3 key lessons from SF 49ers loss to Washington in Week 14

SF 49ers quarterback room needs a major shakeup

Again, not a hot take here, but rather something that has been apparent for a while.

Quarterback Nick Mullens did not have a good game, and it’s not just the turnovers that are the issue. Yes, being the direct reason for 14 points that swung the game is a major issue, but Mullens has more issues than just that.

His overall accuracy is severely lacking, resulting in several misses in a game and many places of inefficiencies. Against Buffalo, Mullens simply had to hit Brandon Aiyuk in stride for a touchdown late in the first quarter. He threw low and away, forcing Aiyuk to the ground and removing any chance of yards after the catch.

San Francisco 49ers

Same with his throws on the goal line that sealed that game — he threw his players into a worse position.

Against Washington, it was much of the same.

However, this should not be unexpected. Nick Mullens is a backup quarterback — that’s not an insult, it’s a fact. Expecting him to play at a league-average level is already a stretch, even if it should be expected, given how the SF 49ers seemed to refuse any trade offers for him. Heading into the trade deadline, I wrote, before the Jimmy Garoppolo injury essentially forced the Niners to keep Mullens, that if they could, they should trade Mullens because there will be a minuscule chance he extracts any value for the team in the offseason.

That’s doubly true now because all the factors mentioned in that article still persist plus his unfortunate play down the stretch.

Box-score statistics paint a fun picture of Mullens, but he’s an average backup capable of winning a game or two, but more than capable of losing a game as well. There is no floor of competence with Mullens. With Garoppolo, there is an underlying floor of averageness with the capacity of more, even if he never reaches that consistently.

That’s why Garoppolo is the starter and Mullens is the backup.

The Niners though need more from a backup. If they want a player who can give them average-ish quarterback play and not lose them games, they need a player with a more stable floor than Mullens has, and that would likely come in the form of a veteran. If they want a player who they can develop and has high-end potential but the same lack of consistency that Mullens has, they need to look for a player in the draft.

In either case, both Mullens and No. 3 quarterback C.J. Beathard, who has shown neither the capacity to play well nor the potential necessary, should have a new home next year.

Should the Niners be willing to splurge for a high-priced backup for Garoppolo if he stays? Not in my opinion, no. But the production Mullens gives, despite his cheap contract, can be found in players who do it more consistently for cheap or found in players who have more upside.

It’s time for the Niners to shake up their QB room, and though bigger changes might happen, at the very least they need to take care of the back end.