Matt Stafford would represent an immediate upgrade at the quarterback position for the 49ers, so Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch should be all-in on bringing him to the Bay.
According to NFL Network and ESPN, Stafford and the Detroit Lions have agreed to part ways before the start of the 2021 season. The Lions are rebuilding — again — and Stafford, 32, isn’t interested in another go-around.
And the 49ers represent a perfect landing spot for Stafford. A year ago, they were in the Super Bowl. Now, they’re just a quarterback away from contending once again.
So whatever the Niners need to do to present themselves as the ideal trade partner to the Lions, they need to get done.
With a quarterback like Stafford truly on the market — this isn’t a hypothetical, folks — there is no excuse for San Francisco starting Jimmy Garoppolo in Week 1 next year.
Remember: Shanahan took Garoppolo to a Super Bowl. Never get that twisted.
Stafford might be older and certainly more battered, but few quarterbacks in the league have an arm like his. He can still do some pretty awesome stuff — you probably haven’t noticed, though, because he played in Detroit.
So send the No. 12 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft to Detroit to land him. If that can’t get it done, throw in Garoppolo — the Niners would cut him as part of the transaction, anyway. If that isn’t enough, toss in a couple of Day Two picks and some Day Threes as sweeteners.
Get it done. The Lions seem reasonable — they agreed to Stafford’s trade request — and a whole mess of picks, with the No. 12 pick as the centerpiece, is fair-market value.
Yes, I know only a few days ago, I said that the 49ers shouldn’t hold anything back and acquire quarterback Deshaun Watson from the Texans. I even suggested that Nick Bosa or Fred Warner or George Kittle could be part of the deal, if need be.
The Niners shouldn’t be that aggressive with Stafford.
But the Niners can go after two quarterbacks — who are worth two different things — at the same time. They can walk and chew gum, right?
And if Niners should keep an eye on Watson but land Stafford in the meantime, the team can consider themselves covered at quarterback.
The fact remains that to win a Super Bowl, the 49ers are going to need a better quarterback than Garoppolo. Any quarterback who qualifies — there should be 15, maybe 20 — should be pursued. Watson and Stafford both qualify. It’s not up for debate.
There will be other suitors for Stafford, just as there are with Watson, but in this realm, the 49ers should be in a better position to land their man.
For starters, Stafford is actively being shopped.
Watson’s trade demand (and that’s all it is at this point) could represent a step-change in the NFL. There has never been a quarterback that talented, that productive, and that young who has been traded.
What do you even send to Houston to entice them to make an unprecedented and unquestionably dumb trade?
Trading a 12-year veteran is a bit more common, though, and it’s hard to imagine that the Lions are going to want anything more than draft picks for their rebuild.
The 49ers can oblige on that front — they’ve picked up three new Day Two picks in the last few weeks with the departures of Robert Saleh (head coach, Jets) and Martin Mayhew (general manager, Washington Football Team).
And while I imagine will be competition for Stafford, I think the Niners are in a great position to make this deal, especially with those picks.
I doubt that any team with a top-10 pick in the draft would be willing to trade for Stafford. Those teams weren’t in the Super Bowl one year ago — they have issues beyond quarterback, making them unattractive to Stafford, who will no doubt have a serious influence on where he’s going, if for no other reason than the Lions want to do right by the best quarterback in franchise history.
The Niners’ strongest competition for Stafford — should they do the smart thing and enter the contest — are the Colts.
Indianapolis can make the argument, like the Niners, that they’re a quarterback away. Philip Rivers couldn’t get it done, but Stafford might.
The only problem for the Colts? Indianapolis picks nine slots after the Niners in the first round.
If San Francisco doesn’t get cute, they can offer the best draft pick package to the Lions and a great shot at not just winning a first playoff game, but winning a Super Bowl, to Stafford. Yes, the Colts might be a better team, but they have to play in the AFC with the Chiefs, Bills, Ravens, Steelers, Titans, and Dolphins. As Stafford well knows, the NFC is wide open.
(It should be noted that if the Dolphins want into the Stafford race, they’ll land him — they’re sitting pretty with draft picks. That said, they’re also in the AFC and I don’t think they’re interested in a 32-year-old quarterback.)
There’s no reason whatsoever for the 49ers to hesitate.
This is a quarterback league, and Stafford would take the Niners to a whole new level in 2021 at the very least.
And when that happens, there’s not a fan in red and gold who will care how many draft picks it took to land him.
This is no longer a hypothetical for the Niners. It’s time to upgrade at QB.
