Schrock's Week 14 takeaways: 49ers should have eyes on Stafford
Down the stretch they come and the NFL playoff picture is getting clearer by the day.The 49ers have had the worst luck imaginable this season (par for the course in this hellish calendar year). At 5-8 after a loss to Washington, the 49ers are going to start to shift into evaluation mode as they prepare for the future. We know the big question mark lies at quarterback.To Jimmy Garoppolo or not to Jimmy Garoppolo?If the answer is no, the 49ers have found out Nick Mullens is not the answer. He's been below replacement-level play over the last few weeks. If the 49ers look to the NFL trade market to replace Garoppolo this offseason, one veteran signal-caller should have caught their attention with his play Sunday against one of the NFL's top teams.Elsewhere, Jalen Hurts got the Philadelphia Eagles off the schneid, the NFC's seven-best teams are clear, the Kansas City Chiefs keep proving they are head and shoulders above the rest of the NFL and the Raiders look ... just like last year's Raiders.Here's what we learned from a wild Week 14.
I don't have any hyperbolic declaration about Jalen Hurts' NFL future after one game. But one thing was clear: He gave the Eagles exactly what they needed.
The rookie quarterback made his first career start Sunday and led the once lifeless Eagles to an upset win over a New Orleans Saints team that had won nine games in a row.
Hurts went 17-for-30 for 167 yards and a touchdown while also rushing 106 yards in Philadelphia's 24-21 win. While he did fumble once, Hurts didn't throw an interception and was not sacked, which made the Eagles' offense look a whole lot different than the jumbled mess it has been with Carson Wentz under center.
Hurts was solid. His ability to break contain and make plays with his legs gave the Eagles' offense an extra wrinkle. He made quick decisions and his very presence appeared to reinvigorate the entire team.
With Hurts in the game, all of a sudden the offensive line was blocking better, the running game got going and the receivers were able to create more separation. Doug Pederson's play-calling, which had been abysmal over the previous six games, even looked rejuvenated as he schemed ways to get Hurts outside the pocket and get the ball out of his hands with quick screens, stops and out-breakers.
That's not a coincidence. Nor is it a knock on Carson Wentz. It's simply what the Eagles needed. For weeks the Eagles were a truck stuck in the mud, spinning their fruitlessly as the losses piled up.
Like a burst of NOS, Hurts kick-started the entire Eagles team and got them out of the muck they had been stuck in with Wentz as the trigger-man. He became the only quarterback other than Lamar Jackson to rush for 100 yards in his first-career start, and helped the Eagles to their best rushing game in six years.
At 4-8-1, the Eagles' playoff hopes are slim. The Eagles need to win out and have division-leading Washington drop one of its next two games (vs. Seattle, vs. Carolina) before the two meet in Week 17. Philadelphia's next two games are against the Arizona Cardinals, who have lost three of their last five, and the Dallas Cowboys, who have one of the worst defenses in football.
After the game, Pederson wouldn't say if Hurts will be the starter in Week 15. But we know the answer. The Eagles looked like a more confident team with the rookie under center.
"He's a natural leader. He gave us that spark," running back Miles Sanders said after the win.
The Eagles remain the most talented team in the NFC East. If they play like they did Sunday against arguably the best team in the NFC, there's no reason they can't win their next three games ... as long as Hurts has the keys to the car.
A month ago, the NFC playoff picture was crystal clear with six teams looking like no-doubt postseason participants with just the NFC East dumpster fire left to sort itself out.
Then, Kyler Murray hurt his shoulder in a Week 11 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. The Cardinals sputtered with Murray less than 100 percent, losing three in a row to fall back to 6-6 and let a host of other teams back into the picture.
Likewise, Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who once were believed to be the best team in the NFC, lost three of four to head into their Week 13 bye at 7-5.
On Sunday, both teams got back on track and the NFC playoff picture got a little clearer in the process.
The Cardinals rolled into MetLife Stadium and dominated the NFC East-leading New York Giants, 26-7. Two facets of the Cardinals offense that had gone missing with Murray banged up returned Sunday. Murray rushed for 47 yards against the Giants (he had gained 46 yards on the ground over the previous two games) and Murray connected with DeAndre Hopkins nine times for 136 yards. Hopkins had caught a combined 13 passes for 107 yards in losses to the Patriots and Rams.
While the offense will get the headlines, it was Arizona's defense that made strides Sunday. The Cardinals' defense sacked Daniel Jones eight times and forced three fumbles in the win. Now 7-6, the Cardinals are back in the No. 7 spot in the NFC and have a 61 percent chance of making the playoffs.
Down in Tampa, Brady and the Bucs messed around with the Vikings but eventually earned a 26-14 win. The Bucs scored on five of their first eight possessions and the defense was able to keep the Vikings out of the end zone despite Minnesota having five drives inside the Bucs' 40.
With the Vikings dropping to 6-7, Minnesota now either needs to run the table and have the Cardinals lose to the Rams in Week 17, or have the Cardinals finish 1-2 while they go 2-1 down the stretch.
The Vikings and Chicago Bears (6-7) remain alive in the NFC playoff hunt, but the Cardinals and Bucs stopped the bleeding Sunday and the NFC's playoff picture is clearing up.
It's easy to look at parts of the Raiders' 2020 season and see progress from a 2019 season that saw the Silver and Black go 1-5 down the stretch to finish at 7-9.
They have wins over the New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs. They played the Chiefs down to the wire in their second matchup.
But, in the end, what's really different about the 2020 version of Jon Gruden's club?
The offense is more explosive, yes. That's obvious. The addition of Nelson Agholor has been a huge win. Quarterback Derek Carr has played arguably the best football of his career in Year 3 of Gruden's system. Darren Waller has continued to blossom into one of the best offensive weapons in the NFL.
That's all true, but it hasn't amounted to much.
Through 14 weeks the Raiders are 7-6 after getting mauled by the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. After 14 weeks last year, they were 6-7.
In the offseason, the Raiders spent almost all of their money on improving a defense that among the league's worst in 2019. It's a unit that has gotten worse.
Last season, the Raiders gave up 354.8 yards per game. This season, that number is up to 378.2. In 2019, the Raiders gave up an average of 98.1 rushing yards per game. That's up to 121.1 this season. The passing yards are the same at 257 per game.
Offseason additions Cory Littleton, Carl Nassib and Maliek Collins have been duds. Nick Kwiatkoski has been solid. Rookie cornerback Damon Arnette has been injured and when he's been on the field, he has been torched.
That's why Gruden handed defensive coordinator Paul Guenther his walking papers after Sunday's loss.
Carr said he wanted to play playoff football more than anything. He held up his end of the bargain, throwing for 316 yards and two touchdowns. He was the first to admit after the game that the two interceptions he threw were unacceptable. One wasn't his fault, and the other came when the Raiders were in a big hole and trying to mount a comeback.
Carr isn't asked to tackle. His job is to put points on the board. It's one he's done quite well in 2020. He knew 2020 was going to be a big year for his future in Silver and Black, and I think he's answered the bell and then some.
The Raiders have question marks at a host of other places, though.
At 7-6 and with their playoff hopes fading, the Raiders are headed toward a critical offseason. Gruden has built a solid foundation after a complete teardown.
A leap was expected in Year 3. The 2020 Raiders promised they were different than the 2019 team.
Yet, they're eerily similar. And that's a problem as Gruden's second tenure heads into Year 4.
As the 49ers' 2020 season limps to the finish, the quarterback questions get louder and louder with each week.
This isn't just about Jimmy Garoppolo. He's battled high ankle sprains and other issues all season. To be frank, the 49ers and coach Kyle Shanahan know what Garoppolo can do. They know his limitations and how high his ceiling is.
It's clear the 49ers will re-evaluate the quarterback position this offseason. If they do decide to move on from Garoppolo, there's one clear trade option that's emerging: Matthew Stafford.
The soon-to-be 33-year-old quarterback has played his entire career for a Lions franchise that failed to put an offensive line, running game, pass-catching weapons, or a defense around him. Stafford wasted most of his prime getting bludgeoned to death playing for a pitiful franchise.
But he still has more than enough left to quarterback a good team with an elite play-caller and a good defense to a deep playoff run. He showed that Sunday, going 24-for-34 for 244 yards and a touchdown against the Green Bay Packers before leaving with a rib injury.
The Lions' franchise is coming to a crossroads. After firing Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn, Detroit could be headed for a full-scale rebuild. If they are, they owe Stafford.
And the 49ers should be waiting.
A trade for Stafford wouldn't be cheap to pull off, but the 49ers could have the space to do it if they cut ties with Garoppolo.
Stafford is due $34.9 million in 2021 between salary and roster bonuses, and $27.9 million in 2022, per Spotrac. A trade would leave the Lions with $19 million in dead cap in 2021, which is not a paralyzing figure for a new regime.
Think of the offense Shanahan ran as the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons, when he helped make Matt Ryan the MVP. He hasn't been able to run that pass-happy system with the 49ers because he feels more comfortable relying on the ground game and not asking his quarterback to take unnecessary risks.
Stafford has rarely been surrounded with adequate support. The 2020 Lions have given him Kenny Golladay (who has been injured), an aging Marvin Jones, Adrian Peterson and T.J. Hockenson. With those weapons, Stafford went toe-to-toe with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers on Sunday and had the Lions within a touchdown when he went out with a rib injury he suffered on a 6-yard scramble.
Imagine what he could do with Shanahan, George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel and Raheem Mostert?
Shanahan could finally air the ball out and unleash his full playbook on the league.
There's no telling what the Lions will do with Stafford. But the 49ers have a big decision to make at quarterback this offseason. If there were any doubts about Stafford's ability, he answered them Sunday, showing he's still a guy who can carry a team against one of the NFL's best.
He's someone the 49ers have to consider if they decide Garoppolo isn't their guy.
