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49ers: Kyle Shanahan has private pro day with Justin Fields set up

By Garrett Ballard

Jan 1, 2021; New Orleans, LA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields (1) celebrates after defeating the Clemson Tigers at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 1, 2021; New Orleans, LA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields (1) celebrates after defeating the Clemson Tigers at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /
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The San Francisco 49ers shook the NFL when they traded up from pick 12 to pick three in the 2021 NFL Draft with the Dolphins. Instantly, people began speculating what quarterback the Niners would be targeting with their newly acquired pick. Every name was thrown out there, but recently, Mac Jones has been trending up and Justin Fields has been trending down. A big reason for this was because Kyle Shanahan will be at Mac Jones pro day on the 30th, rather than Justin Fields’, which is on the same day.

People have begun speculating that this could be the Niners tipping their hand, and showing that they prefer Mac Jones. However, that does not appear to be the case. Kyle Shanahan said that the 49ers will get in touch with Justin Fields’ agent and will be able to get another pro day with him in the future. 

Shanahan also said the reason he did not go to Trey Lance’s pro day was because he did not want to tip that the team was working on a trade up. All of this signals that the decision does not appear to be made as to what quarterback will be the selection at pick three.

49ers not tipping their hand at QB

The coaching staff and front office will be doing their due diligence on all the top quarterbacks to determine who they will pick. Jimmy Garoppolo has done his job in San Francisco, but it appears his job is now in jeopardy. When a starting quarterback has limited physical tools, it becomes more challenging to succeed. Kyle Shanahan’s offensive scheme and play calling can mask some deficiencies from the quarterback position. At some point, Shanahan realized this and made the move to go get a quarterback with elite tools.

In a past interview, Shanahan has talked about finding the guys who can be elite. In 2021, the elite quarterbacks are the guys with big arms and quick feet. Looking at the three options who are expected to be in play at 3 for the 49ers; Justin Fields and Trey Lance fit that mold. Mac Jones is a good quarterback, but his limitations are evident, and there is a good chance that Shanahan does not want to go from one quarterback with physical limitations to another one.

dark. Next. 49ers: Ranking the quarterback options with third overall pick

However, up until the third overall pick gets announced, all of this is just speculation. The pick could be Trey Lance, it could be Justin Fields, or it could be Mac Jones. All three of those quarterbacks have real hype in NFL circles, and will all most likely go in the top-10. Only one of them will be a 49er, however, and he will be in one of the best quarterback systems in the entire NFL from day one.