Kyle Shanahan Will 'Definitely' Consider Nick Mullens as 49ers Starter Next Week Against Giants
Nick Mullens's NFL debut ended with a 34–3 win for the 49ers over the Raiders in the final Battle of the Bay. After Mullens's impressive showing, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Mullens would "definitely" be considered for the starting slot in next week's game against the Giants.
“Definitely will consider it,” Shanahan told reporters. “Definitely not thinking about that right now. Our whole team played very well. Nick definitely did. I thought our guys up front played well and I thought the entire offense did. I thought the defense played their tails off. I thought the pass rush was there. I thought we tackled well, thought our punter and kicker did well so it was a very good all around win.”
Mullens started the season as a practice squad player with Jimmy Garoppolo and C.J. Beathard taking the top two slots at the quarterback position for San Francisco. Beathard took over as the 49ers starter after Garoppolo suffered a season-ending ACL injury. Then, Beathard suffered from an injury of his own during the team's loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 8. After Beathard missed practice all week with a wrist injury, 23-year-old Mullens got the nod as Thursday's starter.
His 16-for-22 completions were complemented by a trio of touchdowns Thursday night.
"He did an awesome job today. They guys played real well around him," Shanahan said. "There was a lot on his plate today, coming in and being his first time in a real NFL game, non-preseason. Started off real well, was very poised. Got the guys in an out of the huddle and did a hell of a job."
The 49ers, now 2–7 on the season, host the Giants on Nov. 12 for Monday Night Football in Week 10. Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m. ET.
