San Francisco 49ers activate QB Nate Sudfeld off apply squad
With regular starter Jimmy Garoppolo struggling with a thumb injury, the San Francisco 49ers are lifted from their training roster, according to a report by veteran Nate Sudfeld NFL insider Adam Schefter. Schefter speculates that the move came in the expectation that Garoppolo won’t play and rookie Trey Lance will get the start.
The 49ers signed Sudfeld in April and have since spent most of their time in the team’s training squad. Originally designed by then-Washington Redskins in 2016, Sudfeld was best known for his back-up work with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he played for four seasons and served as a member of the franchise’s Super Bowl LII winning team. But despite appearing in only four games during his Eagles career, his final action on the field brought him a brief moment of shame during a nationally broadcast game.
In the final of Eagles’ Week 17 against Washington, which was the end of a miserable season with four wins in sight, Philadelphia was only three points behind as Eagles head coach in a 17:14 competition Doug Pederson Starting quarterback drawn Jalen hurts in favor of Sudfeld at the beginning of the fourth quarter. It was an alarming decision in a winning game, and Sudfeld did not perform well: he completed only 5 of 12 passes for 32 yards, took two sacks, threw an interception and lost a fumble when Philadelphia lost 20:14.
San Francisco marks the third professional team the former Indiana product has spent time with. In his three seasons with the Eagles, he completed 25 passes for 188 yards and a touchdown with an interception.
The 49ers drafted Lance to be number 3 overall in the 2021 NFL draft, making him the obvious heir to the quarterback position when San Francisco decided to move from Garoppolo. He played sparingly this year with five appearances and one start. lance saw his first extended action of the season in October when he played the entire second half in the 28:21 loss of the San Francisco 49ers to the Seattle Seahawks after starter Jimmy Garoppolo was eliminated with a calf injury.
The former North Dakota State Standout completed 9 of 18 passes for 157 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions, while rushing an additional 41 yards with seven carries. After the game, head coach of the 49ers Kyle Shanahan shared his assessment of the quarterback’s performance.
“Some good, some bad,” said Shanahan. “He was thrown in without expecting to come in and I thought he ran the ball well, he hit some passes, obviously missed some passes. Got in a difficult position there when we were two goals back. Did a good job moving the chains a few times with his legs, but it looked like a typical first game. “
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He got the start the next week against Arizona, completing 15 of his 29 pass attempts for 192 yards and one intercept.
