Beathard completed 55 percent of his passes for 1430 yards and four touchdowns to six interceptions in six starts this season.
The third-round pick began the year as Brian Hoyer's backup, but he was elevated into a starting role once the 49ers' playoff hopes vanished following an 0-5 start. Beathard struggled mightily in his first three starts against defenses that were able to apply easy pressure against San Francisco's shoddy line, but he was able to salvage his fantasy value with strong production on the ground (136 yards and three rushing touchdowns on 26 attempts). The rookie was able to flash some of the potential that GM John Lynch saw in the Iowa product against the Giants in Week 10 once he was given some time in the pocket to actually dissect a New York secondary that was no pushover. It was too little too late, however, as Jimmy Garoppolo took over under center in Week 13 and showed why he is clearly the superior signal caller by taking the club on an extraordinary 5-0 run to end the season. In the likely event that the 49ers re-sign Garoppolo this offseason, he will begin the year as the team's starter with Beathard -- who has three years remaining on his rookie contract -- having proven enough to serve as his primary backup.