By: Andy Davies

The NFC West was considered the elite division in the NFL as little as a year ago but things have progressed since, despite having the current Super Bowl champions in the Los Angeles Rams. 

Russell Wilson is no longer in the division, and no one quite knows who will be the QB1 in San Francisco. 

But who is the divisions best quarterback? Here are the rankings of the NFC West quarterbacks from best to worst.

Matthew Stafford (Los Angeles Rams)

What better place to start than with the QB1 of the Super Bowl Champions. Whilst Stafford was not the reason the Rams won Super Bowl 56 over the Cincinnati Bengals, with 3 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions, he was certainly the final piece of the jigsaw as the Rams hoisted the Lombardi Trophy for the first time since the 1999 season. 

The Rams were always contenders, making it all the way to Super Bowl 53, but there was always something missing at the quarterback position. Jared Goff did well but even he would admit he was probably not good enough to take the Rams where they needed.

He was traded to the Detroit Lions in exchange for Stafford and the rest is history. Stafford had reached the postseason on three previous occasions, but each time came up short at the first attempt. His lack of playoff wins was a factor pointed out by sceptics when he arrived but when the Rams made the playoffs, Stafford showed why the team gave up so much to get him. In four games, he threw for 1,188 yards, 9 touchdowns and 3 interceptions as well as having a 70% completion percentage (98 from 140).

In the regular season, Stafford also impressed. Only Tom Brady (43) threw for more touchdown passes (41), with Stafford throwing for the third-most passing yards (4,886). 

Stafford is clearly the choice for the number one spot on this list and it will take a lot for the other players in this list to catch him up.

Kyler Murray (Arizona Cardinals)

Murray’s future is unclear, with his fifth option exercised but no longer-term deal in place at time of writing. 

The 2019 first overall pick has shown signs of his potential but is yet to fulfil this on a consistent basis. In three seasons, he has thrown for 11,480 yards, 70 touchdowns and 34 interceptions, whilst also recording  1,786 rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns. 

A trend of Murray’s career so far is starting off the season well but tailing off down the stretch. He will need a big year to convince the Cardinals front office that he is the player moving forward. Either way, he still remains second on this list.

Jimmy Garoppolo (San Francisco 49ers)

When the 49ers lost to the Rams in the NFC Championship game back in January, it was seen by many to be the end of Jimmy G in San Francisco. However, he is still on the team.

Having missed OTA’s due to rehab on his shoulder,  he has yet to be traded. Say what you want about Jimmy G, but he wins games. Simple as that. Whilst he has never been the reason for the 49ers winning games, he is a very serviceable quarterback. With uncertainty over Lance after reports of the organisation being underwhelmed, Garoppolo is the right guy to be under centre for the 49ers in week one. 

Drew Lock/Geno Smith (Seattle Seahawks)

Whether it is Lock or Smith, there is no way they aren’t at the bottom of this list. Lock has a great start to life in the NFL, when he started for the Denver Broncos towards the end of the 2019 season, his 2020 and 2021 campaigns flattered to deceive. Meanwhile, Smith has been a backup for most of his career. Neither of these quarterbacks, whoever starts against the Broncos in week one, are likely to inspire confidence from fans or the Seattle coaching staff. 

The post Ranking the NFC West Quarterbacks right now appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Jeremy Trottier

The San Francisco 49ers have been attempting to trade Jimmy Garoppolo since the beginning of the offseason this year.  According to reports, the 49ers have received an offer of two second-round draft picks so far, but John Lynch would be looking for more.  With this, we now have to ask the question, is there a case for SF to keep Jimmy G?  While many may not agree with keeping Jimmy around for another year, it seems that this may need to be the case for the 49ers at the moment.

The first major barrier to trading Garoppolo at the moment is the teams that need QB at the moment.  Many of these teams have been filled lately, including:

• Indianapolis Colts ”“ Matt Ryan
• Cleveland Browns ”“ Deshaun Watson (now trying to trade Baker Mayfield)
• New Orleans Saints ”“ Jameis Winston
• Seattle Seahawks ”“ Only relative unknown, draft pick/Drew Lock?
• Pittsburgh Steelers ”“ Mitchell Trubisky
• Washington Commanders ”“ Carson Wentz
• Atlanta Falcons ”“ Marcus Mariota &/or high draft pick QB
• Carolina Panthers ”“ Sam Darnold / high draft pick

While some of these teams could be looking to add quarterbacks on top of those they already have, it seems that will depend on the price range.  The Browns will be looking to offload Baker pretty quickly as he wants out now, which means likely a lower price tag.  This would draw teams to go for the 26-year-old Oklahoma prospect first rather than Garoppolo whose cost may be higher.

While we saw Patrick Mahomes sit behind Alex Smith for only one season before starting, Trey Lance may need more time to develop or at least start more than one game in a season.  The 49ers could roll half the season with Jimmy G and the other half with Lance. This could also be an option if they feel Lance has a strong chance to start now, and then trade Jimmy near the trade deadline to a QB needy team. There will certainly be injuries, and players not performing up to expectations, so teams will need a QB then, as well. The 49ers may want to make Lance feel at home in the Bay Area, but the market is different and SF could still get both QBs involved in the near future.

The post Should the 49ers keep Jimmy Garoppolo now? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Andy Davies

The San Francisco 49ers are one of the most successful franchises in NFL history. Only the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers (both 6) have more Super Bowl wins than the 49ers (5). The 49ers’ five Super Bowls all came between the years of 1981 and 1994. They have lost two since, in the 2012 and 2019 seasons. The quarterbacks that led the 49ers to the Lombardi Trophy were Hall of Famers Joe Montana and Steve Young. Three of those five wins saw Montana as the starter and Young as the backup.

Young is seen by many as the best backup quarterback in history, considering the gold jacket that he earned despite many years as the backup to Montana. He would win a Super Bowl as the starter after the franchise moved on from Montana. Ever since Young decided to hang up his cleats, the 49ers have struggled to find his replacement. Have they found the guy in Trey Lance?

Perhaps, but here is why the quarterback situation involving Lance and current starter Jimmy Garoppolo could prevent the 49ers from winning the NFC West during the 2021 season.

Struggles Since Young

Jeff Garcia was the man to come in for Young. During his five seasons in the Bay, he threw for 113 touchdowns and 56 interceptions as well as 16,408 passing yards. He had a 35-36 record as a starter for the 49ers in the regular season and a 1-2 record in the postseason, meaning he never hit the heights of his predecessor.

Alex Smith was the number one overall pick in 2005, shattering Aaron Rodgers’ dreams. However, he was a good quarterback, not a great quarterback. Colin Kaepernick replaced Smith and took the 49ers to the Super Bowl. They ended up losing to the Baltimore Ravens in a game often called the ”˜Blackout Bowl’. Kaepernick failed to live up to the standards he set that season.

He would be kicked out of the league for taking the knee in a protest against police brutality in 2016. He has not played a snap in the NFL since. Jimmy Garoppolo was traded from the Patriots to the 49ers midway through the 2017 season. He gave hope to the organization after winning all five of the games he started in 2017. The fanbase had hope going into the 2018 season.

Many non-49ers fans had San Francisco down as their dark horse for the season. A season-ending injury to Garoppolo in Week 3 saw the starting role shared between Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard. However, the 49ers finished 4-12 as they went into 2019 with the second overall pick. Nick Bosa was selected and transformed the defense of San Francisco and Jimmy G had the best season of his career. He threw for 3,978 passing yards, 27 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Despite these stats, Garoppolo saw his production limited in the NFC Championship game as the coaching staff decided to use more of their running game. This led to many questions leading to the Super Bowl. The 49ers threw away a ten-point lead in the fourth quarter as they would end up losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 54.

Garoppolo was criticized heavily for an overthrown pass to Emmanuel Sanders that would have given San Francisco back the lead. His 2020 season saw a mixture of poor form and injury. During the 2021 offseason, the 49ers traded up with the Miami Dolphins to gain the number three overall pick. They took Lance with the pick, showcasing their intentions to eventually move off from Garoppolo. There is now talk of whether San Francisco and head coach Kyle Shanahan will start Lance in week one. The other scenarios discussed are either Lance coming in mid-season or sitting out the whole campaign as the backup to Garoppolo. The uncertainty will have a significant impact on the 49ers’ season.

The Strength of the NFC West

This is a problem that will affect all four teams in the best division in the NFL. There is a chance that all four teams can make the playoffs. Los Angeles has an exciting new quarterback in 2009 first overall pick Matthew Stafford. Both the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals have quarterbacks in Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray that they would never dream of trading away. Meanwhile, the 49ers’ starting quarterback is largely unpopular by fans, due to a mixture of the overthrown pass in the Super Bowl, his poor 2020 campaign and his injury record.

San Francisco has the least trusted quarterback in the division. With the position being one of the most crucial in all sports, it does not bode well for a team when there is uncertainty in the position. Garoppolo may be benched at some point during the season for Lance. However, the 49ers would be putting a rookie that will still be learning the system into the toughest division in the NFL.

Learning From Mahomes, Jackson, Tua and Burrow

If San Francisco are to help Lance succeed, they will need to take some lessons from recent draft classes. Patrick Mahomes, widely seen as the best quarterback in the league, spent all but one game of his 2017 rookie season as a backup to Alex Smith. The Chiefs then traded Smith the following offseason and Mahomes has never looked back. In his first three full seasons as a starter in the NFL, he has reached two Super Bowls, winning one. He has also been crowned MVP and Super Bowl MVP and reached three successive AFC Championship games. All three have been at home. On the flip side, 2020 first overall pick Joe Burrow started in week one of his rookie year. He wouldn’t last the season, only playing ten games before injury curtailed his first NFL campaign. He was impressive before his injury but there are no guarantees he will be the same player when he returns.

Lamar Jackson was a backup to Joe Flacco during his 2018 rookie year but won the starting role midseason. He has since gone on to win an MVP award and is the future of the franchise. Meanwhile, the Miami Dolphins brought Tua Tagovailoa in mid-season but he struggled in his rookie season. He is seen to already be on the hot seat, with many feeling the Dolphins rushed him in. These examples all show there are reasons for the 49ers to be hasty when it comes to choosing when to bring Lance into the starting role.

Lance Or Garoppolo In 2021?

The 49ers will have to decide soon who their starter will be in 2021. Considering Lance has only played one full season (2019), he is likely to start the season as the backup. He only threw for a combined total of 31 passing attempts, two touchdowns and 1 interception across the 2018 and 2020 seasons, albeit the latter campaign being disrupted by the pandemic. He is likely to be a work in progress but his 28 touchdowns and 0 interceptions in 2019 mean that he is one for the future.

Garoppolo will likely start in week one but it was clear from the NFC Championship game that Shanahan doesn’t completely trust him.

Jimmy G is a capable quarterback but his health is a concern. Expect Garoppolo to remain as the starter provided the 49ers are winning games but for Lance to come in should Garoppolo either be injured or start the season poorly.

Should this happen, this will be the end of Garoppolo’s time in San Francisco. Depending on timing, he will then be traded either before the deadline or in the 2022 offseason.

Can The 49ers Returning Players Avoid A Repeat Of 2020?

This is key if the 49ers are to challenge for both the NFC West and the NFC. After earning the number one seed and reaching Super Bowl 54 during the 2019 campaign, San Francisco finished 6-10 in 2020 and bottom of the division. A ”˜Super Bowl Hangover’ played its part but the main cause of such a decline was down to a colossal amount of injuries the team suffered. Along with the aforementioned Garoppolo, the 49ers also saw Bosa, Dee Ford, George Kittle, Raheem Mostert, Deebo Samuel and Solomon Thomas miss large chunks of the 2020 season due to injury.

San Francisco had 33 players reported questionable and there were 186 occasions when the 49ers reported a player on injured reserve. They had the second-most injuries of any team in the NFL over the past twenty years. Should all these players come back, then this 49ers roster will be one of the best in the league. This will make life much easier for whoever the San Francisco starting quarterback is.

However, from the strength of the division to the uncertainty at quarterback, San Francisco will find it tough to win the NFC West.

The post Why the QB situation may prevent the 49ers from winning the NFC West appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By” Steph Sanchez

Jimmy Garoppolo’s tenure as the 49ers’ quarterback has been nothing short of a roller coaster. He reached a new low in 2020 with confidence struggles and a high ankle sprain that would sideline him much of the season. Questions around Kyle Shanahan’s trust in Garoppolo started after the team’s Super Bowl loss and has only grown louder since then. 

Despite trading up from No. 12 to No. 3, John Lynch adamantly continued to say Garoppolo is “still very much a part of [their] plans” and he will be their Week 1 starter. Whether they are saying this to drive up his trade value or are serious about keeping him around remains to be seen. I take a look at the pros and cons of trading Jimmy Garoppolo. 

The 49ers currently have quarterbacks Jimmy Garoppolo, Josh Rosen, and Josh Johnson on the roster. The stability behind a rookie QB should Garoppolo be traded would be shaky at best. On the other hand, if Garoppolo is traded, your rookie would know he is the unquestioned new leader of the team. 

We’ve seen how a veteran presence can actually do more harm than good. Recent examples of Carson Wentz and Jalen Hurts, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Tua Tagovailoa come to mind. As much as teams love to cite the Alex Smith and Patrick Mahomes dynamic, not many quarterbacks are as much a class act as Alex Smith. Having a serviceable, former starting quarterback breathing down your neck after every “rookie” mistake could lead to increased pressure and in turn chip away at a rookie quarterback’s confidence. The team could avoid that plus a potentially awkward or split locker room by ripping off the bandaid and moving Garoppolo. 

The potential first or second round pick that the 49ers are seeking for Garoppolo would be a huge boost for a team that “just traded away a couple first round picks” to move up to No. 3 overall. If they don’t find a trade partner willing to meet their ask, they may feel more inclined to keep Garoppolo around with the hope that he starts and performs well.

That move is not safe from risk, however. If they try their luck and Garoppolo plays poorly to start the season, it will blow up whatever value Garoppolo had. That would turn trading him into cutting him where you don’t recoup any value for your three year starter. 

Whether they cut or trade Garoppolo, the 49ers would benefit from some salary cap relief. Trading Garoppolo before June 1st, would clear $24.1 million. With extensions for Fred Warner and Nick Bosa looming, the team could highly benefit from such cap savings. 

I’ll end this debate with a win-win for both sides”¦ Which is If Jimmy Garoppolo is traded, the 49ers rookie quarterback will be allowed to hit the ground running and start right away. The 49ers get more talent via draft picks for the new face of the franchise. As for Garoppolo, he is given a fresh start with a team who needs him, and is confident in his abilities. A change of scenery could be exactly what Garoppolo needs to get his groove back and get back to his 2017 and 2019 form. 

The post What are the Pros and Cons for 49ers Trading Jimmy Garoppolo? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.