We reached a point in the 2021 NFL Draft lead-up when fans and media members alike viewed Mac Jones as a virtual lock to go off the board at No. 3.
The 49ers, of course, went in a different direction.
Despite a slew of reports and rumors suggesting otherwise, San Francisco used the third overall pick in the draft on Trey Lance. Many were surprised by the selection, as Lance doesn’t necessarily fit the mold of a “typical Kyle Shanahan quarterback.”
The Niners head coach got a kick out of the talk of Jones being a no-brainer for San Francisco based on perceived fit.
“I do laugh at … that everyone thinks that they know exactly what I want at quarterback because I thought we had a chance to get (Kirk Cousins), the number one free-agent quarterback who was going to be on the market in our second year,” Shanahan The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami, per Pro Football Talk. “And since we did, people just assume that’s how I would draw it up, which if you draw it up, obviously you’re going to give the guy everything. I do believe that you have to be able to win from the pocket in this league as a quarterback or it will catch up to you. But holy cow, if you can run, it makes playing from the pocket a lot easier because those defenses are going to change and stuff.”
Jones ultimately slid to the middle of the first round, where he was selected by the Patriots at No. 15. The Alabama product wasn’t at all irked by being passed on by Shanahan and Co., as he was hoping to end up in New England.
