San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has had himself a rough week.
First, the Niners fell to a banged up Tennessee Titans team by 3 points on Thursday Night Football, dropping to 8-7 on the season and complicating their playoff scenarios beyond a point of comfort. Then, news broke that Garoppolo had seriously injured the thumb on his throwing hand during that contest, putting his availability in serious question for the rest of the regular season and potentially beyond. And finally, a quasi Twitter scandal broke out after San Francisco general manager John Lynch on Christmas Eve “liked” a disparaging tweet directed at his team’s starting quarterback.
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Five days later — on Wednesday, December 29 — Garoppolo broke his silence on the topic when asked directly about Lynch’s actions during a media session.
“John’s first class,” Garoppolo said. “Always has been, always will be. I’m sure he didn’t do it on purpose, but whatever social media mistake — stuff happens. I trust John.”
Background on Twitter Troubles Between Lynch, Garoppolo
GETTYJimmy Garoppolo (right), of the San Francisco 49ers, celebrates with general manager John Lynch (left) after a game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium on December 10, 2017, in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
The online post that initiated the controversy derisively and jokingly referenced the 49ers team plane leaving Garoppolo in Nashville due to his poor play against the Titans, which included two costly interceptions.
Lynch immediately denied that he had “liked” the post purposely, offering an explanation that, at the very least, veered away from the common excuse of “I got hacked,” which seemingly no one ever buys anymore even if it might actually be true.
“Apparently — while in Christmas Eve Mass with my family — I accidentally and unknowingly liked a tweet,” Lynch wrote on his own Twitter account not long after the scandal broke loose. “Never intended to and remain a huge believer in Jimmy. Merry Christmas to everyone.”
Lynch’s explanation is actually feasible. The original Twitter account that made the post tagged the personal account of the Niners GM in the caption. If Lynch had been using his phone to navigate the social media site and failed to properly exit out of the app and/or failed to successfully disengage from using his phone, the so-called mistake that ensued could have reasonably occurred by accident.
If it was truly a mistake, then it was an incredibly ill-timed and unfortunate one. However, Lynch’s reputation as an intelligent and respectful player and executive during his time in the NFL may lend him the benefit of the doubt with a larger swath of the public than would be afforded a current player or a more flamboyant and boisterous coach or executive.
Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked about the incident earlier in the week and said as much in his response.
“I think everyone in this building knows John pretty well,” Shanahan said. “And as soon as you read a tweet like that, I don’t think one person who knows John thinks that he did that. They’re wondering how he messed that up.”
Lynch’s reputation around the team and the league, as well as his relationship with Garoppolo, appears to have bought him the confidence of the quarterback. That most likely means Garoppolo’s comments Wednesday will more or less be the end of the Twitter talk in San Francisco — at least until the next wayward “like” or “send” button is pressed, either by accident or on purpose, and the merry-go-round starts up again.
Garoppolo’s Thumb Injury Not as Bad as Previously Reported
Getty 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo celebrates during a November 21, 2021, road win against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Clearing the air between himself and the team’s general manager was just one of several events occurring over the last few days that have started to turn a bad week back into a positive outlook for Garoppolo.
Prior to his media session, the New Orleans Saints fell to the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football, which took some of the sting out of the Niners’ close defeat in Tennessee four days earlier based on the NFC playoff implications tied to the Saints’ result.
Also on Wednesday, Garoppolo revealed that what was initially reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter to be a fracture to the thumb on the quarterback’s throwing hand was actually a Grade 3 UCL sprain.
Shanahan said that Garoppolo “has a chance” to play in the Niners’ home finale Sunday, January 2, against the Houston Texans. It is a crucial game as San Francisco is fighting for a Wildcard berth and will finish the season on the road against a resurgent Los Angeles Rams team also jockeying for both the NFC West Division title and greater playoff position against the other top teams in the conference.
49ers Jimmy Garoppolo Breaks Silence on GM Lynch, Twitter Troubles