Nick Mullens, who started the season as the 49ers' practice squad quarterback, was the talk of the twon Friday morning.
Named the 49ers' starting quarterback for the injured C.J. Beathard hours before Thursday Night Football against the Raiders, Mullens led a 34-3 win at Levi's Stadium in dominant fashion. Mullens completed 16 of his 22 pass attempts for 262 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
It was a downright historic debut.
Here are a few ways Mullens etched his name in the record books:
- 151.9 passer rating -- the best performance in an NFL debut among players with 16 or more pass attempts in league history.
- One of three players since 1950 to throw for 250 or more yards, three or more touchdowns and no interceptions in his debut.
- The first 49ers quarterback, in his NFL debut, to throw two or more touchdown passes.
Mullens deserves all the praise he's getting. This is a great story. But the Raiders' secondary was the exact opposite.
In the blowout win, Mullens didn't throw into a tight window of coverage from the Raiders' defense once. Not once. He is the first quarterback this season to do so.
Sports
Nick Mullens was efficient in his first career start completing 16 of 22 (72.7%) for 262 yards and 3 TD.
Mullens did not throw a single pass into a tight window (less than one yard of target separation), the first starting QB to do so in a game this season.#OAKvsSF #GoNiners pic.twitter.com/vFP5PpgzcY— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) November 2, 2018
Take a look at Mullens' first career touchdown pass in the NFL. There's nobody near Pierre Garcon when he makes the catch and walks in the end zone.
Nick Mullens made his first career TD pass look too easy 👏
[via @thecheckdown]
pic.twitter.com/t4kt3QwMe8— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) November 2, 2018
There are still plenty of games to be played in Week 9, but the 1-7 Raiders rank 23rd in the NFL in passing yards allowed (2,101), last in yards per attempt (9.1), 31st in touchdowns allowed (19), and 24th in interceptions (4).
