Getty Jimmy Garoppolo attempts to throw the ball against the Broncos on September 25, 2022.
“Jimmy Garoppolo was Horrible:” Among four words straight from the mouth of a talkative San Francisco 49ers legend who brought the franchise Super Bowl titles.
And this 49ers icon played with both Joe Montana and Steve Young — but didn’t mince words about the current QB1 of the 49ers following his performance against the Denver Broncos…even accusing Garoppolo of “sitting there posing” and saying on the radio “you do not smile and go handing the other team after the game.”
3-Time Super Bowl Champ Critical of Jimmy G
Brent Jones scorched Garoppolo during his Monday, September 26 appearance on the Tolbert and Copes Show on KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM.
“I am laying the blame, I don’t do this very often, in fact I don’t do it hardly at all. Jimmy Garoppolo was horrible,” Jones said to the show hosts.
The tight end Jones, who won three rings with the 49ers and earned four Pro Bowl nods with the franchise, then blasted Garoppolo for the now infamous safety the quarterback took in the 11-10 loss to the Broncos.
“What the heck? When you’re a professional football player and quarterback, you know where the back of the end zone is. That was so outrageous,” Jones said.
Jones Doesn’t Believe Past Teammates Would’ve Smiled After a Loss
Jones insisted that he’s not a fierce hater of Garoppolo. However, he wasn’t one to shy away from critiquing him.
“You know since we got Jimmy, I’ve been pretty supportive of Jimmy, and I’ve tried to say so along the way,” said Jones, who is in the College Football Hall of Fame. “And he’s not perfect, he does one or two goofy things every game and we talked about this, even when Trey was the starter. I said ‘just remember, the world isn’t totally rosy with Jimmy in there.'”
Jones then questioned why Garoppolo was smiling ear-to-ear after playing a mistake-filled game.
“But I gotta say, and I don’t think I’ve ever said this before, after you played horrible and you’re the reason your team lost the game, you do not smile and go glad handing the other team after the game,” Jones said. “I’ve never seen that from any quarterback ever, that has ever been any good,” Jones said, before naming quarterback legends, including some of whom he played with.
“Steve Young? No way. Joe Montana? Hell no. Brett Favre? No chance in heck,” Jones continued. “You think [Broncos quarterback] Russell Wilson is laughing after he throws a pick, steps out of the end zone for a safety and fumbles a ball and plays horrible and his team’s 1-2 and the reason they lost the game? It almost looked like he didn’t even care.”
What Jones Hopes to See From Garoppolo Moving Forward
The 49ers now find themselves in a logjam at the bottom of the NFC West at 1-2. Now, they have a chance to really distort the division by knocking off the defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football.
Jones, however, wants to see a change in attitude from Garoppolo beginning with that October 3 showdown…one that doesn’t include, as he called it, “sitting there posing.”
“I want to see Jimmy grabbing a couple receivers and talking to them, I want to see him patting his linemen on the shoulder and saying ‘I need some time,’” Jones said. “I always just see him sitting there posing and nobody is taking GQ pics on the sideline. I want to see some emotion, I want to see some quarterbacking, but they always just show him sitting there looking stoic, posing. I wanna see some messed up hair, how about that? I want my quarterback all in. I’m not saying he’s not, but it sure comes across like ‘ya, know, oh well, too bad, I had to take a pay cut this year. It’s not on me, I’m just here having fun. High five. Yeah we got smoked.’”