 49ers, and I think he's the pick. It would be shocking to me if he's not the pick at No. 2. I think he's the best player in the class, and he fills a need for San Francisco.
**Dane Brugler**, The Athletic:
My unscientific guess is 80%. With less than a month before the draft, teams around the league believe Kyler Murray is the clear favorite to be the first pick. But at this time last year, most in the NFL thought Sam Darnold was headed to Cleveland at No. 1 overall. Anything is possible - one of the reasons the NFL Draft is so popular is the unpredictability of the process. But the betting line heavily leans towards Murray at No. 1 right now.
**Charles Davis**, NFL Network:
I'd say as close as you can get to 100% without saying 100. Here are the circumstances, I think, for how we got here. One, the Arizona Cardinals got the No. 1 pick. No. 2, the Cardinals hired Cliff Kingsbury. No. 3, Kyler Murray said he's going to play football. All of the momentum feels like it's going there. If you hire Kingsbury as your head coach, why would you stop there when it comes to picking your quarterback? It would seem odd to me to hire Kingsbury and then get conservative.
**Matt Bowen**, ESPN:
I'm going to put that number at 50% -- just because the draft is so much more unpredictable that we all want to believe. Now, is Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray a great fit for Kliff Kingsbury's offensive system in Arizona? There is no doubt. And Murray has an electric skill set at the position. In that scenario, where the Cardinals trade Josh Rosen and draft Murray at No.1, the 49ers would benefit greatly. In drafting Bosa at No. 2, San Francisco would land the top pass rusher in the 2019 class, a prospect with a deep toolbox of counter moves and pro-ready technique. But don't forget about Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams or Kentucky edge defender Josh Allen as possible targets for John Lynch. These are two players who jump off the film.
**Daniel Jeremiah**, NFL Network:
I'd put that at about 60 percent. It sure seems like everything is pointing towards Kyler Murray being the first pick. All of the different guys you talk to feel like that's going to happen. That's basically all you have to go off of right now. If you would have told me during the season that Kyler Murray would have gone ahead of Nick Bosa, I would have said you were crazy. But here we are.
**Trevor Sikkema**, The Draft Network:
I would say 99%. I don't like saying 100% because there are always some crazy, off-the-wall things that can happen in this business, even at the eleventh hour. But I fully believe Oklahoma quartertback Kyler Murray will be the No. 1 overall pick.
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Check back on Tuesday for part 2 of the 49ers draft panel.
