With the dazzling performance of Brock Purdy, the 49ers have run themselves into oblivion. Counterintuitive right?
The San Francisco 49ers are not just at a crossroads. They’re at a highway intersection. Last week’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles put an end to the procrastination of an inevitable issue the 49ers have been kicking down the road. Who deserves to play quarterback next year?
San Fran’s predicament is like no other, while most teams throughout the course of the year when faced with playing their third-string quarterback falter– the Niners flourished. Usually teams are left with two quarterbacks that have failed and one that is dearly missed. Occasionally, you’ll get the backup superstar, however the third string? Unheard of.
The 49ers have landed themselves three starting caliber quarterbacks and are faced with a triple-edged sword that doesn’t look right no matter how you point it. The saga of who’s next and ready in the Bay Area is one that’s emerged as of late, with a tale of underdogs, individual practices, and a FCS product. Strap in.
To understand the 49ers weird situation, we need to rewind to the beginning of the season. A freshly minted Trey Lance takes over the starting role over Jimmy Garoppolo. Garoppolo is no stranger to this dilemma, facing the brunt of it through an offseason where he and the team were gearing up for a trade with San Francisco deciding to move forward with Lance. Garoppolo was in a forced exile from the team.
In an effort to keep him healthy, the team twisted his arm into practicing separate from the team, a basic tenet of the comedic effect the situation placed on the NFL. Garoppolo had his heart set on finding a new team, but it never happened. The 49ers couldn’t find a trade partner leading up to the finalization of the 53-man roster, forcing him to take the backup role.
Week 2, North Dakota State prodigy Trey Lance gets hurt, thrusting the once-ostracized Garoppolo back into the starting gig and the rest was history. Except it wasn’t. The 31-year old performed well, winning 8 out of his 11 games with meaningful playing time. However, he suffered a season-ending injury versus the Dolphins putting yet another unconventional twist in the plot line.
Enter Brock Purdy, a well-documented underdog story from Iowa State. Purdy was drafted with the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, earning the “Mr. Irrelevant” award and moniker. Purdy played lights out as well, going undefeated until his final game in Philadelphia, where he suffered an arm injury early in the game and lost in blowout fashion. Nevertheless, the point stands… what to do with these three quarterbacks.
33.3% of that enigma is obvious. Jimmy Garoppolo. It’d be hard to see the aging QB make a return to Santa Clara with two young superstars on the rise. Jimmy’s performance during the season may have gotten him enough street cred to try and find a new landing spot in the offseason.
With Garoppolo set to be a free agent for the 2023 season, it’s a no brainer that the 49ers would seek to cut ties with him. An established veteran presence, he could be a good segue for a team in need of a quick fix at the quarterback position. He also will come at a lower price tag than most blue-chip players on the market, giving him all the credentials for a successful offseason.
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Purdy and Lance however, are another question mark. With both showing that they can be successful quarterbacks in this league, San Francisco will have to make a decision that is set to make someone angry.
Lance could make good trade capital for a potential exchange for draft picks or better wide receivers on an offense that lacks major weapons. Sans Deebo Samuel and Christian McCaffery, San Francisco’s skill positions lack in pizazz and firepower. Trey Lance could help make that happen.
With that decision comes the 49ers’ full-fledged investment in Brock Purdy, who may not be healthy come Week 1, nursing a major shoulder injury. Purdy’s performance might also be circumstantial, whose some critics say was bastioned and dwarfed by the stellar play of San Francisco’s defense.
Who’s to say, Purdy won’t show a regression in ability in year two? His status as a 7th round pick still follows him, as one year cannot be enough to show the true colors of a quarterback.
If 49ers general manager John Lynch decides to keep Lance in town, that almost assures a demand in departure by Purdy, as his stock will never be higher than it is now. Without a no-trade clause, QB-hungry teams will be lined up to take him in. Then, the question remains is Purdy a system quarterback?
That answer comes in the form of trial by fire, and you can’t know unless it’s too late. Shades of Brock Osweiler anyone?
Ultimately, the 49ers have way too much sunk into Lance. A first round pick, Lance has been Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan’s prodigal project for far too long for them to let him walk. The 49ers have found themselves in a slovenly situation, and this seems to be the only way out.
San Francisco has a troupe of defensive stars they’ll have to pay soon, why not invest in draft capital while the iron is still hot on Purdy and deal him to someone who wants him? Thus the paradigm of a happy accident remains. Whatever they do, they can’t let go of Lance just yet, barring an offer they can’t refuse.
Lance is still relatively cheap by modern measures. He only demands $9,301,434 in 2023, less than 4% of the 49ers total cap space. With Purdy, they’ll be able to squeeze at least a second round pick out of a team.
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Or, the Niners could just say to hell with all of this and vie for a new face of the franchise. A new quarterback from the free agent market. Aaron Rodgers is on the table, however his recent comments state that he might not be interested in a homecoming in the Bay Area.
With that decision, Lynch may be right where he started last season with Garoppolo as the starter, an aging veteran with a young understudy just waiting to take over. In a perfect world, where the right choice is made– this isn’t even on the table. But hey, we’ve seen worse.
At the end of the day, San Francisco is stuck in an impasse, one that will have to be resolved soon before all parties are out for blood. Where it seems like diverging paths, it’s more like a hodgepodge of trails leading everywhere. One the 49ers must navigate.
