49ers NFL Draft 2022: 4 quarterbacks who can back up Trey Lance

49ers NFL Draft Target No. 1: Brock Purdy, Iowa State

There’s always the outside chance the Niners explore using one of their middle 2022 NFL Draft picks on a quarterback. It doesn’t seem feasible, but having someone who could at least pressure Trey Lance with the long-term threat of potentially challenging him for a starting job isn’t the worst-case scenario.

Like Dorian Thompson-Robinson, it’s anyone’s guess where Iowa State quarterback Brock Purdy winds up being drafted this spring, entirely contingent upon the pre-draft process and how he looks during workouts.

And while his collegiate finale versus Clemson ended in failure, it shouldn’t take away what he accomplished as a four-year starter:

Provided by CFB at Sports Reference
Generated 1/6/2022.

The 6-foot-1, 220-pound Purdy is almost a Jimmy Garoppolo-lite kind of quarterback, not showing any kind of elusiveness within the pocket and frequently living with passes between the numbers over the middle of the field.

And while he has the arm to get throws down the field, it’s not with accuracy.

But Kyle Shanahan might be intrigued by that anyway, potentially looking at more of a traditional pocket-passer with Purdy, should he not wind up being in that mix of prospects who climbs the ranks leading up to draft day.

The 2022 NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday, April 28.