49ers have an easy backup plan after missing out on Matthew Stafford

The San Francisco 49ers lost out on getting Matthew Stafford, but their “backup plan” is too easy.

The first domino (or dominoes, really) in the offseason NFL quarterback derby fell late Saturday night, as the Los Angeles Rams will acquire Matthew Stafford from the Detroit Lions for Jared Goff and draft picks. Elsewhere in the NFC West, the San Francisco 49ers were a rumored suitor for Stafford. So now they have to consider how they’ll answer that move, if they do.

The 49ers could draft a quarterback with the 12th overall pick in April, or maybe they try to trade up for someone.

The 49ers are not in the position the Rams were, having to send two first-round picks along with a third-round pick to the Lions in order to get them to take Goff’s contract. They can just cut Jimmy Garoppolo, or ideally trade him for something, and clear $23.6 million in cap space with a $2.8 million dead money hit. Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported Saturday morning the 49ers plan to move forward with Garoppolo, but who’s really buying that if there’s a better option out there?

The 49ers’ backup plan is clear

With Stafford off the board, barring a big change in circumstance before the trade can become official March 17, trade speculation can now shift back to Houston. The Texans have reportedly now set their price for Deshaun Watson in the wake of the Stafford deal–two first-round picks, two second-round picks and two young defensive starters, at least. The part they may be missing about the Stafford trade is the Rams attaching at least an extra first-rounder to get Detroit to take on Goff’s contract, and there’s a follow-up path where the Lions can unload him immediately.

It’s not that Watson isn’t worth a huge haul of picks and/or players. It’s just that the Stafford deal is not a comp.

The 49ers should do whatever it takes to get Watson, with head coach Kyle Shanahan leading the charge for an elite quarterback to run his system. This year’s first, next year’s first, 2023’s first and a player? Fine. General manager John Lynch has not been afraid to be aggressive, and that aggression could pay off big here. If Stafford was Plan A for the 49ers, as the Lions perhaps pushed teams to make offers, Watson is the easiest Plan B there could ever be.