One way or another, with tepid words of commitment from head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch, the San Francisco 49ers want to move on from Jimmy Garoppolo. A “big swing” for Deshaun Watson is what they want everyone to think it’ll take, but it really shouldn’t be a “Watson or no one” idea.
The 49ers could ultimately take a quarterback with the 12th pick in the draft. The question would be what they’ve done before that, and if said rookie would have to play right away.
In his most recent mock draft, Ryan Wilson of CBS Sports laid out some trades as a preface to his predictions. One deal involves the 49ers.
- Cowboys get 49ers’ No. 12 and No. 108 pick; 49ers get Cowboys’ No. 10 pick
To move up two spots to No. 10, the 49ers give the Cowboys the 108th pick in Wilson’s mock. Then they took…
North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance.
Lance is being tabbed as a first-round pick, and a possible top-10 overall selection. He decided to skip the FCS spring season for the Bison with an eye on the draft, playing in one game last fall that amounted to a showcase game for him. Against Central Arkansas, he went 15-for-30 for 149 yards with two touchdowns and an interception along with 15 carries for 145 yards and two more scores.
So Lance enters the NFL with one season as a college starter, at the FCS level. In 2019, over 16 games, he threw for 2,786 yards with 28 touchdowns and zero interceptions. He also had 1,100 rushing yards and 14 scores on the ground.
A scenario where the 49ers end up trading up for Lance means one thing. They will likely really be keeping Garoppolo in 2021, with an eye on turning things over to Lance in 2022.
