Getty Deebo Samuel flexes in celebration of his third quarter touchdown against the Rams during the 49ers' Week 18 road win.
There are the vocal critics of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo — notably ESPN personalities Mina Kimes and Stephen A. Smith along with other NFL analysts. Then there are the backers of Jimmy G.
Count one 49ers All-Pro as an ardent supporter of his quarterback.
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The man who has taken handoffs and snatched passes from Garoppolo Deebo Samuel took to Twitter to call out the critics of the 49ers’ signal-caller, who is one game away from returning to the Super Bowl with the rest of the 49ers for the second time since January 2020.
“Krazy how y’all have so much to say about our quarterback. Check his win percentage. Okay I’ll wait. Pure winner,” Samuel tweeted out on the morning of Thursday, January 27 on his personal Twitter account, while also tagging Garoppolo’s Twitter handle in his post.
Some Believe Samuel Sent Direct Shot Toward 1 ESPN Analyst
Samuel’s tweet does come in the wake of Kimes making this reference to Garoppolo, which can also be read here in this Heavy on 49ers story:
The Twitter account for @OurSf49ers_ has the belief that Samuel was indeed directing that toward the NFL analyst and popular ESPN personality.
@19problemz @JimmyG_10 Direct shot to Mina Kimes 💀🍿
Fans & Media Members Throw in Support of Samuel’s Tweet
Samuel received a backer from this “die-hard 49ers fan” on Twitter:
@19problemz @JimmyG_10 Y’all better stop playin wit @JimmyG_10 name. @19problemz don’t play bout his. #49ers #niners #49ergang #ninergang #49ersfaithful #ninerfaithful #49ersnation #ninernation #49er #niner #49ersempire #ninersempire. I wonder if @19problemz will see this🤞🏽🤞🏽
Another 49ers fan posted this in Samuel’s mentions:
One more fan identified as @49ers_Dude said to Samuel “100% agree. How people don’t realize how blessed we have been since we got Jimmy G. We went from losing to winning.”
Then there were members of the Bay Area media who took Samuel and Garoppolo’s side. One was David Lombardi of The Athletic who sent this online reminder:
Chris Alvarez of ABC 7 in the Bay Area is another backer.
John Chapman of the 49ers Rush podcast is hopeful Garoppolo can take it out on the Rams at SoFi Stadium on Sunday.
But not every 49er fan agreed with Samuel’s take.
Another 49ers fan identified as @brian_techie sent this to Samuel.
“Third & 7 at the critical part of the game and Kyle gives you the ball Deebo on a run. Over the past four games Jimmy has played, 2 TD’s & 6 picks. You guys have barely won the past three games despite Jimmy. You questioning the ‘Niners getting Jimmy’s replacement? Play the kid!” the tweet read, referring to Trey Lance.
Garoppolo Tells Reporters How he Deals With the Hate
The first question that got asked to Garoppolo: Does he have a strategy in blocking out the online and stadium fan criticism?
Garoppolo gave a simple answer: He thinks about who he is and who is surrounding him.
“Friends, family, they always seem to remind me of those things,” Garoppolo said. “But I don’t know. I think just knowing yourself and knowing who you are plays a big part of that, because if you get lost in it and start believing some of those things, it could take you down the wrong road. So I don’t know, I think it’s just about knowing yourself as a player, as a person and as long as these guys in this locker room have faith in me and belief in me, that’s all I really care about.”