Here’s a refresher on how the game of telephone works during this, the NFL’s Lying Season:
Someone of importance in the media (if that’s at all possible) makes a suggestion. A few people hear it, trust the source, and then share that suggestion as their own. Only this time, it has a bit more weight behind it — it’s presented as intel, a scoop. A few more people hear that and more weight is added when they share it. Finally, it gets to the NFL’s premier news breaker, ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who is asked what he thinks the 49ers will do with the No. 3 pick on one of his dozen radio hits on Tuesday. He shares his opinion.
And now I’m writing this column.
Talk about weight.
I don’t know if the 49ers are going to take Alabama quarterback Mac Jones or North Dakota State’s Trey Lance or Ohio State’s Justin Fields with the No. 3 pick. I, like everybody else — including Schefter — have shared my opinion on who I think they should select.
What I do know that no one else knows, either. And that could well include Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch.
I’ve said it before, but I apparently need to reiterate it: The 49ers don’t leak.
It was the first mandate ownership put in place when Shanahan and Lynch took control and it has been maintained, much to my dismay, ever since.
The 49ers were able to trade for Jimmy Garoppolo without anyone knowing beforehand. The Browns are still mad about that.
Shanahan and Lynch moved DeForest Buckner to the Colts — a massive trade — with nary a peep ahead of time.
Joe Staley’s retirement, which came after the Niners stunned the NFL by trading for Trent Williams during last year’s draft, was a surprise.
They just traded for the No. 3 overall pick in the draft — a massive move with serious consequences across the NFL — and no one was the wiser until it was finalized. I found out about the trade because I received a text from someone inside a different NFC West team who was asking me if Schefter’s Twitter account had been hacked.
Say what you will about my sourcing, that’s fair game, but Shanahan and Lynch have proven that they don’t sink ships.
So why would anyone think they’re singing like canaries right now?
And this notion of smokescreens? That seems like a lot of work, especially when so many other folks seem willing to do that work for you if you just keep quiet. The silence drives them crazy.
Everyone in the NFL has known for months that Trevor Lawrence will go No. 1 overall to the Jaguars and for weeks that Zach Wilson will go No. 2 to the Jets. But no one seems to have any idea who the Niners are going to take at No. 3.
And without a definitive answer, the internet media machine and Twitter commenters are left with no choice but to stretch opinions to fill the gap.
Eventually, those opinions become gospel. How? I don’t know, but I would like in on that action. I have some thoughts I think everyone should completely adopt as their own.
Now, I hate to pile on Schefter here — all he did was share his opinion — but folks are so starved for an answer, that what he said on ESPN Radio’s DiPietro, Canty, and Rothenberg show Tuesday was treated like gospel after a few minutes of laundering the context through Twitter.
“I think the plan would be for the 49ers… They have to go through the process and they have to access all the quarterbacks,” Schefter said.” I believe that in the end they will pick Mac Jones at No. 3. That’ll be the pick.”
On Monday the FanDuel sportsbook had Fields as the favorite to go No. 3. After Schefter’s comments, Jones became the favorite.
But “I think”, “I believe”? That’s not exactly a stone-cold lock there from Adam Scoops, eh?
This kind of wishy-washy language is rampant right now. Be on the lookout for it. It’s a byproduct of folks who are expected to know the answer to the question but don’t, and they don’t want to admit that they’re in the lurch.
I’ll admit it — I’m flying blind. But in my search for the answer, I’m not going to play the children’s game of “pass it on”.
No, instead I’ll keep sending texts, talking to people I trust, and watching film. Above all else, I’ll enjoy the chaos that will unfold over the next few weeks. It’s hilarious watching so many people squirm at the same time.
And while I can’t say for certain, I have a hunch that Shanahan and Lynch will be doing the same thing, too.
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