Nobody really knows these days exactly where Nick Mullens is going with the 49ers, but now he’s at least receiving another chance to get there. Where the third-year veteran takes his latest opportunity behind center during the remainder of this season could have a heavy say in where San Francisco ultimately is going at the quarterback position.
As they close out a forgettable November and prepare for a consequential December stretch run, the 49ers are going with Mullens.
And maybe even for longer than that, depending on how Mullens performs and how the rest of this tumultuous season plays out for the defending NFC champions.
Mullens, of course, knows better than to look ahead.
“You just take it one step at a time, one game at a time, one week at a time,” Mullens said in early November after taking over as the starter from an injured Jimmy Garoppolo for the second time this season.
That’s a lesson Mullens has been learning since his apprenticeship days with the 49ers when, as an undrafted rookie free agent languishing on the practice squad in 2017, you could find him playing safety on San Francisco’s scout team during 11-on-11 team drills.
Mullens is not that guy anymore. He’s certainly not that bottom-of-the-depth-chart quarterback anymore.
He’s a legitimate NFL quarterback now, a guy who could start for several NFL teams, a guy who — despite his backup status in San Francisco — already has compiled 12 career starts with the 49ers as the team returns to action from its Nov. 22 bye week.
Denne historien er fra December 2020-utgaven av Niner Report.
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Denne historien er fra December 2020-utgaven av Niner Report.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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EIGHT IS ENOUGH
Set 49ers lineup still has several new starters
Calling all cornerbacks
Loss of Verrett exposes 49ers’ thin depth at CB
Always finding their way to run
49ers system accomplished at developing homegrown talent
ANOTHER COMEBACK?
Resilient veteran Verrett to miss rest of season
TOP 10 Rookie running backs
THE BACK LIST
STOCK UP STOCK DOWN
DEOMMODORE LENOIR | AMBRY THOMAS
Will Mostert run for 49ers again?
Raheem Mostert was primed this year to be the centerpiece of one of the NFL’s most dynamic offenses, featured as the lead performer in San Francisco’s grinding rushing attack while making his climb among the league’s top running backs.
THE WONDER OF WARNER
49ers make All-Pro star highest-paid LB in NFL
Making the right choice at QB
In the weeks that follow after you read this — and perhaps sometime even sooner than that — Kyle Shanahan and the rest of the 49ers organization will make a titanic decision that will have present, future and perhaps even everlasting implications for the franchise. It will chart the course for the team’s pivotal 2021 season while determining whether San Francisco really does have the juice to return to powerhouse status and again be considered a legitimate contender to get back to the Super Bowl.
TOP 10 Linebacker seasons
Fred Warner vaulted to stardom with a spectacular 2020 season — and the 49ers rewarded him this summer with a $95.225 million deal that makes him the highest-paid inside linebacker in NFL history. By today’s standards, Warner’s performance last year was worth the money as he posted an Approximate Value of 19 — matching the highest score ever recorded by a San Francisco defender according to a Pro Football Reference formula that puts a single number on each player-season across all positions since 1960. Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman (twice) also had seasons with an AV of 19 as they dominate this list of the greatest individual seasons by a linebacker in 49ers history.
