San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan may be leaning toward Mac Jones of Alabama with the No 3 overall pick. The former Crimson Tide quarterback may have been the target when the Niners traded up nine spots last month. Other than a brief weeklong drop to the No. 2 spot, Jones has been the betting favorite for much of the time since the blockbuster trade.

Did San Francisco surrender multiple future draft picks, including first-rounders, for Jones? ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay hears that Jones remains the favorite in Shanahan's mind.

On Sunday night, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that the 49ers' decision had been narrowed down to two prospects — Jones and Trey Lance of North Dakota State.

It sounds like Justin Fields of Ohio State may be out.


Will it be the more pro-ready quarterback who threw for 4,500 yards on his way to a National Championship in Jones? Or will it be Lance, the more athletic but less experienced prospect who is almost universally seen as potentially having a much higher ceiling?

McShay is hearing that the 49ers' personnel department is leaning more towards Lance than Jones. Shanahan will ultimately make the decision, though.

"I'm told that many in the 49ers' personnel department have pushed for North Dakota State QB Trey Lance but that coach Kyle Shanahan wants to draft Alabama's Mac Jones," wrote McShay. "One person I spoke to even heard that Shanahan might 'acquiesce' to the scouting department on the selection, but others have said that seems unlikely. At this time of year, there is a lot of seed planting with the rumor mill, and it could certainly be the case here."

A lot is on the line with this draft pick. The 49ers can't afford to make the wrong decision after surrendering so much valuable draft capital. We'll learn the decision on Thursday when the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft kicks off.
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