Report: 49ers deciding between Jones, Lance with 3rd overall pick
The San Francisco 49ers are torn on who they'll use the No. 3 pick on in Thursday's draft, narrowing their decision down to Alabama quarterback Mac Jones and North Dakota State passer Trey Lance, sources told NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
After trading their first-round pick in each of the 2021, 2022, and 2023 drafts to the Miami Dolphins to move up from No. 12 to No. 3, 49ers general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan chose to attend Jones' pro day on March 30 when it fell on the same date as Lance's showcase.
The Niners were then reportedly "extremely involved" in Lance's second pro day and had a hand in designing the script for the workout.
Notably absent from these discussions is Ohio State's Justin Fields. The dual-threat quarterback hasn't been linked to San Francisco, despite sparkling in his junior season and leading the Buckeyes past Clemson to the national championship game.
Jones threw for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns against four interceptions and guided the Crimson Tide to the national championship in January. He's placed sixth in theScore's 2021 NFL Draft quarterback prospect rankings.
Lance appeared in just one game in his sophomore season, throwing for 149 yards, two scores, and his first career interception for North Dakota State. He's theScore's fourth-ranked quarterback.
Fields is theScore's second-ranked passer behind Lawrence, the presumptive No. 1 pick in this year's draft.