Let's take a look at the players on our team for the 2022-2023. There's a lot of new players this year and the expectation is that we will compete for #6 with a new QB and some new players added.
Players will be judged on a letter grade based on past performance, current role and potential. The overall grade is not an average of the two necessarily
After that I'll make an analysis of the group. Feel free to chime in.
So with no further ado. Lets take a look at our:
Quarterbacks:
Trey Lance - Former 2021 3rd overall pick of the draft. Trey has to be feeling a lot of pressure on him even if he won't say that out loud. He was picked clearly based on his potential and upside. I still feel he has the highest ceiling of any QB of this class but this is going to come with some growing pains. He played in 1 game last year and I think he performed solidly after a shaky start. His mechanics and accuracy need work it seems, but he has physical talent that Jimmy Garrapolo doesn't have. He can move in the pocket, scramble and gain yards with his feet and he has a much stronger arm than Garrapolo. I expect him to make some eye popping plays and some head scratching mistakes but Trey is a long term investment. He has to be, we gave up a lot to get him and passed up on Mac Jones who while he doesn't have the physical gifts of Lance, has shown himself to be an NFL ready albeit conservative QB and on Justin Fields who many saw as the consensus #1 pick.
Performance: B- (in one game last year)
Potential: A+
Overall: B+
Jimmy Garrapolo - Jimmy is basically off the team, even if he isn't off the team yet. After shoulder surgery, Jimmy has rehabbed and has passed the physical he will be traded. Jimmy last year while he won some games for us, has clearly shown his limitations as QB. He's not a strong armed QB, though he has a decent deep pass completion rating past 25 yards. The bigger issue is, he had too many moments where he didn't see wide open receivers (especially Brandon Aiyuk) and he also had a tendency to throw ill-timed interceptions where the offense had to dig itself out of in subsequent drives or the defense had to stall the opposing offenses which we did more often than not, but this the gap between an above average QB (which I think Jimmy is) and a good/very good QB. I like Jimmy and he took us to an NFC Championship and a Superbowl when healthy, but the goal is #6 and I don't know if Jimmy can do that riding off the coattails of elite skill players and an elite defense. With that said, his experience and leadership will stabilize another team with playoff aspirations.
Performance: C+
Potential: B-
Overall: B-
Nate Sudfeld - Former 6th round pick from Washington. Sudfeld just got a 2 million dollar contract in March which basically means he is going to make the 53 man roster. Assuming Jimmy Garropolo leaves. Sudfeld will be QB 2. Sudfeld has 1 career start where he played respectably but he has very little playing experience with him being the guy who tanked the game for the Eagles back in 2020, fair or not. I don't know if Sudfeld is good or bad but on a team with Championship aspirations, it would have been wise to bring in someone like Cam Newton or even Colin Kaepernick who have years of experience and would have accepted a Veteran minimum contract.
Peformance: D
Potential: C-
Overall: D+
Brock Purdy - 2022 Draft Mr Irrelevant, Or maybe not. First thing that comes to mind when i think of him is Nick Mullen. He has that scrappy doo sort of attitude in him. He's a little undersized for a QB but the time you see in Iowa State, he can sling the ball short medium and long. He's a decent if not spectacular athlete. He can make plays in and out the pocket. The reason he fell as much as he did is that he has brutal pocket presence. He tends to have happy feet and if its not a pass up the middle, his accuracy plummets. He also tends to bite on defenders jumping on underneath routes. With that said, he's ultimately going to be a QB 3 and in that sense. not a bad pickup for the end of the 7th round.
Performance: D+
Potential: D
Overall: D
Unit Analysis:
It's the Trey Lance show here in Santa Clara, he's starting as a QB in a storied Franchise that expects to win NOW and in the future. I think Lance can be that guy. One thing that can't happen is that him getting hurt. There is a massive drop off in talent (assuming Jimmy gets traded). Honestly any Garrapolo trade should include a QB in my opinion as most of the potential trade partners (Giants, Texans, Steelers) have experienced QBs on cheap contracts. Or at least work out Cam Newton. But if Trey stays upright, I think this team is at least an NFC contender at minimum.
Unit Grade: B