Even Trey Lance had no idea that the San Francisco 49ers intended to draft him with the No. 3 overall pick. The team was very secretive following a massive trade on March 26. Everyone knew it was for a quarterback, but no one knew which quarterback it would be. There was still a lot of uncertainty surrounding the 49ers' plan.
It turned out that San Francisco was high on Lance since January, but no one other than head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch knew that. That baffled many because most were fairly certain what would happen with the two picks ahead of the 49ers. So why the mystery?
In the mailbag portion of his
latest Football Morning in America, Peter King of NBC Sports was asked about the secrecy. He feels at least part of it had to do with the team's decision to hold onto quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, allowing a rookie the luxury of sitting and learning for at least a season.
That doesn't mean the 49ers were unwilling to listen to offers for their veteran quarterback. They were. It would have just taken being blown away by an offer for the team's plan to change.
"Suppose the Niners want to convince the world they're picking Jones," wrote King, "and suppose they've talked to several teams about Jimmy Garoppolo in trade, and suppose they're trying to get a ransom for Garoppolo, and suppose they think that if there are teams that want Garoppolo, they'll pony up bigger packages than they'd offered."
If Lynch and Shanahan are to be believed, Lance was the frontrunner all along. However the duo had not locked in the selection, in their minds, until the Monday before the draft. At least, that's when they knew they had reached a consensus.
"So for a month and a half, Shanahan could have deep discussions with coaches/scouts about the merits of the three quarterbacks available at three," King wrote, "so he could hear everything good and bad about them. If everybody in the organization knows you're taking Player X, they're more likely to echo-chamber all the good stuff about Player X rather than being totally honest about all three."
Shanahan actually touched on that aspect himself. He stated that they wanted to make sure the 49ers' coaches and scouts were offering up honest evaluations of the quarterbacks and were not influenced by who they thought the coach and general manager wanted. Not even offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel knew who the pick was going to be until he heard Lance's name called during the broadcast. Very few outside of Shanahan, Lynch, and CEO Jed York knew.
Maybe quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello had an idea. Maybe. He was, after all, with Lynch and Shanahan when they watched both Lance and Justin Fields work out for teams at their second pro days.
"We do that because you don't want to sway people in this building," Shanahan explained after Lance officially became the selection. "You want everyone to ... just work their butts off and give you their honest info."
Shanahan and Lynch saw where the media speculation was headed. There just wasn't any strategic advantage to correcting anyone. Yes, the first two picks ended up being exactly who everyone anticipated, but anything can happen during the draft. You never know.
"If the whole NFL is assuming you're doing one thing and you're not doing that ... we're not going to work hard to correct that," Shanahan added.
Then you have
Lynch's explanation: "We just wanted to see how far it could go, and we didn't think it would go this far."
Today, NFL Media draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah spoke to the media during a nearly two-hour conference call, fielding questions about the 2024 NFL Draft. One question surrounded the possibility of the San Francisco 49ers trading up in the first round to increase their chances of landing an impact player.
Depending on the 49ers' priorities, Jeremiah only believes a significant move is necessary if the team tries to target a couple of defensive positions.
"I mean, they've got a nice haul of picks here, so if they want to move up, they absolutely have the ammunition to do so," Jeremiah stated. "I just think when you look at the needs that they have and some of the different areas that they could go, if you're thinking about corners and edge rushers, maybe you miss
The San Francisco 49ers will likely add a rookie wide receiver via the draft, and it has nothing to do with Brandon Aiyuk's current contract situation. Deebo Samuel is about as physical a player as you'll find at the position, so wear and tear, along with his significant salary, has to be a concern. Jauan Jennings is slated to become an unrestricted free agent next year.
The 49ers have tried to address the position recently, drafting Ronnie Bell in the seventh round last year and Danny Gray in the third round in 2022. While it's too early to judge Bell, Gray has played only 87 offensive snaps as a pro. His career stat line is unimpressive, recording only one reception for 10 yards on seven targets.
One ESPN analyst and 49ers fan, Matt Miller, admits to being
The San Francisco 49ers announced the signing of wide receiver Trent Taylor to a one-year deal, reuniting with the team's former fifth-round draft pick out of Louisiana Tech.
Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area was the first to report that the 49ers were discussing a potential reunion with Taylor. The receiver was part of head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch's first draft class in 2017 and spent his first four NFL seasons with the team.
The #49ers are talking with free-agent slot receiver/return man
The San Francisco 49ers are hosting several draft prospects this week as the deadline for pre-draft visits draws near. According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2, the team will host former Western Kentucky wide receiver Malachi Corley on Wednesday.
Corley is expected to be a Day 2 pick. San Francisco owns two selections on Day 2—the No. 63 overall pick in the second round and the No. 94 overall pick in the third round. Currently, the receiver is visiting with the Seattle Seahawks.
Western Kentucky @WKUFootball receiver Malachi Worley
