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Jimmy Garoppolo’s approval rating may be waning within the San Francisco 49ers organization, and the franchise faces a big decision about the quarterback’s future over the offseason. 49ers left tackle Trent Williams began his post-game press conference citing Garoppolo’s early interception as “hard to overcome.”
“I think the turnover inside the red zone, stuff like that is kind of hard to overcome,” Williams said after the 49ers’ loss to the Seahawks in Week 8. “Especially when you’re going against a guy like Russell Wilson. Our defense did such a great job in the beginning of the game. I feel like they had their number. They were getting stops, flying around. As an offense, we just didn’t complete our side of the deal by making them pay for good field position, and we let them kind of overcome some mistakes that we should have made them pay for.”
Williams’ comments came prior to the team announcing Garoppolo would be sidelined for the foreseeable future as he continues to recover from an ankle injury. The 49ers left tackle was not happy with Garoppolo’s interception but has previously been complimentary of the Niners quarterback.
“I think Jimmy G is awesome,” Williams noted on the RapSheet + Friends podcast during the offseason, per New York Post. “I think he has proven that he’s a quarterback that you can win with. In this league, it’s just hard to find. Quarterback is the toughest position and I think that’s why you see the contracts where they are.
Garoppolo Played Through Torn Ligaments in His Ankle
Garoppolo had a shaky start to the season, and it may be all we see from the quarterback for the rest of 2020. The 49ers quarterback threw for 1,096 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions while completing 67 percent of his passes in six games.
It is hard to decipher how much of Garoppolo’s inconsistent play is tied to his ankle injury. The Athletic’s David Lombardi reported Garoppolo played through torn ligaments in his ankle and the quarterback’s injury could require surgery.
“Jimmy Garoppolo may need surgery,” Lombardi said on Twitter. “He’s been playing on torn ligaments in his high ankle. We’ve seen uncharacteristic inaccuracy from him, and the simplest explanation is usually the correct one.”
Nick Mullens Is Expected to be the 49ers Starting QB in Jimmy G’s Absence
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Garoppolo will be sidelined for at least six weeks, and this period of time will be longer if surgery is required to repair the quarterback’s injury. Nick Mullens filled in at quarterback against the Seahawks in Garoppolo’s absence and is expected to be the starter against the Packers. As we have seen with all three Niners quarterbacks, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan will have a short leash on Mullens or C.J. Beathard if he feels a change needs to be made.
There is a very real scenario where Garoppolo and George Kittle do not play again this season unless the 49ers are able to make an unlikely playoff push. Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer believes the 49ers will seriously look at a quarterback change this offseason.
“Here’s my read on the situation: The Niners like Garoppolo, and maybe even more so now that they got a look at what they looked like with Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard under center,” Breer explained. “And I think they’d be fine going forward with him in 2021. But are their eyes going to be open to a potential upgrade? I think they will be.”
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