2021 NFL Mock Draft: Bears trade into top 10, Washington Football Team goes offense
Trey Lance. 3. player. 42. . Quarterback. San Francisco 49ers
This pick is going to come down to either Trey Lance or Mac Jones according to all the reports that are out there. Though Justin Fields was in the running, he has apparently been eliminated by the 49ers’ scouting staff.
As this selection comes down to the wire, it would appear that Kyle Shanahan wants to give the Alabama quarterback a chance to run his offense while the front office staff prefers the North Dakota State product.
Who will win out? It’s anyone’s guess. But the fact of the matter is that the 49ers are going to take a quarterback here no matter what.
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Though Jones may be viewed as more pro-ready than the hyper-raw, young Lance, I have Lance going here. The logic for this is simple. The 49ers are looking for an upgrade over Jimmy Garoppolo that they can have grow with their team. Jones is a rock-solid quarterback prospect and is one of the safer options at the position, but how much of a ceiling does he have? If the answer is, “Not much compared to his current talent level,” the 49ers should go with Lance.
Lance is a risk in his own right. He was only a one-year starter at the FCS level and while he was terrific, throwing for 2,786 yards, 28 touchdowns, and zero interceptions while adding 1,100 rushing yards and 14 scores on the ground, he’s going to have a lot of catching up to do at the next level.
Also, Lance played just one game last season, as the FCS moved their games to the spring, so he will come into the NFL having played just one game in a year-and-a-half by the time the preseason rolls around. That’s definitely not ideal.
Still, if the 49ers give Lance time to grow and develop, he could pan out. The best-case scenario for them would be to sit Lance for a year behind Garoppolo before letting him fight for the starting job in 2022. Lance definitely is a player that needs time, but his ceiling is sky-high.
As mentioned earlier, Jones could definitely be the pick here. But for now, we’ll go with Lance and will see how the rest of this mock shakes out.