Tag: Mason Fine

Report: Bears bringing in North Texas QB Mason Fine for tryout

After not drafting or signing a rookie QB this offseason, the Bears are bringing in North Texas QB Mason Fine for a tryout.

After having one of the best careers in North Texas history, being labeled a late-round prospect and working out with New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, Mason Fine went undrafted and couldn’t find a team to sign with after the draft.

It seemed like Fine’s dream of being an NFL quarterback was coming to an end after he decided to become the quarterbacks coach at Pawhuska High School in Pawhuska, Oklahoma.

A couple of days after Fine accepted his new gig as a high school coach, he has been offered a tryout with the Chicago Bears, according to Nicholas Moreano of Chicago Audible.

Fine could possibly be named the greatest quarterback in North Texas history as he has the all-time records in yards (12,505), touchdowns (92), passer efficiency (140.68). He’s also second in career completion percentage (62.8 percent) and has the most 300-yard passing games in program history (18).

The two-time C-USA Player of the Year is coming off a season where he played 12 games and threw for 2,820 yards, 27 touchdowns and seven interceptions. The best season for Fine was in 2017, where he threw for 4,015 yards and 31 touchdowns. In his four-year career, he has thrown 32 interceptions.

It’s been a long journey for Fine, but he’s not there yet. Fine will have to impress the Bears enough to earn a spot on the 80-man roster and then will have to compete with Tyler Bray to win a spot on the 53-man roster as Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles battle for the starting job.

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Report: 49ers talk with North Texas QB before NFL draft

The 49ers are doing their homework on a possible backup quarterback for Jimmy Garoppolo.

The 49ers added a quarterback to the growing list of players they’re meeting with ahead of the NFL draft. NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero on Monday said North Texas quarterback Mason Fine has talked with the 49ers among a couple other teams including the Saints. Fine has shown in a video on NFL Network working out with Drew Brees.

This isn’t a situation where the 49ers are aiming to track down their quarterback of the future. Pelissero noted Fine is among a group of signal callers that will either go undrafted or land with a team late on Day 3 of the draft.

Production isn’t a problem for Fine, who threw for 12,505 yards, 93 touchdowns and 34 interceptions in college while completing 62.8 percent of his throws. His wealth of experience and good statistical output should help him garner some attention from NFL teams.

The big knock keeping Fine from climbing up draft boards is his size. He measured in at just 5-11, 190 pounds. That’s very slight for a quarterback. Most quarterbacks around the 6-foot mark are well over 200 pounds. His stature may keep him from ever being a long-term starter due to the game-in-game-out punishment that can come at that position even in an NFL that aims to limit contact with the quarterback.

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein wrote that arm strength is an issue for Fine, but he makes up for it with good touch and ball placement. Knowing where to go with the football is key in the 49ers’ offense, and if they believe Fine can develop into a backup capable of making a spot start or two, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them use a late pick on him with both CJ Beathard and Nick Mullens set to hit free agency after this season.

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Sleeper QB prospect worked out with Drew Brees, interviewed with Saints

The New Orleans Saints met with North Texas quarterback Mason Fine, a sleeper prospect in the 2020 NFL Draft who worked out with Drew Brees.

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It almost feels like a certainty that the New Orleans Saints will add a quarterback at some point around the 2020 NFL Draft. Saints coach Sean Payton admitted as much in a recent conference call with local media, clarifying that while Taysom Hill is expected to back up Drew Brees this year, the team wants to bring in another passer who will be active on game days, ensuring Hill can continue to block, catch, and run with the best of them. One name to watch on draft day: North Texas quarterback Mason Fine.

Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the list of interested teams to contact Fine recently includes the Saints. Additionally, Fine’s workout partner (before national lockdowns were enacted due to the novel coronavirus) was none other than Brees, whose longtime personal trainer Todd Durkin put them both through their paces.

So, that’s interesting. Fine is a dark horse in this year’s draft class, an unheralded prospect who might be picked in the final rounds if at all. That puts him in a similar boat to Florida International’s James Morgan, Hawaii’s Cole McDonald, and Colorado’s Steven Montez.

What sets Fine apart from those other late-round prospects is his sky-high college production. He put the team on his shoulders at North Texas with over 1,000 pass attempts in four years, leaving school with a solid 62.8 completion percentage and with 93 touchdowns thrown against 34 interceptions (15 of those coming in 2017, his first full year as a starter). He’s shown he can handle a high volume of dropbacks, a responsibility some collegiate passers struggle with.

Snubbed by this year’s NFL Scouting Combine, Fine instead traveled to San Diego to work out with Brees and Chase Daniel, under Durkin’s tutelage. While he tips the scales at just 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds, Fine put in the work to max out his frame and pack on muscle mass. And it was enough for others to take notice.

“So, yeah, Drew Brees said I was too jacked to play quarterback,” Fine joked to Tulsa World’s Dekota Gregory. “I will say I have a little bit more of a muscular build than him, but that doesn’t mean anything when you’re holding the career passing yards and touchdowns record like Drew.”

It’s easy to envision the Saints taking a late-round flier on Fine (their final pick in this year’s draft is near the end of the sixth round, at No. 203 overall) or maybe signing him afterwards as an undrafted free agent. They’ve taken an interest in these NFL longshots before while padding out the roster, ranging from Daniel himself to Sean Canfield and J.T. Barrett. But maybe Fine can carry over the poise that’s set him apart at the college level, and thrive where others didn’t.

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