The Virginia Cavaliers got to celebrate another NFL Draft pick on Saturday as cornerback Tim Harris went at pick number 198 to the San Francisco 49ers. Harris joins his teammate from the defensive backfield after Juan Thornhill was chosen by Kansas City in the second round. Pro Football Focus had rated Harris as the 14th best cornerback available coming into the draft, and he became the 25th corner chosen. With the 198th pick in the 2019 #NFLDraft – the San Francisco 49ers select Virginia CB Tim Harris! pic.twitter.com/ldUoE54tRI — Pro Football Focus (@PFF) April 27, 2019 Harris finished his UVA career with 117 tackles and 4 interceptions. He originally came to Charlottesville in the class of 2013. After playing in 31 games over his first three seasons, Harris suffered injury setbacks in 2016 and 2017. A medical redshirt gave him one more year to show what he could do, and Harris set career highs in interceptions and tackles in 2018. Good luck in San Francisco, Tim!<doc-sep>The 49ers finally added a defensive back with their final pick in the 2019 NFL draft. They snagged Virginia cornerback Tim Harris at pick No. 198. Harris has very good size for his position at 6-1, 197 pounds. He spent six years at the University of Virginia because of injuries, and wound up playing 35 games in six seasons. He put up four interceptions and 17 pass breakups in those 31 games. Virginia had a very good secondary last year, which may have impacted Harris’ overall value. He didn’t even get a combine invite. However, he had a good Pro Day according to DraftAnalyst.com. He ran in the low 4.4s in his 40 and met one-on-one with San Francisco. There won’t be high expectations for Harris in a crowded cornerbacks room, but he’ll have an opportunity to compete for a roster spot right away.<doc-sep>CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - DECEMBER 29: Tim Harris #5 of the Virginia Cavaliers intercepts a pass intended for Randrecous Davis #8 of the South Carolina Gamecocks during the Belk Bowl at Bank of America Stadium on December 29, 2018 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Virginia won 28-0. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) 49ers find a new weapon, Kaden Smith, in Round 6 of the NFL Draft 49ers find a new weapon, Kaden Smith, in Round 6 of the NFL Draft by Jeremy Wohlfart The San Francisco 49ers appear to have wrapped up their 2019 NFL Draft class, selecting Virginia cornerback Tim Harris with the No. 198 overall at the end of Round 6. After Pro Football Focus ranked the San Francisco 49ers secondary dead last in 2018, one would have thought general manager John Lynch and Co. would have put a bit higher a priority on the team’s defensive backfield during the 2019 NFL Draft. Well, as things turned out, the Niners didn’t pick up their first defensive back until Round 6 of this year’s class. Virginia cornerback Tim Harris joins San Francisco, coming in with the No. 198 overall pick — a selection acquired from the Cincinnati Bengals, who moved up with the 49ers in Round 4 earlier on day three. Harris, 6-foot-2 and 197 pounds, looks the part of what San Francisco deploys with its boundary corners in its Cover 3 zone scheme. Yet as shown below, Harris’ history at the collegiate level has been riddled with injury, which certainly hindered his draft stock: Tim Harris Defense & Fumbles Table Tackles Def Int Fumbles Year School Conf Class Pos G Solo Ast Tot Loss Sk Int Yds Avg TD PD FR Yds TD FF 2013 Virginia ACC FR DB 6 11 5 16 1.0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2014 Virginia ACC SO CB 6 17 2 19 1.0 0.0 1 1 1.0 0 4 1 0 2015 Virginia ACC JR CB 10 26 8 34 3.0 0.0 1 0 0.0 0 6 0 0 2016 Virginia ACC SR CB 1 2 1 3 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 2 0 0 *2017 Virginia ACC SR CB 1 1 0 1 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 *2018 Virginia ACC SR CB 11 20 16 36 1.5 0.0 2 68 34.0 0 4 0 0 Career Virginia 77 32 109 6.5 0.0 4 69 17.3 0 17 1 0 View Original Table Generated 4/27/2019. Provided by CFB at Sports Reference Generated 4/27/2019. After what seemed to be a breakout year in 2015, Harris dealt with a variety of injuries but managed to finish his collegiate career strong, registering two interceptions and four pass breakups. Harris flashed some promise at his pro day, too, running a 4.49 40-yard time and also posting a 6.90 time in the three-cone drill. There’s plenty of explosiveness to Harris’ game. But like the 49ers’ free-agent selection of cornerback Jason Verrett, the team is taking a gamble on Harris remaining healthy more often than not. For now, Harris will likely compete with depth corners, Tarvarius Moore and Greg Mabin for No. 4 duties on the regular-season roster. Moore is probably safe, but Mabin’s job could be up for Harris’ taking. At least there should be some modest competition among San Francisco’s cornerbacks entering camp.<doc-sep>
The San Francisco 49ers finally addressed the secondary. The team selected Virginia’s CB Tim Harris with the No. 198 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound defensive back put on a show at UVA’s Pro Day last month. He ran a 4.43 40-yard dash, posted a vertical jump of 39 inches and had a 139-inch broad jump. The last two categories would have placed him tenth and first among cornerbacks at the NFL Draft Combine. There is one huge concern: Harris has played six (6) football seasons at Virginia. This is due to numerous injuries putting him out of commission. He suffered a shoulder injury for 2015 and 2016, and a wrist injury in 2017. While looking at the positives, this makes him a perfect fit for the 49ers, a team that had a laundry list of injuries in 2018, there’s no mincing words: can he hold up for a 16-game NFL season? Especially when the rest of the 49ers backfield couldn’t. The 49ers were seen to have a solid group of cornerbacks going into 2018, but that was quickly proven wrong with the hot and cold play of Ahkello Witherspoon and Richard Sherman’s recovery from an achilles injury lingering into the season. They also have Tarvarius Moore coming off a rookie season where he converted from safety to cornerback. And don’t forget K’waun Williams to man the nickel corner spot with Jimmie Ward filling in. Unfortunately, aside from Sherman and Williams, these players are either unproven, unable to stay healthy, or both. Competition is needed to solidify the cornerback unit. Maybe this latest addition will rise above the rest and solidify things. Highlights: 49ers draft picks 1. First round: No. 2 overall Nick Bosa, Defensive end, Ohio State 2. Second round: (36 overall)Deebo Samuel, Wide receiver, South Carolina 3. Third round: (67 overall)Jalen Hurd, Wide receiver, Baylor 4. Fourth round: (110 overall) Mitch Wishnowsky, Punter, Baylor 5. Fifth round: (No. 148) Dre Greenwood, linebacker, Arkansas 6. Sixth round: (No. 176) Kaden Smith, tight end, Stanford 7. Sixth round: (183 overall) Justin Skule, OT, Vanderbilt 8. Sixth round: (198 overall) Tim Harris, CB, Virginia Poll How do you grade the 49ers selection of Tim Harris? This poll is closed 17% A (279 votes) 38% B (615 votes) 31% C (517 votes) 9% D (154 votes) 3% F (52 votes) 1617 votes total Vote Now