The San Francisco 49ers have been interested in moving on from Jimmy Garoppolo and their quarterback search ends in this 7-round 2021 NFL mock draft.
The San Francisco 49ers are seemingly in search of a quarterback. They were interested in Matthew Stafford prior to him being dealt to the Rams. And now that he’s in the division, they should be looking elsewhere — and they are, as evidenced by their reported interest in trading for Deshaun Watson.
However, if they can’t land Watson, they shouldn’t rush Jimmy Garoppolo out of the building just yet. There aren’t many other available options for the 49ers who would be a substantial upgrade over their current starter. Subsequently, the best course of action may be turning to the 2021 NFL Draft for an answer.
Let’s look at how the 49ers quarterback saga could finally come to a close with this 7-round 2021 NFL mock draft for San Francisco. This mock was simulated using The Draft Network mock draft machine.
49ers end quarterback search early in February 7-round 2021 NFL mock draft
There might not be a better landing spot in the 2021 NFL Draft for North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance than the San Francisco 49ers. Between their unique situation and the stylings of head coach Kyle Shanahan, one of the best offensive minds in the business, there’s no telling what his ceiling could be in this system.
When you watch Lance, the talent that he possesses is obvious. He has terrific arm strength and his ability to move either to extend pass plays outside the pocket or take off an run are elite among his peers. He’s inconsistent with his accuracy but he has shown the ability to put pinpoint placement on his balls at time.
The big thing for Lance is that he shouldn’t be thrust into a starting role. He played in a run-heavy offense in college and did so against FCS competition. Therefore, there is going to be a steep learning curve. San Francisco can help him with that, though, by allowing Jimmy G to start for another year before handing the keys over the Lance.
Upon that happening, Shanahan could have a field day with the rush concepts that Lance would open the door to but also with how he could push the ball downfield consistently. Simply put, the quarterback would answer the long-term questions at the position for the 49ers.