Why the 49ers should draft Justin Fields instead of Mac Jones

The 2021 NFL draft is still days away, but for all intents and purposes, the 49ers, who own the third-overall pick, are already on the clock. The Jaguars would be foolish to pass on Trevor Lawrence and the Jets (foolishly, perhaps) seem to be locked in on Zach Wilson at No. 2.

So it appears the 49ers, who aren’t hiding that they’re in the market for a Jimmy Garoppolo replacement, have their choice of three prospects to (hopefully) lead the franchise for the next decade or so: Alabama’s Mac Jones, North Dakota State’s Trey Lance and Ohio State’s Justin Fields.

It is, obviously, a monumental decision. That’s the case any time a team uses a top-5 pick on a quarterback. But there is probably more hanging in the balance on this one. More so than, say, the Jets picking at two because, well, they are the Jets and will surely find a way to mess things up no matter who they take. The 49ers, however, are a year removed from nearly winning a Super Bowl. If you throw a legitimate franchise quarterback — in other words, a QB capable of elevating the players/system around him — you might have the makings of a long-term winner.

Based on all the reporting we’re hearing from insiders, Kyle Shanahan seems to have his sights set on Jones, who is easily the least physically impressive quarterback projected to go in the first round. Lance is, reportedly, being pushed by the front office and it appears Fields has fallen out of the running completely.

I’m going to leave Lance out of this discussion just because the public has very little information on him and the film we do have was from two years ago when he was just a teenager. Even if Lance is raw, there’s enough talent there to justify using the third-overall pick on him.

So let’s focus on the quarterbacks we do have plenty of info on: Jones and Fields.