Beathard keeps new QB waiting
Well, this is a fresh and unexpected development that changes everyone’s outlook and has the sports world buzzing.
But enough about Stephen Curry’s Ivy League cornrows. Let’s talk about the 49ers, their breakthrough win Sunday and their sudden glut of great quarterbacks.
One thing on which we all agree: C.J. Beathard does not get the hook.
Kyle Shanahan does not yank the rookie out of the starting lineup for the 49ers’ next game, even though the world is dying to get a look at the new kid, Jimmy Garoppolo.
When Shanahan came into his postgame news conference Sunday after his first NFL win, he had the springy step of a
man just freed from prison. You could almost see the 0-9 monkey jumping off Shanahan’s back.
In theory, the 49ers are supposed to lose a lot of games, and few critics would have blamed Shanahan for even an 0-16 season. But reality is a B-word and that 0-9 was not sitting well with the rookie head coach, his team or the fans.
The pressure was on. The crowd at Levi’s on Sunday was so un-crowded that the 49ers could have played this game at Kezar. A quiet desperation has been creeping in.
So even though Shanahan swore after the win Sunday that he has no grand plan for easing out Beathard and easing in Garoppolo, you can bet that it’s not going to happen in the 49ers’ next game. Not after Beathard’s past two games.
The previous Sunday, the rookie QB, in his third start, at home against the Cardinals, took a brutal beating. Against New York, with better protection, Beathard went 19-for-25 for 288 yards, with two TDs and a passer rating of 123.4.
There were times Sunday when Beathard dropped back into the pocket and experienced something very strange and new: a pocket.
Yes, Beathard did what he did against the horrible, horrible Giants. It was like your kid being named Student of the Month, then some Debbie Downer reminds you that your kid is home-schooled.
But Beathard definitely goosed his stock. He even ran for an 11-yard touchdown. It’s one thing to be tough, to take a licking. It’s another — and important — thing to be a quarterback who can pass, run and score. And win.
Football coaches have to be ruthless and pragmatic, but I can’t see Shanahan penciling Garoppolo into the lineup for the home game against the Seahawks on Nov. 26 (next Sunday is a bye).
It’s not just that Beathard looked poised against the Giants, but Shanahan can’t overlook the previous game when Beathard was hit 16 times and shook off all 16.
There had been a general assumption that the 49ers’ plan was to ease Garoppolo into action against Seattle, but let’s check with the coach:
“That’s not my plan,” Shanahan said. “I don’t have a plan yet. There’s no way anything you guys hear reported could be accurate, because I just told you guys our plan.” Which is no plan. All that conjecture? Fake news!
The truth is probably closer to this: Shanahan and his staff have a general plan for either mixing Garoppolo into the mix, or for holding him out the entire season in order to keep him safe and/or tradeable.
Almost surely Garoppolo will play at some point. But Shanahan has to be flexible. What if Beathard backs up Sunday’s performance with another strong outing against Seattle and, who knows, even picks up another win?
Beathard injured his right hand Sunday. He returned and seemed unaffected by the injury. Some coaches might seize that injury as an excuse to start the new QB. I don’t think Shanahan has developed that level of ruthlessness. The NFL is a business, but it’s still a game of emotion, and Sunday’s win was emotional for Shanahan and his team.
There is no blueprint for which quarterback plays when, and that leaves room for some creativity.
Let’s say Beathard plays so-so against the Seahawks, who won’t come to Levi’s with a Twinkie-soft defense like the Giants trotted out Sunday. Then Garoppolo comes into focus.
Shanahan could get creative. He could go with a quarterback tag-team, alternating Beathard and Garoppolo every series or every quarter. That would prevent one quarterback from taking too much of a beating, and it would keep the opponent off balance.
It also would give Garoppolo a chance to slide into the new system with a bit less pressure. It’s not easy assimilating Shanahan’s massive playbook in just a few weeks, and sharing time with Beathard might make Garoppolo’s transition smoother.
That would be unconventional, but when you’re 1-9 and you need to get a solid read on your quarterback situation going into the offseason, you have to give Beathard more of a look and you have to get Garoppolo’s feet wet.
What a dilemma. Who would have thought the 49ers would be dealing with the challenge of too much talent at quarterback?