Mac Jones

The San Francisco 49ers will reportedly select Alabama quarterback Mac Jones with the third pick in the 2021 NFL draft April 29.

"It'll be Mac Jones," ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Tuesday on DiPietro, Canty and Rothenberg. "... I believe that in the end they will pick Mac Jones at three, that'll be the pick, and they will keep Jimmy Garoppolo this year."

The Niners traded with the Miami Dolphins to acquire the No. 3 pick, a surefire sign they are looking to land a potential franchise quarterback.

With everything pointing toward the Jacksonville Jaguars' taking Clemson's Trevor Lawrence first and the New York Jets choosing BYU's Zach Wilson second, the 49ers would then have their choice of the remaining options from the highly touted group.

Jones, Ohio State's Justin Fields and North Dakota State's Trey Lance would be in play.

While Schefter suggested San Francisco is leaning toward Jones, the team's brass didn't tip its hand during a recent visit to watch the 2020 Davey O'Brien Award winner throw during Alabama's pro day.

Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban said Tuesday neither Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan nor general manager John Lynch asked about Jones during the showcase last week.

"[Shanahan] didn't ask me a thing. I stood right next to him," Saban said Tuesday on The Dan Patrick Show. "I said hi to him. John Lynch too. They didn't ask me a thing. Maybe they thought they weren't allowed to."

Jones took over the offense late in the 2019 season following Tua Tagovailoa's injury, and he parlayed that into a monster junior campaign in 2020.

He completed 77.4 percent of his throws for 4,500 yards with 41 touchdowns and just four interceptions in 13 games as Bama went undefeated en route to winning the national title.

If he does land with San Francisco and it also keeps Garoppolo, the key question will become whether there will be a competition in training camp or if the Niners plan to let Jones watch from the sideline as a rookie.

That said, it's become increasingly rare for quarterbacks drafted early—especially those selected inside the top 10—to remain in backup roles for long. So Jones would likely take the reins at some point in 2021, even if it doesn't happen before Week 1.

Quarterbacks are the major theme of the latest mock draft from Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com, with signal-callers taken with each of the first four picks.

Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson remain the top two picks, while the San Francisco 49ers are projected to take Alabama's Mac Jones at No. 3. The Atlanta Falcons follow suit by selecting Trey Lance with the fourth pick.

Justin Fields falls to the Detroit Lions at No. 7 in this mock, leaving only two of the top seven picks for any other position.

Here is the latest projection from Jeremiah ahead of the first round on April 29.

       

1. Jacksonville Jaguars: Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson

2. New York Jets: Zach Wilson, QB, BYU

3. San Francisco 49ers: Mac Jones, QB, Alabama

4. Atlanta Falcons: Trey Lance, QB, North Dakota State

5. Cincinnati Bengals: Kyle Pitts, TE, Florida

       

The first two picks have been penciled in for weeks, but it is now a near certainty the Jets will take a quarterback after trading away Sam Darnold to the Carolina Panthers.

San Francisco is the bigger wild card, presumably taking a quarterback after trading up from No. 12 to No. 3. Fields and Lance are considered more high-upside options based on their physical tools, but Jones could be the team's pick.

"I'm not surprised San Francisco traded up to No. 3," Jeremiah wrote. "I am surprised that everything you hear points toward Jones being the Niners' pick at No. 3."

This rumor has become a popular one as of late.

"I'm hearing a lot of noise about Jones being the 49ers' preference," ESPN's Todd McShay reported while also mocking Jones at No. 3.

It could let Lance slide to the Falcons at No. 4, which could be a perfect pick considering the North Dakota State product is relatively raw compared to others in the class.

Not only would the NFL be a huge step up in competition from the FCS, Lance was a redshirt sophomore this year who only played one game before declaring for the draft. Most of his on-field experience came as a freshman in 2019.

The Falcons can keep Matt Ryan under center in 2021 but still find his eventual successor early in the draft.

Meanwhile, this draft also allows those who already found their franchise quarterbacks to benefit with big-time playmakers sliding down the board. Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals would add tight end Kyle Pitts, while the Miami Dolphins get receiver Ja'Marr Chase to help out Tua Tagovailoa.

It could lead to a lot of happy fans on draft day.

Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson, Justin Fields, Mac Jones, Trey Lance. 

Over the course of the next four weeks, NFL fans will hear those five names more than any others. 

And when the Atlanta Falcons arrive on the clock with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft, at least two of those five quarterbacks will remain available. 

Regardless of who is still up for grabs, the Falcons have to select veteran Matt Ryan's eventual replacement. 

Why? Because all five have extremely high NFL ceilings, future drafts are less likely to contain that many high-potential quarterbacks (this could be the first with five signal-callers in the top 10), the Falcons haven't held a top-five pick since they drafted Ryan 13 years ago, and they very well might go another 13-plus years without a primo draft choice. 

Oh, and because the soon-to-be 36-year-old Ryan hasn't been a first- or second-team All-Pro—or even a Pro Bowler—since his MVP 2016 season. 

With a $26.9 million salary-cap hit and a $24.9 million dead-cap charge in the event of a post-June 1 release or trade, Ryan isn't going anywhere in 2021. But with more than $92 million in cap hits on the books for 2022 and 2023, he's likely running out of time in Atlanta. 

He has struggled statistically in three of his last four seasons, and the Falcons have won just 18 games with him under center since the start of 2018. Without a sudden change in his late-career trajectory, there's just no way the organization can justify continuing to pay him elite-quarterback money beyond the next season or two. 

Lawrence almost certainly will not be available when Atlanta's turn comes up, but the other four first-round-caliber quarterbacks in that group could all potentially benefit from a year or two (or three) in the stable. 

Wilson experienced just one big season against soft competition at BYU, Fields could use time to develop his pocket awareness and processing skills, Jones is practically a one-year starter coming from a system that made life easy, and Lance threw just 318 passes in his college career at North Dakota State. 

With quarterbacks likely to be chosen with the first three picks for just the third time in NFL draft history, the Falcons could be tempted to pick the best available non-quarterback in this class. But most experts—including those representing the B/R NFL Scouting Department—view only pass-catchers (Kyle Pitts from Florida, DeVonta Smith from Alabama, Ja'Marr Chase from LSU) or offensive linemen (Penei Sewell from Oregon) as being worthy of such a prime selection. 

It just so happens that the Falcons are heavily invested in those spots with Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley and Hayden Hurst at wide receiver and tight end, stalwart Jake Matthews at left tackle and recent Day 1 or Day 2 draft picks Kaleb McGary, Chris Lindstrom and Matt Hennessy also residing along the offensive line. 

The tantalizingly athletic Pitts could be viewed as an immediate upgrade over Hurst and a potential long-term replacement for the declining, 32-year-old Jones, but that addition would not be worth passing on a potential successor to Ryan at the most important position in the sport. 

There's a perception that quarterback transitions have to take place immediately these days, and it's true that fanbases and front offices have less patience than ever before. But this might be the ideal scenario for a slow, careful baton exchange. 

And it's not as though it's unprecedented in this era. Patrick Mahomes spent pretty much an entire season holding a tablet before turning in an MVP season in 2018, while Aaron Rodgers watched Brett Favre for basically three entire campaigns before launching his Hall of Fame career in 2008. 

Mahomes and Rodgers just happen to be two of the three highest-rated passers in league history. Both won Super Bowls and MVPs within four years of becoming regular starters. 

So even if Ryan suddenly recaptures that 2016 magic despite his age, his career course and the lack of Kyle Shanahan, it makes sense. But the odds are that won't happen anyway. 

In fact, the odds are Ryan is close to done. 

He threw nearly as many interceptions (six) as touchdowns (seven) on deep passing attempts in 2020, and he tossed a tied-for-league-high four picks while posting an ugly 73.1 passer rating in the fourth quarter of one-score games. 

It might not be time to move on just yet, but it's absolutely time to start grooming the heir apparent, whoever that may be. 

      

Brad Gagnon has covered the NFL for Bleacher Report since 2012. Follow him on Twitter, @Brad_Gagnon.

The Washington Football Team has a chance to take control of the NFC East. One glaring problem exists, though: The team isn't settled at quarterback. 

In order for the franchise to establish a path toward long-term success, its only option is being aggressive in this year's draft to obtain one of the top five quarterback prospects. 

Currently, the starting options are a 38-year-old journeyman on his ninth team or a one-game wonder who was still under contract with the XFL's St. Louis BattleHawks a year ago. 

Ryan Fitzpatrick and Taylor Heinicke are expected to vie for the job as the regular season nears. 

"There will be a competition," head coach Ron Rivera told reporters Thursday.

To be fair, Fitzpatrick has a tendency to get hot and help his teams in spurts. In fact, he completed a career-high 68.5 percent of his passes last season until the Miami Dolphins decided to play 2020's fifth overall draft pick, Tua Tagovailoa. Today, Rivera seems comfortable with the idea of the veteran starting after he signed a one-year, $10 million free-agent contract. 

"This time, I know who we have as the starter, but he's going to compete with everybody else," Rivera said. "I want to play the guy that's going to give us the best opportunity to win, the best opportunity to grow and develop as a football team."

Fitzpatrick is the proven commodity even though he's not an actual solution behind center, whereas Heinicke is almost a complete unknown with some upside. The 28-year-old can't be completely ruled out of the equation since he performed extremely well in the playoffs against the eventual Super Bowl champions.

Pro Football Focus graded Heinicke's playoff performance higher than those against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes. He could very well take the reins and not let go this summer. 

But Washington shouldn't settle when an alternative exists. The organization can't stand pat with this year's 19th overall pick and hope something good happens. In today's market, franchises make strong moves to position themselves for quarterbacks. 

The San Francisco 49ers trading for this year's third overall selection so they have the opportunity to select a new signal-caller is merely the latest example. The Buffalo Bills traded up twice to land Josh Allen. The Baltimore Ravens traded back into the first round to snag a falling Lamar Jackson. The Kansas City Chiefs leaped over the New Orleans Saints and Cleveland Browns to ensure Patrick Mahomes' selection. The Houston Texans cut a deal with Cleveland to get Deshaun Watson. 

Does every trade-up for a quarterback work? Of course not. The Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles are shining examples after moving on from Jared Goff and Carson Wentz, respectively. 

The idea of standing pat and thinking a top quarterback prospect will land in its proverbial lap is exactly how Washington ended up with Dwayne Haskins Jr., who fizzled out in less than two seasons. Now, it's time for new general manager Martin Mayhew to marry a top quarterback to the current staff. 

In Mayhew's first offseason as the Detroit Lions general manager, he chose Matthew Stafford with the No. 1 overall pick. Granted, Washington doesn't have a favorable slotting at the moment, but the executive clearly understands the value of building around a true franchise option. 

Still, the 19th pick isn't ideal. 

"Picking where we're picking, there are a lot of things that can happen," Rivera said. "We have targets, we have ideas, we have guys that we like, but that always changes just because of the fact that everybody has a choice. You just never know what's going to happen at that point."

However, the incoming class includes five legitimate first-round talents. 

Clemson's Trevor Lawrence is the presumptive No. 1 pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars, and the odds of him actually sliding are slim to none. The New York Jets seem to be zeroing in on BYU's Zach Wilson with the second overall pick. San Francisco traded three first-round picks and a future third-round selection to move up nine spots and choose between Ohio State's Justin Fields, North Dakota State's Trey Lance and Alabama's Mac Jones. 

How important was San Francisco's move for everyone involved in the draft? 

"I'm hearing that both Fields and Trey Lance are considering staging second pro days over the next few weeks so San Francisco's brass can see those guys throw live," Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer reported. 

A quarterback will come off the board at No. 3, though no one knows exactly who it will be. From there, the draft waters get even murkier. 

The Atlanta Falcons could and should be in the quarterback market. Maybe Florida's Kyle Pitts will be tempting. After all, Matt Ryan is pretty much locked up for one more season, and the new battery of general manager Terry Fontenot and head coach Arthur Smith could decide to wait a year before taking the plunge. 

Once the event clears the Falcons' fourth pick, other squads should have opportunities to maneuver and make plays for their preferred prospects. 

The Cincinnati Bengals already have Joe Burrow on the roster. Adding Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell or LSU wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase would make life much easier on the second-year signal-caller. 
Miami already traded up from the 12th overall pick it acquired from San Francisco, and it's likely eyeing one of the class' elite offensive weapons. 

For three reasons, Mayhew should be focusing on the seventh overall pick where the Lions currently reside.

First, the Lions aren't necessarily looking at quarterbacks. Second, the pick sits one slot ahead of the Carolina Panthers, who are desperately trying to upgrade behind center. Finally, it could still be possible to select one of the top four quarterbacks, though this type of deal likely wouldn't be struck until the Lions are on the clock.

Even if Lawrence, Wilson, Fields and Lance are off the board, Washington's preemptive strike could land Jones, whose draft stock has soared this offseason. 

Potential compensation shouldn't be too complicated. The 49ers moved up nine slots, presumably to get their guy. Washington would be moving up 12 with an attached quarterback premium added to the valuation. Three first-round picks, plus a little more added into the mix, aren't too much in this scenario. 

Although it's far less likely, Carolina may not pull the trigger and the New England Patriots at No. 15 would be much easier to leapfrog if one of the top prospects starts to slide. But Washington is much better off being aggressive and getting ahead now because it is positioned to put a quarterback in a winning situation. 

"I've always thought if you can do it the other way, where you put all the other pieces around and then go out and get your quarterback, that might be a pretty good situation too," Rivera said. 

Washington already has a talented back in Antonio Gibson. It added more around wide receiver Terry McLaurin with the free-agent additions of Curtis Samuel and Adam Humphries. Tight end Logan Thomas set career highs last season with 72 receptions for 670 yards.

Four-fifths of the offensive line is already set with left tackle still a priority, but the 2021 draft features a deep positional class there. Starting-caliber talents will be available in the second and third rounds. 

On the other side of the ball, the defense ranked second in total yardage and fourth in scoring last season. 

Washington's surrounding cast is good enough to plop a quarterback into the lineup and have him be in a position to succeed. 

A combination of Fitzpatrick, Heinicke and Fields, Lance or Jones is superior to the alternative.

Yes, the investment shouldn't be taken lightly. It will be significant. At the same time, Washington can take control of the NFC East for years to come by making the right decision. There's no guarantee the franchise will be able to do so a year from now simply by treading water. It might even find itself in the same exact position in what appears to be a much weaker quarterback class. 

The time to act is now. Washington can turn into a beast in the previously dubbed NFL Least. 

      

Mac Jones was far from a first-round prospect when he arrived at Alabama. Jones was a 3-star recruit, the 18th-rated pro-style quarterback in his high school class and someone who was probably considered a career back at a national power on Alabama's level.

Apparently, Jones remembers every word of doubt.

Rivals recruiting analyst Woody Wommack told Aaron Suttles of The Athletic that Jones used to screenshot the names of players ranked ahead of him. 

"He would take screenshots of other kids' rankings and send them to me and be like, 'You think this kid's better than me? Really?'" Wommack said. "He did it constantly. He was right about every single one of them. But he would single every one of them out. He'd screenshot like some random kid in Texas, kids all over the southeast."

None of the pro-style quarterbacks ranked ahead of Jones turned out to be first-round picks. Jake Fromm is the only one who is in the NFL. If you include every quarterback ranked ahead of Jones—quarterbacks are typically ranked by pro-style and dual-threat—former teammate Tua Tagovailoa is the only one who could reasonably be considered better than Jones.

Tagovailoa was a first-round pick of the Miami Dolphins a year ago, paving the way for Jones to have one of the best passing seasons in Alabama history. He's now expected to go as high as No. 3 in this month's NFL draft, which would make him the highest-drafted passer in his class and prove his doubters wrong once and for all.   

No one knows which quarterback the San Francisco 49ers sacrificed three first-round picks to acquire with the third pick in the 2021 NFL draft. 

ESPN's Todd McShay believes it's Mac Jones.

The draft expert sent Jones to San Francisco in his mock draft released Thursday, with quarterbacks now virtual locks to go with the first three selections. Trevor Lawrence has been locked into the Jacksonville Jaguars at No. 1 for months, and it's looking increasingly like Zach Wilson will be taken by the New York Jets at No. 2.

McShay mocked two trades for the two remaining first-round quarterbacks, with Trey Lance going to the Carolina Panthers at No. 7 (via trade with the Detroit Lions) and Justin Fields going No. 11 to the New England Patriots (via trade with the New York Giants).

The 49ers have not tipped their hand on who they plan on taking with the third pick. Coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch were present for Jones' pro day at Alabama on Tuesday, forgoing a pro day held at the same time by Fields. While that may give a slight hint toward their leanings, Fields is set to have a second pro day this month, whereas this was the 49ers' last chance to see Jones throw.

"We felt pretty strongly we were gonna get left at the altar sitting there at 12," Shanahan told reporters of the decision to trade up. "There are five guys that are kind of at this party a little bit, and people are talking about them going everywhere. They're all over in the first round. Our feeling is these guys were going to go a lot higher than people realize."

Fields and Lance are still in play for the 49ers at No. 3, and it will be interesting to see how the rest of the first round plays out after they make their decision. A team that has a higher value on the quarterback the 49ers don't take will almost certainly begin working the phones with the Atlanta Falcons at No. 4. It's possible we wind up seeing four straight quarterbacks taken the first night of the draft.

Fields lasting all the way to No. 11 would be a win of the Patriots, who are set to bring back Cam Newton as their starter. Newton struggled as a passer in 2020, and Bill Belichick would likely prefer to bring in a long-term solution under center. 

As the opening waves of NFL free agency die down, the focus of teams and fans alike is shifting to the 2021 draft beginning April 29 in Cleveland. And after last week's blockbuster trade that netted the San Francisco 49ers the third overall pick, it appears to be a virtual certainty that the top three picks will all be signal-callers.

It's just how the NFL works. You either have a franchise quarterback or desperately covet one.

Jaws dropped in recent days when there were reports that the Niners weren't necessarily targeting Justin Fields of Ohio State. Or Trey Lance of North Dakota State.   

No, San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch were believed to be targeting Alabama's Mac Jones, who threw for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns while leading the Crimson Tide to a national championship in 2020. Shanahan and Lynch were both in attendance Tuesday at Alabama's second pro day.

What they saw in Tuscaloosa should give them serious pause about investing in Jones as the future of the franchise. Because while the 6'2½", 217-pounder is a promising prospect who had a fantastic collegiate career, he's not on the same level as BYU's Zach Wilson. Or Fields. Or even Lance.

Before the dust had even settled on San Francisco's trade with the Miami Dolphins last Friday (a trade that included San Francisco's first rounders in 2021, 2022 and 2023), Brian Costello of the New York Post reported that the Jets had all but zeroed in on Wilson at No. 2 overall. That same day, Wilson impressed in BYU's pro day in Provo, Utah.

Assuming that report is accurate, that leaves the 49ers with a classic Let's Make a Deal scenario. Three doors. Three young quarterbacks in Fields, Jones and Lance. And given what San Francisco sacrificed to trade up, the highest of stakes.

Then came a bombshell from NFL's Network's Daniel Jeremiah, who said on The Athletic's Football Show podcast Monday (via David Bonilla of 49ers Webzone) that the Niners were focused on Jones.

"Well, I think, the majority of people around the league believe this is for Mac Jones. ... Of the people that you would want to believe and put your faith in, the overwhelming majority of them believe this is going to be Mac Jones with that pick," Jeremiah said. "So that's what's so shocking." 

When Lynch and Shanahan eschewed watching Fields in Columbus for the opportunity to view Jones in Tuscaloosa, it lent credence to Jeremiah's assertion. It looked like the San Francisco brain trust was searching for confirmation that Jones was the guy. One more performance to erase any lingering doubts.

Yeah, um…about that.

In fairness, one shaky outing at a pro day does not a draft evaluation make (or break). It may be that Jones read the same articles that the rest of us did and got a bit overanxious. Or that he's just tired of the predraft hoop-jumping. But by most objective measures, Tuesday's effort was iffy at best. He misfired on multiple throws, including at least one that drew a less than impressed countenance from Shanahan.

Another overthrow by Mac Jones and this time a reaction by Kyle Shanahan...pic.twitter.com/ccP0RIpHm3

— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) March 30, 2021

Now, before we go any further, an important note. This is in no way intended to be a hit piece on Jones. Or an inference that he can't be a successful starting quarterback in the pros. We're talking about a youngster who completed 77.4 percent of his passes, had just four interceptions and posted a passer rating north of 200 last season.

As I wrote in a piece about Jones a month ago, Chris Simms of NBC Sports has gone so far as to call the 22-year-old a superior prospect to Tua Tagovailoa, who was drafted fifth overall by the Miami Dolphins in 2020.

"Mac Jones is a better prospect than Tua," Simms said on The Dan Patrick Show, via Keith Farner of Saturday Down South. "… This Mac Jones guy, all he does is throw spirals, perfect throws, NFL-type throws. He can change his arm angle and do those type of things."

But my piece talked up Jones as a wild card. As potentially the fifth quarterback off the board.

Taking Jones ahead of Fields and Lance is another story altogether.

Jones' struggles Tuesday were amplified by what was happening 626 miles to the northwest. While Jones was sailing passes over receivers' heads, Fields was in Columbus peeling off a 4.44-second 40-yard dash and throwing lasers all over the field, including one that drew gasps from those in attendance.

Justin Fields with the strong dime 🎯💪

(via @NFL) pic.twitter.com/Va4NXpl6RR

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 30, 2021

It's worth noting that his feet weren't set on that bomb either.

Lance held his pro day all the way back on March 12, although it's worth noting that Matt Barrows of The Athletic reported the 49ers are trying to set up another look. Per Chase Goodbread of NFL.com, Lance's first workout drew comparisons to Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen while impressing Jeremiah.

"He'd like to have a couple throws back, but this was all about horsepower. When you watch this workout today, you saw him power the football," Jeremiah said. "… You saw it from under center, you saw it from play action, you saw it on the move, but to me, it all came down to once he put his back foot in the ground and that ball jumps."

The comparison to Allen is both complimentary and cautionary. The physical tools are as impressive as they are evident. The cannon arm. The mobility. But he competed at the FCS level and barely played in 2020.

The ceiling is sky-high. But there's work to be done. That's why when the 49ers stated this week that they weren't especially interested in trading veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, many presumed that Lance was the team's target.

Fields is more polished after two years as the starter at Ohio State—a run that saw the Buckeyes twice advance to the College Football Playoff. And he has plenty of arm talent of his own after completing 68.4 percent of his passes as a starter for 5,373 yards with 63 touchdowns against nine picks. That 4.44 speed helped him run for 867 yards and 15 more scores as well.

Jones is certainly more refined as a quarterback than Lance. And a compelling argument can be made that the Alabama product has displayed better pocket presence than Fields. But Fields (6'3", 228 lbs) and Lance (6'3⅞", 224 lbs) are both bigger. Faster. Exponentially more athletic. And they have better arm talent.

Simply put, while the floor may be lower for Lance and Fields than Jones, the ceiling is also that much higher.

And that ceiling should be what matters.

It's possible that the Jones talk is predraft smoke, although given San Francisco's draft slot, the reason for it is puzzling.

Or maybe Lynch and Shanahan are willing to sacrifice upside for a more polished quarterback who fits their offense. It's a questionable call. Sacrificing three first-rounders to get a younger, (hopefully) more durable version of Garoppolo doesn't feel like a move that will vault the Niners past the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West.

It's especially questionable when you consider that Jones probably could have been had for a lower cost from a Philadelphia Eagles franchise that flipped the sixth pick to the Dolphins for No. 12 moments after San Francisco traded up.

It's also possible that what Lynch and Shanahan saw Tuesday will spur a change in plans. That they will get that second pro day with Lance. Arrange one with Fields as well.

In any event, after mortgaging their future for the right to choose among this trio on April 29, the 49ers need to look long and hard at which of these signal-callers is truly the best prospect.

Because if they miss on this pick, that trip to Super Bowl LIV will be forgotten soon enough. Blowing this selection will define the Lynch/Shanahan era in the Bay Area.

And while Jones is a talented young quarterback who might offer the best short-term prospects, his long-term potential doesn't come close to that of Fields or Lance.