Patrick Mahomes is set to square off against the San Francisco 49ers in his attempt to win his third Super Bowl in five seasons. While we all know Mahomes as the best quarterback in the NFL today, that wasn’t always the case.
Related: Former NFL head coach said he ‘got vetoed’ when trying to draft Brock Purdy
Back in 2017, Mahomes somehow slipped to the 10th overall pick in the NFL Draft, where the Kansas City Chiefs traded up from No. 22 overall to select the Texas Tech product.
But what about the 49ers? They had a QB depth chart led by Colin Kaepernick and Blaine Gabbert, yet they reportedly didn’t even scout Mahomes that year.
Yet, they did take a QB in that same draft, trading up to draft C.J. Beathard in the third round. So, what happened back in 2017? Why did the 49ers ignore Mahomes?
San Francisco 49ers didn’t scout Patrick Mahomes because they were focused on Kirk Cousins
Let’s rewind back to the 2017 NFL Draft, where the San Francisco 49ers had the third overall pick and were coming off a 2-14 season under Chip Kelly. As mentioned, there wasn’t a QB of the future on the roster, with Kaepernick coming off a 1-10 record and a 2-6 mark the year before. He never played another down after 2016.
Then, despite not having a franchise QB, the 49ers instead were fixated on improving a defense that allowed the most points in the NFL in 2016. When it was time to make their first pick, the 49ers settled on defensive lineman Solomon Thomas, third overall.
He ended up getting six sacks in four seasons with the team.
But Patrick Mahomes? As mentioned, he ended up slipping down to the 10th overall pick, where the Kansas City Chiefs leaped up the draft board to stop his slide, despite already having Alex Smith, who brought them to the playoffs the year prior.
While it’s easy to see Mahomes’ greatness today, the 49ers reportedly didn’t even scout him ahead of the 2017 NFL Draft because they were so confident they’d be able to sign Kirk Cousins in free agency the following offseason.
But that never happened either. Once the New England Patriots offered Jimmy Garoppolo to the 49ers via trade, San Francisco jumped at the offer, and the rest is history.
In the 2017 NFL Draft in which they held the second overall pick, the 49ers did not study Patrick Mahomes because they believed they would be able to sign Kirk Cousins during 2018 free agency and reunite him with Kyle Shanahan. Those plans were scuttled when the Patriots and… pic.twitter.com/6zc8XzFEvj
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 11, 2024
Mahomes went on to become the Chiefs’ starting QB a year later, and defeated the 49ers in the Super Bowl just two years after being drafted. Meanwhile, as Adam Schefter noted, the 49ers later used the draft pick recovered from their C.J. Beathard trade to draft their next franchise quarterback, Brock Purdy.
So, in a way, it all worked out in the end, but just imagine this 49ers team with Mahomes as the captain instead of Purdy? That would be unfair.
