The 49ers made what might a franchise-altering mistake in the 2017 draft when they opted to forego the quarterback class almost entirely. Instead of taking Deshaun Watson with the No. 3 pick, or moving further back from No. 2 and picking Patrick Mahomes, they chose defensive lineman Solomon Thomas. They wound up righting the ship, but overcoming that kind of miss twice would’ve been difficult. They avoided that by picking North Dakota State QB Trey Lance third overall in this year’s draft.
This isn’t necessarily about results. Lance may be a flop while Justin Fields and Mac Jones, both of whom went after Lance, go on to have stellar careers. The pick would be viewed in a different light then, but on Draft Night it signals a change in philosophy for Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers.
San Francisco needed to take a swing. They needed to get out from under the fog of the “traditional pocket passer” and elevate themselves into the modern era. In 2017 they rolled with Brian Hoyer as the starter and third-round pick CJ Beathard as the backup. The plan was to then sign Kirk Cousins the following offseason. None of those players were going to take the 49ers’ offense to an elite level.
Picking Jones, like many draft analysts thought they would, would’ve signaled more of the same on the way for the 49ers where the roster had to be just right to keep up with explosive offenses like all three in their division, along with the Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills.
The Lance pick is a risk. He has just 17 starts at the FCS level, and played in just one game in 2020. He’s raw, but he’s immensely gifted. Even a head coach as creative offensively as Shanahan eventually needs high-level talent.
Lance will provide an added wrinkle the 49ers haven’t had under center since Shanahan’s arrival. The team identified a glaring weakness in their roster construction, and addressed it with a player equipped to be among the NFL’s best at the position.
Only time will tell if the pick works out for San Francisco, but the idea behind the selection is sound, which is an improvement over that disastrous 2017 draft.
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