After weeks of scouting and research, the San Francisco 49ers are done with their draft process and are ready to make their selection at pick three in the 2021 NFL Draft, according to a report from Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.
Fowler gave the latest on the 49ers' situation during an appearance on SportsCenter. His quote on where the 49ers currently stand was shared Sunday morning by Bleacher Report, as transcribed below:
"I'm told the work is done in Santa Clara. They have wrapped up their draft meetings officially. They're ready to make this pick, but it's in the hands of (head coach) Kyle Shanahan and (general manager) John Lynch. They're probably not telling anybody. Nobody in that building knows and doesn't expect to know until Thursday. But the coaches broke down Mac Jones, Justin Fields and Trey Lance this week together in a neutral process. I'm told they've kept an open mind with Justin Fields and Trey Lance winning them over. They had a good process, but there's still a decent amount of buzz league-wide about Mac Jones."
Lynch is scheduled to hold his predraft press conference on Monday (12:30 PT), during which he'll likely be asked if the 49ers have indeed come to a final decision. It'll also be noteworthy if Lynch says the 49ers have at any point had a favorite among Jones, Fields, or Lance, or if they've taken an open approach to all three expected candidates, as Fowler reports.
The rest of the NFL will finally know what will happen at pick three not long after Round 1 gets underway on Thursday night (8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT). Pick three quickly became one of the most discussed and anticipated draft choices in recent memory after the 49ers decided in late March to trade multiple first-round picks to obtain the selection, so there's little doubt that the rest of the NFL community will be just as interested as 49ers fans in what Shanahan and Lynch ultimately decide.
