49ers Round 1 Draft Live Blog: Trey Lance is the Pick
This is the San Francisco 49ers live blog for the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Grant Cohn will update this frequently with information and analysis from his war room. To check out the Sports Illustrated draft tracker, click here.
9:02 The Tampa Bay Buccaneers take Washington linebacker Joe Tryon with the 32nd pick. Stay tuned for Round 2 tomorrow.
9:00 The Baltimore Ravens take Penn State edge rusher Jason Oweh with the 31st pick. One pick left.
8:51 The Buffalo Bills take Miami edge rusher Gregory Rousseau with the 30th pick.
8:45 The Green Bay Packers take Georgia cornerback Tyson Campbell with the 29th pick. The 49ers might need to trade up in Round 2 to take a corner.
8:40 The New Orleans Saints take Houston defensive end Payton Turner with the 28th pick. Surprised they didn't take a quarterback, because they need one, but they still can in Round 2.
8:33 The Baltimore Ravens take Minnesota wide receiver Rashod Bateman with the 27th pick. The Ravens always pick the wrong wide receivers, which doesn't bode well for Bateman.
8:25 The Cleveland Browns take Northwestern cornerback Greg Newsome II with the 26th pick. The good cornerbacks are starting to go.
8:20 The Jaguars take Clemson running back Travis Etienne with the 25th pick. Because of course Trent Baalke would spend a first-round pick on the position that gets injured most frequently.
8:15 The Pittsburgh Steelers take Alabama running back Najee Harris with the 24th pick. It seems like every other player went to Alabama.
8:10 The Minnesota Vikings take Virginia Tech offensive tackle Christian Darrisaw with the 23rd pick.
8:05 The Tennessee Titans take cornerback Caleb Farley with the 22nd pick. There still are good cornerbacks available for the 49ers to take in Round 2.
7:56 The Indianapolis Colts take Michigan defensive edge rusher Kwity Paye with the 21st pick. He will play next to DeForest Buckner, and those two will haunt quarterbacks.
7:46 The New York Giants take Florida wide receiver Kadarius Toney with the 20th pick. Toney reminds me of Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel. He's fantastic.
7:37 The Washington Football Team drafts Kentucky linebacker Jamin Davis for the 19th pick. Which means they're still in the market for a quarterback. Which means Washington might be the only trade destination remaining for Jimmy Garoppolo. I doubt the 49ers trade him.
7:31 The Miami Dolphins take University of Miami defensive end Jaelen Phillips with the 18th pick. He transferred from UCLA, where he got recruited by Jim Mora Jr.
7:28 The Las Vegas Raiders take Alabama offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood with the 17th pick. He will replace Trent Brown at right tackle.
7:21 The Arizona Cardinals take Tulsa linebacker Zaven Collins with the 16th pick.
7:20 The New England Patriots take Alabama quarterback Mac Jones with the 15th pick in Jones. Will be fascinating to see who has a better rookie year and a better career -- Jones or Lance.
7:15 The New York Jets take USC offensive tackle Alijah Vera-Tucker with the 14ht pick. Vera-Tucker went to my high school, Bishop O'Dowd, so you know he's good.
7:05 The Los Angeles Chargers take Northwestern offensive tackle Rashawn Slater with the 13th pick. Slater reminds me of Joe Staley. Good pick. Too bad the 49ers couldn't get him.
6:51 The Dallas Cowboys take Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons with the 12th pick. That was the 49ers original pick before they traded up.
6:45 The Chicago Bears take Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields with the 11th pick. I feel terrible for Fields. Chicago is where quarterbacks' careers go to die.
6:40 The Philadelphia Eagles take Alabama wide receiver DeVonta Smith with the 10th pick. That's three Alabama players who've gotten picked before Mac Jones, who's still on the board.
6:30: The Denver Broncos take Alabama cornerback Patrick Surtain II with the ninth pick. Eager to see what Vic Fangio can do with him.
6:20 The Carolina Panthers take South Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn with the eight pick. He's my favorite cornerback in the draft. Glad he got picked so high.
6:11 The Detroit Lions take Sewell with the No. 7 pick. Great value. Best pick of the draft so far.
6:09 The Miami Dolphins select Alabama wide receiver Jaylen Waddle with the No. 6 pick. They need weapons for young quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
6:05 The Cincinnati Bengals select LSU wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase with the No. 5 pick. Surprised they didn't take Oregon left tackle Penei Sewell, considering he plays a more important position.
5:49 The Atlanta Falcons take Florida tight end Kyle Pitts with the No. 4 pick. He's the best player in the draft, and the Falcons are now contenders.
5:46 The 49ers take North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance. I love this pick. Lance is a total natural, he's only 20 and he has a chance to be great. And he'll need to be great to justify the 49ers trading up for him.
5:33 The Jets take BYU quarterback Zach Wilson with the No. 2 pick. The 49ers are on the clock. They better not take Mac Jones.
5:26 The Jaguars take Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the first pick. Everyone expected this. Lawrence is the best player in the draft.
5:10 Mark Schlereth report's Aaron Rodgers to the Broncos is "close to a done deal," although it still could fall through. Makes sense the Packers would send Rodgers to the AFC.
4:15 Don't rule out the possibility that the 49ers will trade the pick Nos. 3 and 43 to the Green Bay Packers tonight for Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers reportedly is disgruntled and doesn't want to play in Green Bay anymore. He's from Northern California, and probably would be open to playing for the 49ers. And if they can get him, he's the best option. So if he want to call the plays, let him call the plays. If he wants to coach the team, let him coach the team. He's Aaron Freaking Rodgers.
4:10 After a month of non-stop speculation, we finally will learn who the 49ers will draft with the No. 3 pick. And as long as that player isn't Mac Jones, 49ers fans will be happy. If the 49ers take Jones, he instantly will become the most unpopular pick in franchise history. So I highly doubt they take him, even if Kyle Shanahan wants them to. I'm guessing the 49ers will draft North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance, although there's a chance they'll draft Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields, and a smaller chance that BYU quarterback Zach Wilson will make it past the Jets and the 49ers will take him. Any of those quarterbacks would make 49ers fans ecstatic.
