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The free quarterback market is fairly barren this season, which is one reason the 49ers were able to get a reported king's ransom for Alex Smith. There is one less QB option on the table today as Jeff Darlington is reporting Dolphins backup Matt Moore has signed a deal to stick around as Ryan Tannehill's backup.
I bring this up because the Alex Smith trade has left the 49ers potentially in need of a backup quarterback. Scott Tolzien could be the 49ers answer at backup QB, but we are in a position to not really know what the 49ers think of Tolzien. Accordingly, the team could very well need to keep an eye out for backup QB options.
The removal of Moore from the market leaves guys like Jason Campbell, Josh Johnson, Bruce Gradkowski, Derek Anderson, Brady Quinn and Rex Grossman among many others. The team could also look at players late in the draft or in undrafted free agency to provide some competition for Tolzien.
One other interesting point that NEBravesFan33 brought up in our Percy Harvin thread is the idea that teams behind the 49ers in some of the middle rounds might be highly interested in moving up if there is a run on quarterbacks. The first round options are very limited, but there are a lot of quarterbacks that could be sought after on day two and three. This might provide an opportunity for the 49ers to turn 2013 picks into better 2014 picks. The 49ers are going to do some dealing with their picks, and if they can bump them up in next year's draft, all the better.