The 49ers don’t have a first-round pick in the 2022 draft, but they have the player on their roster who might’ve been the first overall pick. NFL Media draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah in talking about this year’s QB class said 49ers QB Trey Lance would’ve been the first QB off the board and possibly the first player picked overall.
“In my opinion, yes. He’s more talented than any quarterback in this draft class coming out, and I don’t even think it’s particularly close,” Jeremiah said in a conference call. “If he had a chance to go back to school and continue to grow and play and develop, yeah, I think he would have been the first pick in this draft.”
This year’s quarterback draft class is not a particularly strong one per most NFL draft analysts. Our own Draft Wire has just one QB going in the top 10, and just three in the first round overall.
The caveat from Jeremiah about Lance getting to go back to school is interesting though. Lance would’ve been the top pick had he gone back to school, but the question is whether playing one more season at the FCS level or getting a couple starts and a full season of NFL film work and training is better for his development.
Any difference in those two things is probably dependent on each individual player, but it’s a promising sign for San Francisco that their second-year QB would’ve been the No. 1 pick in the draft with one more year of school. If Lance did get adequate development during his redshirt year in the NFL he should be able to hit the ground running as the starting QB, even if there are some hiccups to work out along the way.
It underscores the importance of the 49ers’ move up last year as well. At No. 29 this season they would’ve had a hard time moving up to get a top quarterback, and even if they did they would’ve been acquiring a less talented player than the one they could’ve had last season.
Jeremiah also noted that this wasn’t exclusive to Lance, and that the high-end talent just isn’t there in the 2022 class. That’s good news for a 49ers club that doesn’t hold a first-round pick.
“You could go through and I could find probably 10 guys that would have an opportunity to be the first pick in this year’s draft,” Jeremiah said. “This year’s draft has got a lot of depth and there’s a lot as you go outside of the top 10 that you love as you go through it. But in terms of being top heavy, I think last year’s draft, man, again, you could come up with probably 10 names that would have a chance to be the first pick.”
San Francisco should be able to take advantage of that depth with multiple picks in Rounds 2 and 3, and perhaps enough in their war chest to jump into the back of Round 1 if they want. On top of that they have a player talented enough to be the top pick this year. That’s not a bad spot to be in.
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