49ers reportedly moved up to No. 3 in fear of Patriots trading up for Mac Jones

Brock Purdy is trending towards being the Week 1 starter for the San Francisco 49ers when they open their season at Acrisure Stadium against the Pittsburgh Steelers—and Purdy isn't even practicing yet. The second-year player is still recovering from his March 10 surgery to repair the torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow and may not get on the practice field until late August. That leaves third-year quarterback Trey Lance to compete with another former No. 3 overall pick, Sam Darnold, for the QB2 job and maybe the Week 1 starter should there be any setbacks in Purdy's recovery. Lance started the 2022 season as the 49ers' starting quarterback but suffered

The 49ers ended their offseason workout program on Wednesday with their final session of mandatory minicamp. But before they made their way out the door for the summer, the team gave fans and reporters one last dose of info in the form of the final media sessions of the spring. Among those speaking to reporters on Wednesday were defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, left tackle Trent Williams and cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, as well as defensive coordinator Steve Wilks. Each session produced some interesting tidbits, which we'll review in this version of 49ers notebook. Hargrave speaks Despite being the splash free agent addition of the offseason for the 49ers, Javon Hargrave had not met with the team's beat reporters in person before Wednesday.

Trevor Sikkema of Pro Football Focus went through all 32 NFL teams and picked a reason for optimism for each heading into the 2023 season. For example, last season's five-win Denver Broncos got a new Super Bowl-winning head coach in Sean Payton. Kenny Pickett could be ready for a second-year leap with the Pittsburgh Steelers (Hopefully, not in Week 1, though). What's the reason for optimism for the San Francisco 49ers? Sikkema admits that picking just one reason is challenging, so he went with the team's elite roster. San Francisco has stockpiled talented playmakers at almost every level. "Yes, their quarterback situation is still up in the air," wrote Sikkema. "But

NFL Media personality Adam Rank recently published his "State of the 2023 San Francisco 49ers" feature for NFL.com, an annual look at the state of the franchise and projections for the upcoming season. Among those predictions are the team's most valuable player and breakout star. Christian McCaffrey is the most obvious choice for MVP, and he's the guy Rank selected. The star running back was traded in late October to the 49ers and still contributed 1,210 total yards and 10 total touchdowns with his new team, totaling an impressive 1,880 yards and 13 touchdowns on the season. Rank can't wait to see what McCaffrey does for an encore