5 under-the-radar free agents 49ers should try adding in 2022

49ers free-agent target No. 1: Quarterback Tyrod Taylor, Texans

The Niners’ onboarding of former Los Angeles Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn as an assistant head coach just upped the possibility of veteran quarterback Tyrod Taylor becoming San Francisco’s next quarterback.

Not as a starter, of course, but as a primary backup and mentor to 2021 rookie Trey Lance.

Taylor worked with Lynn for two years with the Chargers in 2019 and 2020 before joining the lowly Houston Texans as a stopgap starter in 2021, ultimately giving way to Houston’s own rookie, Davis Mills.

No, Taylor wasn’t particularly great during either stead. But his travels around the league, and surely his lone Pro Bowl campaign in 2015 with the Buffalo Bills, should carry some weight. And it’s the kind of dual-threat skill set Taylor has that could help mold Lance into a more diverse signal-caller, both in terms of knowing when to scramble and having the ability to be patient within the pocket.

Taylor wouldn’t be called upon to do much more than that, which is fine. And because of this role, the price tag on the 32-year-old veteran should be notably cheap.