49ers trade up to draft Arizona State receiver Brandon Aiyuk in the first round

Kyle Shanahan loves skill players that can eat up yardage after the catch. So the 49ers’ decision to move up in the NFL Draft for Arizona State’s explosive receiver Brandon Aiyuk makes plenty of sense.

Aiyuk, 22, on Thursday became the first receiver Shanahan’s teams have drafted in the first round since he became an offensive coordinator in 2008. San Francisco hopes the former Sun Devil can immediately fill the void created by the loss of Emmanuel Sanders to the New Orleans Saints in free agency.

The 49ers moved up from No. 31 to 25 in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings to make the pick. San Francisco sent Minnesota picks 31, 117 (fourth round) and 176 (fifth round) to move up six spots. The 49ers acquired the fourth-round pick in the trade with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to move down from No. 13 to 14 to take South Carolina defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw.

Aiyuk (6-0, 205) was known for his big play-making in college. He averaged 10.9 yards after the catch last season while using his massive wing span (80 inches with 33 1/2-inch arms) and big mits (9 3/4 inches) to haul in passes. He recorded 65 catches for 1,192 (18.3-yard average) and eight touchdowns in 2019.

The 49ers now have two dynamic play-makers at wideout with Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel, who excelled as an all-around weapon as a rookie last season.

San Francisco came out of the draft with answers for their two biggest holes in the starting lineup by taking Kinlaw to replace DeForest Buckner and Aiyuk to fill in for Sanders.

This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 8:37 PM.