Pro Football Focus released what is sure to be a controversial mock draft, at least in the eyes of San Francisco 49ers fans. Anthony Treash admits that this mock doesn't necessarily represent what he thinks will happen during the annual rookie selection event, but what he would do if he were in charge of each team's draft.
Many predict that the 49ers brass might go quarterback with the team's first-round pick, even though John Lynch recently said that isn't the plan right now.
"We certainly could," Lynch responded after being asked if he might target a passer in the first round. "I don't anticipate that right now, but we're so early in the process. We'll do what's best for this team."
Obviously, Treash has Clemson's Trevor Lawrence going No. 1 overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars. He then has BYU's Zach Wilson going to the New York Jets with the second pick. Ohio State's Justin Fields is mocked to be the third overall pick, going to the Miami Dolphins.
The next quarterbacks off the board are Alabama's Mac Jones at No. 8 to the Carolina Panthers and North Dakota State's Trey Lance to the Denver Broncos at No. 9.
Those are five quarterbacks off the board before the 49ers' selection at No. 12. So, what does Treash have Lynch and company doing? He has the team trading the selection — and other picks — to the Dolphins, which selected Fields. Included in that trade is quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
"The Niners, in this scenario, find themselves in the out-of-luck category here, with the top five quarterbacks snatched off the board in the top 10," wrote Treash. "However, they take themselves out of that category by making a phone call to Miami and acquiring Tagovailoa."
Tagovailoa (6-0, 217), a rookie in 2020, completed 64.1 percent of his passes for 1,814 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions through 10 games and nine starts. The Dolphins selected him out of Alabama with the No. 5 overall pick in last year's draft.