San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan would not commit to quarterback Nick Mullens remaining the starter for the remainder of the season but Shanahan did say that Mullens will start on Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks. It will be his fourth career NFL start.
"I was good to go with him," Shanahan responded when asked if it was a close decision. "I know that I said (after the game) Nick didn't play very well but no one played well, and I didn't coach well. So it was all of us and Nick did a good job in his first two games. It was not the reason [we lost] yesterday, so that's not fair to do that to him."
Mullens became the 49ers' starting quarterback leading to the team's Week 9 contest against the Oakland Raiders. He replaced an injured C.J. Beathard, who had started the five previous games.
"Jimmy (Garoppolo) is our quarterback," Shanahan continued. "Everyone knows that. C.J. (Beathard) got an opportunity when Jimmy got hurt, and Nick got an opportunity when C.J. got hurt. We're playing this year out with our two and three, and we'll see how games go.
"We're going to do everything we can to win a game. I know we're preparing with Nick, and if he ever struggled, I'd bring in C.J., so we'll see how it goes."
Mullens' NFL debut was impressive. He completed 16-of-22 (72.7 percent) passes for 262 yards with three touchdowns and a passer rating of 151.9 in a dominant 34-3 victory over the visiting Raiders.
Mullens' level of play has declined since. He posted a 151.9 rating against Oakland, a 73.7 rating in Week 10 against the New York Giants, and a 62.1 rating this past Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Mullens was 18-of-32 for 221 yards with a touchdown, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 62.1 in that most recent outing.
The 49ers signed Mullens as an undrafted free agent out of Southern Miss last year. He spent his entire rookie season on the practice squad. San Francisco promoted Mullens to the active roster on September 26 following the season-ending injury to Jimmy Garoppolo.