Former Wisconsin starting quarterback Tanner Mordecai didn’t spend much time away from the NFL after being waived by the San Francisco 49ers earlier this month.
Mordecai signed back with the 49ers on Aug. 21 in advance of their preseason finale against the Los Angeles Chargers. With the team’s third-string quarterback job up for grabs, Mordecai played his best game of the preseason. He completed 10 of 13 pass attempts for 103 yards and one touchdown, and added 12 rushing yards on three carries.
His best play came on the first play of the second quarter. On 2nd-and-9 from the Chargers’ 22-yard line, the former Badger took the shotgun snap, dropped back and lofted a perfect throw to the right corner of the end zone. Veteran receiver Demarcus Robinson got a few steps on the Chargers’ cornerback and ran under the throw, breaking the scoreless game.
Mordecai’s closest roster competition, free-agent signee Carter Bradley, completed eight of 14 passes for 71 yards and a touchdown against the Chargers. While Brock Purdy and Mac Jones are set to enter the season as the 49ers’ clear No. 1 and No. 2 quarterbacks, respectively, the team’s third-string role is still undecided. Seventh-round draft pick Kurtis Rourke will have a good chance to claim the job when he returns from injury. The former Indiana Hoosier is still recovering from a partially torn ACL that he played through during the closing stretch last season.
Saturday’s performance is good news for Mordecai’s chance at making the 49ers’ Week 1 roster. His standing will be clear by Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, the NFL’s roster cut-down deadline.
Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
