After Dak Prescott's season-ending broken ankle in Week 5, many have pondered whether the Dallas Cowboys will go for one of the highly-touted NFL draft prospects at quarterback in April and allow Prescott to become a free agent when his franchise tag comes up at the end of the season. ESPN's Marcus Spears believes Prescott should want to leave the Cowboys this offseason, and mentioned the 49ers as a potential landing spot if he elects to seek greener pastures.
"Dak Prescott should want out of Dallas," Spears said on "NFL Live." "It's a team on the West Coast with a coach named Kyle Shanahan, and a GM named John Lynch, that would love to have Dak Prescott running that offense, the San Francisco 49ers."
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ESPN's Adam Schefter couched Spears' hot take, saying that was "the very first time" he had heard Prescott's name mentioned alongside the 49ers, but added that the NFL Insider "likes it."
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As far as a fit for Shanahan's offense, Prescott definitely would check a lot of boxes. The 27-year-old possess a very strong arm and has shown to be solidly accurate in his four-plus seasons in the NFL. He is by no means a runner like Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen, but Prescott's mobility certainly eclipses that of Jimmy Garoppolo or any QB Shanahan has had since Robert Griffin III.
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Prescott is in the midst of recovering from a gruesome lower leg injury, as he suffered a compound fracture and dislocation of his right ankle in October. Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones said Prescott's recovery was right on track in November and that the team hopes he'll be ready for offseason workouts, according to USA Today's Jori Epstein.
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If Dallas indeed doesn't choose to sign Prescott this offseason, he will have numerous suitors, as there are a handful of other NFL organizations with question marks at the quarterback position.
But in free agency, Prescott could see the opportunity to work with Shanahan and have an elite defense behind him as one of the better options he'll have. The 49ers' current salary-cap issues might make constructing a deal for Prescott difficult, as the 49ers likely would need to find someone to take on Garoppolo's contract.
A lot of dominoes would need to fall in the correct place in order for this to even be a remote possibility for the 49ers, but Prescott would be a major upgrade over Jimmy G and Nick Mullens, and could be the quarterback that finally brings this organization their first Super Bowl win of the 21st century.