Niners looking for a new QB?
According to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle, former No. 1 overall pick Alex Smith looked pretty bad during the San Francisco 49ers' most recent minicamp. Smith's passes were loose, and it appeared that he was still suffering some aftereffects of his shoulder surgery.
This lackluster output, combined with the fact that the team has hosted both Mark Sanchez and Matthew Stafford in recent weeks, has led to speculation that they aren't satisfied with either Smith or Shaun Hill entering the 2009 season as the team's starting quarterback. It's expected that the team's offense this season will be run-heavy to make use of their best offensive player, Frank Gore, as well as to take the ball out of the hands of whoever does win the starting QB battle.
But the other option is to acquire another player to compete with Smith and Hill for the job, and with the free-agent market all but completely dried up after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' signing of Byron Leftwich, that would leave the draft and a trade. It's possible that Sanchez and Stafford will both be gone by the time the 49ers' first pick rolls around at No. 10, and Kansas State's Josh Freeman would be a big stretch with that pick. Furthermore, rookie quarterbacks are always a gamble, and none of the top triumvirate of gunslingers in this year's draft class are considered surefire superstars, either.
Therefore, the 49ers could very likely be the mystery team that has been linked to a trade with the Cleveland Browns for Brady Quinn. The National Football Post has been informed by multiple sources that there is a team who has put a first-round pick on the table in exchange for Quinn, and the Niners would make a world of sense in that role. The team has searched fruitlessly for a stud quarterback since the Jeff Garcia days earlier this decade, and by all indications Quinn is a superstar waiting for the right situation.
In spite of other needs perhaps outweighing signal-caller -- including safety, wide receiver and linebacker -- making a move for Quinn would give the offense a genuine facelift, and would also silence critics of general manager Scot McCloughan, who has been steadfast in defending his decision to draft Smith with the No. 1 pick in 2005. The NFL is still the "League of Quarterbacks", and this team would be in much better shape in 2009 with Quinn under center instead of Smith or Hill.
According to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle, former No. 1 overall pick Alex Smith looked pretty bad during the San Francisco 49ers' most recent minicamp. Smith's passes were loose, and it appeared that he was still suffering some aftereffects of his shoulder surgery.
This lackluster output, combined with the fact that the team has hosted both Mark Sanchez and Matthew Stafford in recent weeks, has led to speculation that they aren't satisfied with either Smith or Shaun Hill entering the 2009 season as the team's starting quarterback. It's expected that the team's offense this season will be run-heavy to make use of their best offensive player, Frank Gore, as well as to take the ball out of the hands of whoever does win the starting QB battle.
But the other option is to acquire another player to compete with Smith and Hill for the job, and with the free-agent market all but completely dried up after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' signing of Byron Leftwich, that would leave the draft and a trade. It's possible that Sanchez and Stafford will both be gone by the time the 49ers' first pick rolls around at No. 10, and Kansas State's Josh Freeman would be a big stretch with that pick. Furthermore, rookie quarterbacks are always a gamble, and none of the top triumvirate of gunslingers in this year's draft class are considered surefire superstars, either.
Therefore, the 49ers could very likely be the mystery team that has been linked to a trade with the Cleveland Browns for Brady Quinn. The National Football Post has been informed by multiple sources that there is a team who has put a first-round pick on the table in exchange for Quinn, and the Niners would make a world of sense in that role. The team has searched fruitlessly for a stud quarterback since the Jeff Garcia days earlier this decade, and by all indications Quinn is a superstar waiting for the right situation.
In spite of other needs perhaps outweighing signal-caller -- including safety, wide receiver and linebacker -- making a move for Quinn would give the offense a genuine facelift, and would also silence critics of general manager Scot McCloughan, who has been steadfast in defending his decision to draft Smith with the No. 1 pick in 2005. The NFL is still the "League of Quarterbacks", and this team would be in much better shape in 2009 with Quinn under center instead of Smith or Hill.
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