David Carr knows what it's like to be in a bad situation for a quarterback. His time with the Houston Texans was far from easy. He has to feel bad watching what the Detroit Lions have done to Matthew Stafford's career, a fellow No. 1 overall pick.
Luckily for Stafford, it appears he and the Lions have agreed to mutually part ways. Carr believes a move is best for Stafford, and he lists only one team ahead of the 49ers when it comes to Stafford's next destination: The Indianapolis Colts.
The Colts are a win-now team whose starting quarterback, Philip Rivers, recently announced his retirement. It also would get Stafford out of the NFC. But the 49ers make plenty of sense, too. Carr believes Stafford would cost the 49ers two first-round draft picks, and he also believes Stafford is well worth that price for San Francisco.
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"Replacing Jimmy Garoppolo with Stafford would immediately elevate this offense," Carr wrote. "Garoppolo struggles at times with his mechanics and is too robotic when going through his reads; the experienced and knowledgeable Stafford, meanwhile, is able to read defenses and knows which player to get the ball to and when to get it there."
Despite dealing with injuries and playing on a bad Lions team, Stafford threw for 4,084 yards this season. He has thrown for over 4,000 yards eight times in his 12-year career. The 49ers haven't had a 4,000-yard passer since Jeff Garcia in 2000.
Let that sink in.
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San Francisco 49ers
Carr also explained why the 49ers would be in good position to move on from Garoppolo financially.
"Garoppolo's contract is easy for the 49ers to move on from, as they'd take a mere $2.8 million dead-money hit if they released him, while saving $24 million against the cap," Carr wrote.
The 49ers could be open to a QB upgrade and Stafford feels like the most realistic upgrade. With the right signal-caller, this team still is a Super Bowl contender. Carr agrees.