San Francisco 49ers Rumors: Nick Foles Could Be In For A Reunion With Chip Kelly


The San Francisco 49ers could be looking for a bit of competition behind center, with rumors that the team may be looking to pick up Nick Foles and shore up what looks to be a weak position going into 2016.

Foles was granted his release from the Los Angeles Rams this week after the team failed to come up with a trade for him. Foles wanted out ever since the Rams drafted Cal quarterback Jared Goff at the No. 1 overall spot in this spring’s NFL draft, and this week the team made it happen.

“We have been in contact with Nick and his representation throughout the offseason, and we feel that this is the best decision for all parties involved,” Rams head coach Jeff Fisher said in a statement, via the Toronto Sun. “We appreciate the contributions that Nick has made to our organization in his time as a Ram and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.”

While his next destination is unknown, the Toronto Sun speculated that Foles could be headed for San Francisco and a reunion with Chip Kelly, who coached Foles in Philadelphia in what was the best season of the quarterback’s career in 2013.

“Now, Kelly is the new head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, and at QB he’s stuck with a rapidly unravelling Colin Kaepernick and Blaine Gabbert, the ex-Jacksonville Jaguar and still-uninspiring 2011 first-round bust.

“It’d be a surprise if Kelly does not see Foles as an immediate improvement over one of Kaepernick or Gabbert, or both, especially because Foles — who is only 27 — is so much more conversant with Kelly’s system.”

The rumors that Nick Foles could wind up in San Francisco comes after the most likely landing point for Foles publicly passed on him. After the quarterback was granted his release from the Los Angeles Rams, many expected him to be scooped up by the Dallas Cowboys, who are in desperate need of a capable backup quarterback.

Anyone who needed to see the importance of a solid second-string quarterback should look no further than the Cowboys in 2015. The team stumbled through a series if inept replacements for Tony Romo, going 1-11 after Romo went down.

The Cowboys started to address that need by drafting Dak Prescott, but he’s seen as a project and likely wouldn’t be able to start right away, CBS Sports noted. That led many to believe that the Cowboys would jump at the chance for Foles, who despite his struggles has shown to be a capable NFL starting quarterback.

Jerry Jones put the kibosh on those plans, stating that the team has enough to work with between Prescott, Kellen Moore, and Jameill Showers.

“Foles isn’t an option,” Jones said, via theDallas Morning News. “We wouldn’t get him any snaps. We got four that are going to get the snaps.”

There are some other potential landing points for Nick Foles. CBS Sports writer Sean Wagner-McGough ranked the San Francisco 49ers high, but noted that the Kansas City Chiefs could also use a steady backup after losing Chase Daniel.

He also pegged the Green Bay Packers as a team that could look for an upgrade at the backup position.

“A quarterback room with Aaron Rodgers and Brett Hundley — the team’s second-year quarterback — is probably already full. Still, Hundley’s never thrown a pass in the NFL. There’s really no way to know how the Packers feel about Hundley, but if they’re doubting his readiness to back up Rodgers, then bringing in someone with real experience, who can keep the team afloat if Rodgers misses a small chunk of time, makes sense.”

If the rumors connecting Nick Foles to the Los Angeles Rams don’t pan out, it seems there would be a number of teams willing to step up and grab what would be the best backup quarterback on the open market right now.

[Photo by Stephen Brashear/AP Images]

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