NFC Notes: 49ers, Cardinals, Marquise Brown, Seahawks

49ers TE George Kittle said that QB Trey Lance has an “insane ceiling” and said that he’s looking forward to watching him continue to develop.

“Trey has an insane ceiling,” Kittle said, via 49ers Web Zone. “He just needs some reps here and there; throw the ball a little bit more. You can’t really get better without playing games…Just playing, going against competition, getting hit and getting back up, dealing with adversity, how you deal with it. Because [some] guys that come in the league that win their entire life, and they get hit in the face a couple of times, it’s different. It’s just a learning process.”

Kittle admitted that he has no idea what is going to happen with QB Jimmy Garoppolo.

“We don’t know what’s going to happen with Jimmy,” Kittle continued. “I have no idea. I find out on Twitter like everybody else. I think the year that Jimmy is traded or something happens there, or even if Jimmy is on the team, the year that Trey spent with him is very beneficial.”

Kittle doesn’t seem to have a preference for who is under center for the team this upcoming season, but noted that both bring their own set of positives to the table.

“I’m kind of 50-50, right in the middle, honestly,” Kittle responded. “Jimmy, he’s a fantastic leader. We almost won a Super Bowl. We’ve been to the NFC Championship twice in three seasons. And then you look at Trey — I think Trey’s got one of the highest ceilings I’ve ever seen before. Some of the things you see him do on the football field, you’re like, ‘Holy cow. I can’t wait until he throws me passes. I want whoever’s going to be the better quarterback this season. And it is a business at the end of the day. We’re just monetary values, really, like cogs in the machine. I do trust (HC) Kyle Shanahan. I think he’s going to pick the best quarterback. I don’t have a preference. I don’t. I think I like them both. They’re both good guys. They both bring different things to the table. It’s just what do you want to play with?”

Cardinals

• Cardinals HC Kliff Kingsbury is ecstatic with the addition of WR Marquise Brown: “HUGE for us. Speed is elite and K1 has always loved Hollywood’s game.” (Jordan Schultz)
• Cardinals GM Steve Keim confirmed that they plan on exercising recently acquired WR Marquise Brown‘s fifth-year option. (Darren Urban)
• Keim said they attempted to trade back into the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft to select Brown, but was unsuccessful.  (Darren Urban)
• Kingsbury added that they expect Brown to take over WR Christian Kirk’s role. 

Seahawks

• Seahawks GM John Schneider feels like they landed a “pillar at left tackle” with first-round OT Charles Cross: “We’re just really excited that we have a pillar at left tackle.” (Curtis Crabtree)

• Seahawks HC Pete Carroll emphasized that the team is not trading WR D.K. Metcalf and have the pieces in place that make them capable of being contenders in the near future. (Chris Mortensen)