The San Francisco 49ers are fond of backup quarterback Nick Mullens, the undrafted free agent out of Southern Miss who joined the Niners during head coach Kyle Shanahan's first offseason with the team in 2017.
Michael Lombardi of The Athletic was recently discussing with Adnan Virk the Carolina Panthers' trade of quarterback Kyle Allen to the Washington Redskins for a fifth-round pick when he mentioned a tidbit about the 49ers' backup quarterback. The Panthers trade came the same day that the 2015 NFL MVP, Cam Newton, was released, and two days before the signing of quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.
The Panthers attempted to trade Newton but were unsuccessful in finding a partner.
"There was about three teams trying to trade for Kyle Allen," Lombardi said this week on The GM Shuffle podcast. "You know what's interesting about the Kyle Allen trade? This is really interesting. The 49ers got a bunch of phone calls — when I say a bunch, a couple of teams — on Nick Mullens, the backup quarterback in San Francisco. Nick Mullens. They were asking about him, and they turned down every trade offer for Nick Mullens. They wouldn't trade him.
"Think about that. Think about that. Nick Mullens was like — Cam Newton had no value, (and) Nick Mullens (is) untradable (in the 49ers' eyes). Just put that in perspective for a while. Digest that."
It sounds like Lombardi is referring to this offseason. We already know the team was attempting to trade one of its backup quarterbacks last year.
It was reported last September that the 49ers weren't against shopping either of their backup quarterbacks, Mullens or C.J. Beathard, the team's third-round draft pick in 2017. San Francisco reportedly sought a mid-round pick for one of the two, though, and other teams were unwilling to meet that asking price.
The 49ers ended up entering last season with both quarterbacks behind Jimmy Garoppolo on the depth chart.
"In the last week, there was a lot of interest, a lot of conversations (about Mullens and Beathard)," general manager John Lynch said in September. "That position to us is one that you just set a price on, and you stay firm on it. While we had discussions, we never deviated from what that price was for us, and nobody ever met it, so we were happy to carry the three in."
It's unknown what those offers for Mullens may have included, but it is obvious that the 49ers see more value in keeping him on the roster. Mullens appeared in eight games in 2018, completing 64.2 percent of his passes for 2,277 yards with 13 touchdowns, 10 interceptions, and a passer rating of 90.8.
San Francisco tendered a one-year contract to Mullens, an exclusive-rights free agent, on March 5.