The San Francisco 49ers are moving closer to making a quarterback decision ahead of Thursday’s NFL Draft, as one of the three they had been considering appears out of the running.
According to Peter King of Football Morning in America, the No. 3 pick is a “two-horse race” between Alabama’s Mac Jones and North Dakota State’s Trey Lance. That means Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields is apparently out of the running.
The widespread belief throughout the process is that the 49ers prefer Jones. However, ESPN’s Adam Schefter noted on Wednesday’s edition of “Get Up!” that the gap between Jones and the rest of the field has “narrowed,” and as of the weekend the team had not settled on who to take.
"As much as the 49ers love Mac Jones, and they do, I believe that the gap between Mac Jones and the other QBs like Trey Lance has been narrowed considerably … I can tell you over the weekend they did not know who they were going to take."
—@AdamSchefter pic.twitter.com/DzTOoxKV8F
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) April 28, 2021
The No. 3 pick is where much of the draft intrigue will start. Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson are locked in at No. 1 and No. 2, so much of the top ten will largely be dictated by what the 49ers do. Depending on who the 49ers take at 3, it could lead to trade action or other surprises starting with the No. 4 pick.
Regardless of which quarterback the 49ers take, there will be lots of intrigue after the fact as the team weighs what to do with its current starter at the position.
