NFC West starting quarterbacks, ranked worst to best
By Peter Panacy
Taking a look around the division, Niner Noise ranks out each NFC West team's starting quarterback from worst to first.
There are still a few weeks left until the start of training camp, meaning the news front for the San Francisco 49ers is fairly slow.
Unless you're talking about quarterbacks.
Of course, the Niners have another quarterbacking controversy on their hands, but we won't delve too far into whether or not Trey Lance or Sam Darnold can unseat the presumed starter, Brock Purdy.
No, instead, let's see where Purdy ranks up against the rest of the starting signal-callers within his division.
It's a tougher ranking than one might envision, and Purdy's pre-2023 regular-season landing spot might actually surprise you.
He's not in the basement, though.
No. 4: Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
In terms of talent and would-be upside, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray should rank much higher on this list.
But context matters, and Murray's context for the upcoming season is a bad one. For starters, he's recovering from a torn ACL suffered last December, and there's a good chance he won't be ready by Week 1. If not, it'd be the veteran, Colt McCoy, leading first-year head coach Jon Gannon's squad.
Maybe Arizona qualifies for two last-place spots on this quarterbacking list, right?
At any rate, Bleacher Report's Brent Sobleski described why Murray faces such an abysmal future out in the desert this season:
"Once Murray is back in the lineup, he'll be operating a different offense, with a greater emphasis on running the ball under new play-caller Drew Petzing. ...
New decision-makers, different schemes and the potential to claim one of next year's top draft picks signal further change. This season could possibly become Murray's last in Arizona as the new brain trust builds the roster in its image."
It's almost as if Arizona wants Murray to fail, which means it'll be tough for him to find any sort of success for a rebuilding Cardinals squad.