"Everyone wishes we had a time machine" - When Kyle Shanahan explained 49ers' decision to not draft Patrick Mahomes

Kyle Shanahan had his first official draft with the San Francisco 49ers in 2017. The head coach joined the team after a successful stint with the Atlanta Falcons, as he designed the league's best offense in 2016 and ended with a Super Bowl berth.

However, things were much different with the 49ers, who had their third coach in three years. Holding the second overall pick (which they would trade down a spot) after a 2-14 season, San Francisco had no franchise quarterback established. Instead of taking a risk with names such as Patrick Mahomes or Deshaun Watson, they decided to go with defender Solomon Thomas.

The Kansas City Chiefs traded up to take Mahomes with the 10th overall pick, and boy, they certainly did not regret the move. But years later, Shanahan revealed that passing on the quarterback was one of the biggest mistakes he has ever made:

"Anybody who had a chance to take Patrick Mahomes or Deshaun who didn't, everyone knows ... yeah, everyone wishes we had a time machine."

There were a lot of needs on the 2017 San Francisco roster. For Shanahan, it was all about a long-term project, combining draft and free agency.

"When I came here, I think we had the 32nd-ranked defense, the 31st-ranked offense, didn't have a quarterback, and that is risky. And you have the second pick in the draft. Now, before I came here, I had a very good idea that we would be able to get a free-agent quarterback the next year, one that I knew you could win with. We've got the second pick in the draft, and no one at that time was considering those guys top-five picks. But people knew that they had some ability."

Shanahan and the 49ers ended with Jimmy Garoppolo following a midseason trade

The team started the year with Brian Hoyer as their quarterback, but it quickly unraveled: everyone knew that the offense had potential, but they couldn't risk an entire year with Hoyer as their leader.

That's when the opportunity arrived. The New England Patriots had Jimmy Garoppolo as a backup for Tom Brady, but he was in the middle of the final year of his rookie deal. In October, before the trade deadline, the 49ers struck a deal with the Patriots to acquire the quarterback for a second-round pick.

It was a great deal. Turning into a solid quarterback under Shanahan's guidance, Garoppolo stayed with the team until 2023, leading them to three NFC Championship appearances, one Super Bowl berth and another conference championship as a backup.