One crazy 49ers quarterback rumor came to a screeching halt Monday when the Packers traded QB Aaron Rodgers to the Jets. Another one came to an end when 49ers general manager John Lynch spoke to the media Monday in his pre-draft press conference.
It was always a longshot that San Francisco was going to get involved in the Lamar Jackson saga, but nothing had been confirmed about their interest or lack thereof. Lynch indicated the team kicked tires on the former MVP QB, but ultimately never explored it.
“You look into everything, and we seem to be linked to everything,” Lynch said. “I can tell you, I think it’s how convicted we are on Brock, on this current group of guys. You’re not doing your job if you don’t look into things. A lot of those things I think you’re limited by the way our roster is set up and the other thing is, what’s your motivation? And there’s more than just Lamar, there’s tremendous players, MVP type players. We really like our guys and we like where we’re at. We like our complete roster and how they fit for multiple reasons and we’re excited about that group. So, I’ll just leave it at that.”
The 49ers wouldn’t have been able to sign Jackson outright because of the draft compensation it would’ve taken to add him after the Ravens used the non-exclusive franchise tag. San Francisco would’ve had to give Baltimore first-round picks in 2023 and 2024, and the 49ers don’t have a 2023 first.
There were other means of acquiring Jackson, but ultimately it would’ve cost San Francisco a lot of money, draft capital and perhaps players.
While the idea of Jackson in the 49ers’ offense is enticing, it never made sense that they’d make that kind of swing at a position they’ve committed to not spending big money on for at least the next couple of years. Perhaps Jackson winds up back in Baltimore. Maybe he goes somewhere else. Barring something dramatic and unforeseen, Jackson’s ultimate landing spot in 2023 won’t be in San Francisco.