C.J. Beathard finally got his chance.
Now, he doesn’t need to look over his shoulder. The rookie out of Iowa is officially the 49ers’ starting quarterback.
After nearly leading the 49ers to a comeback win in Washington, Beathard was named San Francisco’s new starter by first-year head coach Kyle Shanahan. In his debut performance, Beathard completed 19-of-36 passes for 245 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Beathard’s first career touchdown pass came with just over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, and pulled San Francisco within two points of Washington. The interception Beathard threw came on his last pass of the game, an attempt on fourth down and 20 with the clock winding down.
Beathard replaced former starter Brian Hoyer after Hoyer went 4-for-11 for 34 yards in the first half.
San Francisco drafted Beathard in the third round of this year’s NFL Draft, and though Shanahan appeared resistant to make a change at quarterback earlier this season, Hoyer’s struggles gave him no choice but to see what the rookie could give the team. Apparently, it was much more than the 49ers ever expected.