The San Francisco 49ers have had 12 quarterbacks who have started at least one game since the 2007 season — the rookie season of tackle Joe Staley. Can you name them all?
I'll wait.
It's not that easy, huh?
Staley gave it a shot during a conversation with Tim Kawakami of The Athletic. He rattled off the names of Alex Smith, Shaun Hill, Trent Dilfer, Chris Weinke, Colin Kaepernick, Blaine Gabbert, Jimmy Garoppolo, C.J. Beathard, and Nick Mullens.
Staley also named David Carr, but he didn't start during his one season with the 49ers. He played in one game on October 24, 2010, against the Carolina Panthers, but it was in relief of Smith, who was injured during the third quarter.
The three names he couldn't immediately recall? Brian Hoyer, J.T. O'Sullivan, and Troy Smith, the latter two of whom he needed hints before naming.
Those are a lot of quarterbacks, and as shocking as it might be that he forgot Hoyer, who was the starting quarterback for six games at the beginning of the Kyle Shanahan regime, it is even more shocking that he got Chris Weinke. Weinke started just one game during Staley's rookie season in 2007, a 20-7 loss to the Cleveland Browns. It's a start that stands out in his memory, and not in a good way.
"I just remember that because that was hilarious because he got signed, I think, like that week," Staley explained. "He was there for like three days, and it was the last game of the year."
Weinke had actually been on the roster for 18 days, which might tell you something about the impression he made.
"We were already well out of the playoffs, playing for nothing," Staley continued, "and he went out there, and I tell this story. It's a funny story in the NFL.
"He went out there for the opening drive, and he gets everybody in the huddle, and he goes, 'Alright, I don't really know what's going on, so I'm going to call a pass play. Just get open, and I might have to hold onto the ball, but I'll find you. So if you look open, I'm going to throw it.'
"I was like, 'Oh jeez, this is not going to be a good game.' It was to start the game. It wasn't like it was in the third quarter, like, 'Hey, just get open.' It was just like, 'I don't really know what's going on.'"
Click here to listen to the entire conversation over at The Athletic.
