Richard Sherman Says the 49ers Should Draft Justin Fields
Richard Sherman isn't on the 49ers anymore, but still acts as the voice of the team.
Recently on the Cris Collinsworth Podcast, Sherman said who he believes the 49ers should take with the No. 3 pick in the upcoming draft.
"I think Justin Fields is the one," Sherman said. "Even without his athleticism, if you just took him as a stand-alone pocket passer, and his efficiency, and his completion percentage, and what he's able to do week in and week out, he's a winner, he's been at a program that competes at a high level year in and year out, always in a championship, always in the big games, and he's played well. He has managed those situations really well. And I think that his athleticism just adds another layer of elite ability that makes him a difference-maker."
With all due respect to Sherman, he's a free agent, so what the 49ers do is no longer his business.
And I think he's overselling Fields. Sherman praises his ability as a stand-alone pocket passer, but his passing numbers aren't much different than his predecessor at Ohio State -- Dwayne Haskins, who did not play well in the NFL before Washington cut him.
Haskins at Ohio State: 70 completion percentage, 9.1 yards per attempt, 50-8 TD-INT ratio.
Fields at Ohio State: 68.4 completion percentage, 9.2 yards per attempt, 67-9 TD-INT ratio.
Haskins' passing profeciency didn't translate to the NFL. Will Fields translate? Or is he a faster version of Haskins? Neither won a Heisman Trophy or a National Championship at Ohio State. I'm just saying.
Sherman had more to say about why the 49ers should draft Fields:
"I think it changes the dynamic, and it adds dynamic to Kyle's offense that's necessary, because the pass rush now has to pause, the blitzes have to slow down, or you have to bring the house, and you've got to get there. Because if you don't get there, he will slice and dice through your defense in a play that's going to get ugly."
Sherman looks at Fields from a defender's point of view -- why it's difficult to stop dual-threat quarterbacks like him. I doubt Shanahan looks at Fields the same way, because Shanahan is an offensive mind who believes his system doesn't need a dual-threat quarterback.
But Jets head coach and former 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh might share Sherman's opinion of Fields. Because Sherman and Saleh have worked together for years and see eye to eye on lots of things. And Saleh has had issues defending mobile quarterbacks at times.
So maybe the Jets will take Fields, and BYU's Zach Wilson to fall to the 49ers.
Who knows? Funnier things have happened.
Listen to the podcast here.
