Mystery solved for Niners: it’s Trey Lance; is he the right man?

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All we wanted to know was who the 49ers would select. Todd McShay of ESPN told us it would be Trey Lance, and Mel Kiper of the same network said it would be Mac Jones. Of course we had to stay tuned, as much to find out who was wrong as to learn who would be the Niners QB after Jimmy G — whenever that inevitability takes place.

But darn if that didn’t take in more time than one of those Super Bowl halftime shows.

The NFL knows how to lure us in and hold on, through country singers, the presentation of the colors and, how appropriate, a Draft Kings commercial.

We know now: Trey Lance.

Sorry, Mr. Kiper. The Niners, who traded three first-round picks for the one they used to take Lance, have to hope they’re not sorry.

Lance played only 17 games at North Dakota State, whose football history doesn’t exactly remind anyone of the schools from which the two players, both quarterbacks, picked ahead of Lance, were taken: No. 1 Trevor Lawrence of Clemson, No. 2 Zach Wilson of BYU.

But Phil Simms went to Morehead State in Kentucky and led the New York Giants to Super Bowl wins.

Joe Montana was a third-round pick and Tom Brady a sixth-round pick, although these days, with changes in the game, a need for more mobile quarterbacks who can escape the rush — as Patrick Mahomes does — top prospects don’t slip that far.

The only thing certain is that Garoppolo, who some predicted would either be traded perhaps to the Patriots, from where the Niners got him, or waived, will be starting the 2021 season as San Francisco’s quarterback. Trey Lance might be the quarterback of the future, but with lack of experience, the future isn’t now.

Mac Jones led Alabama to an undefeated season and a national championship. Yet Niners coach Kyle Shanahan, known as a quarterback specialist, and general manager John Lynch obviously believe in Lance’s potential — and that Garoppolo, who led the team to one Super Bowl, will be more than adequate for a year or two.

Toss Justin Fields of Ohio State into the mix of Niner possible draftees, along with Jones and Lance, until a few days ago, at least, and the impression was that Lance was below the other two.

“I’d be surprised if it’s Trey Lance, unless they decide to go with Jimmy G for another year,” was what NFL Network commentator and former 49er head coach Steve Maricucci told the San Jose Mercury News.

“If they are (keeping Garoppolo, as advertised), any of them could fit. If not, and somebody wants him and grabs Jimmy for a second-round pick, Trey Lance has the most work to do to start in the NFL. Not only did he not play last year (other than one game), he played at another level (FCS) and has the most catching up to do. It would benefit him a lot to sit and watch a veteran guy. All of these quarterbacks would benefit from that.”

You need more than a quarterback — the Chiefs lost in the Super Bowl in February because the offensive line was inadequate. Still, most of all you need a quarterback. He wins the games you should have lost. Lynch and Shanahan decided it was time to acquire that quarterback.

Lance is 6-foot-4 and rushed for 1,100 yards in his lone full season as a starter. He’s known for his football intelligence. And didn’t throw an interception in 287 pass attempts.

“He’s played a year of football (and) it is at a smaller school,” Shanahan said. “So it takes work. You’re not going to see it all. It is a hard process, and that there is no guarantee for any of us. So it’s about believing. You see what they asked him to do. And you see it very consistently done at a high level.”

One mystery is solved. We know the Niners’ next QB. Another remains: Is he the right man?

The draft: A few boos (taped), a lot of quarterbacks

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By Art Spander
For Maven Sports

Roger Goodell got his boos — recorded as they might have been. The 49ers got their replacement for DeForest Buckner. And the Raiders got their official acknowledgment they belong to Las Vegas, which as the virus-denying female mayor of the city said on CNN is not China.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2020, The Maven

Niners, Raiders get necessities, not attention or quarterbacks

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By Art Spander

OAKLAND, Calif. — Let’s see, the Raiders took Kolton Miller and the 49ers Mike McGlinchey. Or was it the other way around?

For sure it wasn’t Baker Mayfield, the instigator, or Josh Rosen, Miller’s verbalizing teammate from UCLA, and that’s the disadvantage of having at least a decent team.

You don’t get glamour guys or the attention when you’re competent. What you get are necessities, players who block, who open holes for runners, set up pockets for passers and, even though they are usually the most perceptive and smartest players on any football team, rarely get mentioned until they miss an assignment.

The Niners and Raiders have their quarterbacks. Or so we think, Oakland having Derek Carr and San Francisco, after that seemingly brilliant deal during the 2017 season, Jimmy Garoppolo.

The Cleveland Browns, with one victory in their last 32 games, didn’t.

That lack of success and signal caller enabled them to have the No. 1 pick, and on day one of the draft that’s big stuff.

TV loves a train wreck. The stories were whether Sam Darnold of USC, a quarterback of course, or Josh Allen of Wyoming, a quarterback, or Rosen, a quarterback, would be the first player selected.

It turned out to be Mayfield of Oklahoma, a quarterback. Yes, Saquon Barkley of Penn State, a running back — and is he terrific — went second, but as we were reminded by the guys on ESPN and NFL TV, this was all about quarterbacks. Even the last pick of the first round, Lamar Jackson of Louisville, was a quarterback.

It’s understood that in the NFL — in football at any level — you must have a quarterback. He handles the ball on every offensive play, run or pass. And you also must have a defense, otherwise you’ll be receiving kickoffs from start to finish.

That said, the late Al Davis, who led the Raiders to championships and then in his declining years with draft selections such as JaMarcus Russell, a quarterback who just happened to look like an offensive lineman (the man could eat), led them to mediocrity, always believed the most important part of a team was the offensive line. You do remember Art Shell, Gene Upshaw, Jim Otto, Bob Brown and Dave Dalby, right? All but Dalby are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Whether McGlinchey, a 6-foot-8, 315-pound tackle from Notre Dame taken with the ninth pick, or Miller, a 6-9, 309-pound tackle from UCLA taken with the 15th pick, turns out like those guys, we’ll learn over time.

Whatever, they fill a need for each team. And if drafting offensive linemen is not as entertaining as drafting QBs or running backs, that’s the way it has to be.

When you get your quarterback, you’d better keep him healthy and happy. When he was with ESPN, once and current Raiders coach Jon Gruden ran a “quarterback camp,” which was as much a TV show as a football test. He understands a quarterback needs coordination, arm strength, quickness — and an offensive line.

He passed that understanding to Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie, not that McKenzie didn’t already feel the same way.

“What Kolton can do,” said McKenzie of his No. 1 pick, “when you talk about pass protection and staying in front of the guy, that’s what he does. He’s got the length. He’s got the great feet. And when you talk about the second level, pulling, this guy has a lot of talent.”

Surely so does McGlinchey, who was taken by San Francisco but was admired by McKenzie and Oakland. “We would have upgraded with either one,” said McKenzie.

O-linemen are somewhat obscure. Except to the coaches, players and front office.

Niners GM John Lynch said McGlinchey “has a special presence to him. He’s real. He’s authentic. And he’s a badass. We like that.”

Similar comments before the round would have made for great theater.

Rosen said a few things when he finally was chosen with the 10th pick — that Oakland had traded to Arizona — and they were explosive. And captivating.

“There were nine mistakes ahead of me,” said Rosen about the players taken earlier than he was. “I thought I should have been picked 1-2-3.”

The draft is all about opinions — and this year was about quarterbacks.