Ranking 49ers’ 4 quarterback options from worst to best
By Peter Panacy
The 49ers are yet again dealing with a quarterback conundrum entering 2023, so let’s rank out what their best options should actually be this offseason.
There will be a time at some point in the future when the San Francisco 49ers are entirely settled at quarterback for the long run.
Someday. It’ll happen.
Until then, the Niners remain in a seemingly endless quarterbacking conundrum that won’t stop heading into the 2023 offseason. San Francisco has two players poised to start, Trey Lance and Brock Purdy, but both are dealing with serious injuries suffered on the extreme bookends of last season.
Lance, coming back from a broken ankle, is expected to be recovered by offseason workouts. Purdy, dealing with a UCL tear in his elbow, won’t be back until training camp at the soonest.
See how things are murky, especially considering how well Purdy played down the stretch last year?
So, who is going to be the best quarterbacking option for the 49ers to kick off the 2023 season anyway?
Let’s rank out the options, ending with the best one.
49ers quarterbacking option No. 4: Jimmy Garoppolo
On the surface, this doesn’t sound like a bad option. After all, the Niners salvaged their season last year when Lance was hurt because they ultimately retained the veteran quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo, instead of trading him.
Garoppolo knows the offense, is well-respected in the locker room and isn’t a massive liability even if he is limited as a passer.
The benefits end there, though.
Unlike last offseason, Garoppolo enters 2023 as a free agent. San Francisco wouldn’t want to commit more than $20 million per year on a new contract for him, and he likely wouldn’t want to return in the wake of two years of absolute awkwardness, and it isn’t as if he’ll get away from a quarterbacking conundrum again if he stayed. Not with Purdy and Lance looking over his shoulder, at least.
Garoppolo is a feasible option, yes. But it’d be best for both he and the 49ers to finally, finally move on from each other.